Bonfire Night: Top Safety Tips

Bonfire night can be a time for family and friends to gather and enjoy autumnal nights outside. Whatever you’re planning for 5th November this year, read our top bonfire and firework safety tips for Guy Fawkes Night.

How do you keep safe on bonfire night?

Rather than run the risk of lighting a fire or fireworks at home, attend an organized event if you can.

Wear gloves when holding sparklers
Hold sparklers away from your body and wear gloves

If you do plan to celebrate bonfire night at home, follow these top tips to stay safe

  1. Always follow the fireworks code
  2. Keep pets and young children away from bonfires and fireworks
  3. Store fireworks securely in a metal box away from anything that could ignite or cause a spark
  4. If you are using sparklers, always wear gloves, hold them at arm’s length away from others and place them in a bucket of cold water when they are finished
  5. Have a Watermist Fire Extinguisher to hand. They are non-toxic, leave no residue to clean up and can be used on wood, paper, clothing and electrical items
  6. Build bonfires away from garden sheds, fences and hedges
  7. Never use flammable liquids such as lighter fluid or petrol to start a bonfire and never light the fire in high winds
  8. Always supervise your bonfire and extinguish it using a bucket of water if it is still burning when your celebrations have finished
  9. Keep a bucket of water or hosepipe nearby
  10. Keep a burns kit or first aid kit at home in case of minor burns or injuries

What do I need for bonfire night?

We recommend the following additional safety items for bonfire night:

St John Ambulance Burn Kit
Have a St John Ambulance Burn Kit to hand on bonfire night

Can I store fireworks that I don’t use?

It is not advisable to store fireworks for any length of time at home as they are explosives and could be very dangerous. If you are intending to store fireworks, ensure they are kept dry in a metal container. Store them in a place where the temperature does not change significantly (for example not on a window sill) and away from anything that could ignite or cause sparks such as electrical items, heaters, matches or lighters. Make sure they are not stored near other combustible materials like card or wood and place them out of reach of children and pets. Always follow manufacturer guidelines for storage periods.

Safelincs and NFCC launch free Online Home Fire Safety Check resource

Safelincs are working in partnership with the National Fire Chiefs Council to launch a new Online Home Fire Safety Check (OHFSC) tool, available free of charge to all Fire Rescue Services in England.

Safelincs is pleased to announce the launch of a joint venture working in partnership with the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) and the Home Office’s Fire Kills campaign, the Online Home Fire Safety Check Tool. This innovative online assessment tool will be made available to all households across England and will enable them to complete a home assessment to help identify fire hazards in their home. The tool will also suggest changes that can be easily made to reduce the risk of a fire.

National Fire Chiefs Council and Safelincs
Representatives from National Fire Chiefs Council and Safelincs at the South West Regional Workshop, Taunton, Somerset

Safelincs donated their time and expertise to build the system and will support and provide the system free of charge to all fire and rescue services across England. This tool will complement the NFCC Person-Centred Framework.  Neil Odin, Chair of NFCC’s Prevention Committee and NFCC’s Prevention Programme Executive, said, “We have been overwhelmed by the positive feedback from FRSs who attended the conference, with many having already signed up to the on-boarding process.” He went on to say “In the long-term NFCC would like to see all FRSs adopt the new Online Home Fire Safety Check and use as an integral part of their prevention activities. This, we hope, will provide a consistent approach to identifying and logging issues related to home safety prevention activities, and assist with centrally capturing valuable data which will be made available for all FRSs to use and plan future prevention strategies.”

Online Home Fire Safety Check
The Online Home Fire Safety Check Tool is available to all households in England

Safelincs have a passion for sharing free fire safety information with the public and working collaboratively with Fire Kills and NFCC to develop this online tool gives us great satisfaction. Harry Dewick-Eisele, MD Safelincs said ‘This co-operation has created a fire safety tool that makes a huge difference to people. It is easy to use and delivers well-tailored advice’

Complete the online home fire safety check for your home to see if you could improve your fire safety.

Angie Dewick-Eisele

Director

Angie Dewick-Eisele is co-founder of Safelincs Ltd, one of the leading fire safety providers in the UK. Angie was Marketing Manager for many years and as Director is these days responsible for Content Management.

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