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Fire warden checklist
What a fire warden needs to know, to have, and to do — before the alarm, during an evacuation, and after the all-clear. Print it, keep it with your warden pack, or work through it once a year with the people who hold the role.
Before: know these cold
- Your sweep area, and its boundary with the next warden’s.
- Every exit from your area, including the one you would never normally use.
- Your assembly point, and the alternative if it is unreachable or unsafe.
- Who else is a warden, and who takes over if you are away or off site that day.
- How to reach the current on-site list — and that it works on your own phone.
- Anyone in your area who needs assistance to evacuate, and what has been agreed for them.
Before: have these to hand
- A high-visibility vest or marker that identifies you at the assembly point.
- A charged phone, with the on-site list reachable on it.
- A torch, if your area has any route that would be dark without power.
- The incident controller’s number, written somewhere that does not need a phone.
During: the sweep
- Put on the vest first. People follow someone they can identify.
- Move through your area by a fixed route, the same one every time.
- Check the places people do not think of: toilets, plant rooms, meeting rooms with the door shut, quiet rooms.
- Direct people to the nearest safe exit — not the one they came in by, if it is further.
- Close doors behind you where it is safe to do so.
- Leave. Do not stay to keep searching, and do not go back for anything.
During: the assembly point
- Open the on-site list and work through it out loud.
- Mark each person accounted for as you confirm them, not from memory afterwards.
- Ask about people you expected and cannot see — colleagues usually know who left at lunchtime.
- Report anyone still unaccounted for to the incident controller, with their last known location.
- Keep people at the assembly point. The instinct to drift back inside is strong and needs interrupting.
After the all-clear
- Only stand people down when the incident controller or the fire service says so.
- Note anything that went wrong while it is still fresh: a blocked exit, an alarm nobody heard, a name on the list that should not have been.
- Keep the completed roll-call. It is the evidence that you accounted for everyone.
- Raise anything that needs fixing before the next drill, not at it.
Frequently asked questions
How many fire wardens do we need?▾
Enough that every area has one and every warden has a deputy, allowing for leave, shifts and people being off site. One per floor is a common starting point but is not a rule — size it to your sweep areas, not your headcount.
What if a warden is away on the day?▾
That is what the deputy is for, and it is the most common gap in an otherwise sound plan. Check cover the way you check anything else that has to be there — by name, for each area, on the day.
Should wardens carry a printed list?▾
A printed list is out of date the moment it prints, and it is usually printed at the desk you have just evacuated. A live list on a phone is current and travels with the warden.
Related guides
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Create your free organisationThis guide is general information, not legal advice. Check your own obligations and, where needed, take professional advice.