Fire Safety and Evacuation procedures

It is important to keep safe while on campus, and that includes knowing how to get to safety during an emergency situation and building evacuation. Students, applicants and their carers can access information about fire safety and evacuation plans on the Fire safety webpages of the University of Reading's Health and Safety Services website.

What is a GEEP and a PEEP?

GEEP stands for General Emergency Evacuation Plan, and these apply to everyone who uses a building. GEEP's are designed to be used in emergency situations to ensure there is a plan for evacuating everyone from the building and getting them to a place of safety.

Best practice is to make yourself aware of your surroundings, and make sure you know what to do in an emergency.

Make sure you:

know where the fire alarms are
know where the fire exits and fire assembly point for the building are
do not attempt to use the lifts in the event of a fire emergency
know where the disabled fire refuge points are in your building (if needed)

All users of University of Reading sites should familiarise themselves with the GEEP for each building they reside in. For any queries please contact a Fire Safety Adviser.

PEEP

PEEP stands for Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan, and these only apply to certain individuals.

A PEEP is a personal plan for people who require assistance or special arrangements in order to get to safety during an evacuation. PEEPs are created between the individual student and the Fire Safety Adviser, then disseminated to Security, Fire Safety, Disability Advisory Service, Academic Tutors, and Disability Representatives, so that colleagues are aware of those who require assistance. If you think you might need a PEEP, please fill out the University's PEEP form.

How do I know if I need a PEEP?

If you are not sure whether you need a PEEP try answering the following questions:

When the fire alarm goes off, are you able to evacuate the building on your own quickly (approximately 2.5mins) without assistance?
(if your answer is no to question 1, you need to fill out our PEEP form)
Do you use or need mobility equipment or other types of assistance that may affect your ability to evacuate the building during an evacuation?
(if your answer is yes to question 2, you need to fill out our PEEP form)

NOTE: If you do not tell us what your needs are, you may be in danger during an emergency situation.

How to tell us you need support:

If you know that you may struggle to stay safe during an evacuation, please tell us straight away.

It is your responsibility to inform the Fire Safety Adviser, if you require a PEEP, so that your specific needs can be addressed in case of emergency evacuation.

During an evacuation

It is the responsibility of everyone to ensure that anyone who needs support during an evacuation is identified and appropriately supported, this means letting staff know as soon as possible if you think someone needs help, including you. Never be shy to ask for help.

Fire Wardens

Trained Fire Wardens are readily available to assist in all buildings, during working hours. For out of hours support use the refuge communications intercom, and if necessary the emergency phone number for Security, as per the PEEP and GEEP guidance.

For any queries please contact the Fire Safety Advisers.

What if I am still not sure what to do?

If you think you might need a PEEP, complete our PEEP form.

If you are unsure how to support someone, refer to their PEEP, or suggest they get a PEEP (if they have not yet done so).

If you are still unsure, or have further questions, please speak to the Fire Safety Adviser.