Protecting life safety through passive fire protection assessment
The City of London has a unique concentration of large commercial office buildings, alongside residential developments and mixed-use premises. Fire compartmentation in these complex multi-tenanted buildings is essential.
Our fire compartmentation surveys in the City identify deficiencies in fire stopping, assess compartment wall and floor construction, and evaluate cavity barrier provision in commercial and residential buildings.
Whether you manage a major commercial office building, a mixed-use development near Barbican, or a residential scheme in the City fringe, our RICS regulated surveys provide comprehensive assessment.
Fire compartmentation in City of London buildings
City of London buildings range from historic structures to multi-tenant commercial offices, where compartmentation lines are often disrupted by services and fit-outs.
Local building stock and issues
- Multi-tenant commercial office buildings with frequent fit-out changes
- Historic and listed buildings with later alterations
- Service risers, ceiling voids and penetrations crossing compartment lines
- Mixed-use buildings with shared escape routes
What a compartmentation survey covers
- Review of compartment walls, floors and lines against available drawings
- Identification of breaches at service penetrations, risers and voids
- Condition of fire-stopping, cavity barriers and fire-resisting elements
- A prioritised schedule of findings to support remediation planning
The Square Mile’s compartmentation work is dominated by multi-tenant office buildings where every CAT A and CAT B fit-out cycle leaves its mark: new service penetrations above suspended ceilings, data cabling routed through compartment walls, altered riser doors and fire-stopping that was never reinstated after the last tenant’s works. Around Smithfield and Fleet Street, Victorian warehouse and institutional stock converted to modern office use presents original construction that never anticipated today’s compartment lines, while the post-war and modern towers carry complex riser strategies where a single unsealed penetration can compromise several floors. The Barbican and Golden Lane estates — the City’s principal residential blocks — add ageing original construction and decades of flat-level alterations to the picture, with the Fire Safety Act placing the common-parts assessment duty squarely on those responsible for the buildings.
Surveying occupied City buildings is as much logistics as inspection. We agree out-of-hours access windows with tenants and building management, and our reports separate landlord-demise findings — risers, common parts and structure — from tenant-demise findings within the floors, so responsibility and remedial cost sit with the right party. The prioritised schedule is written to slot directly into the building’s fire risk assessment action plan and planned maintenance programme rather than sitting as a standalone report.
What to send, and what you receive
What to send before we quote
- The building address and postcode (EC)
- Drawings or fire strategy, if available
- Tenure and occupation
- Any existing fire reports
- Your timescale
What you receive
- A written compartmentation survey report
- Findings with photographs and locations
- Prioritised remediation recommendations
- Clear advice on what may need specialist input
Fire compartmentation survey scope in City of London
Fire Stopping
Assessment of fire stopping in City commercial buildings, where frequent tenant fit-out works create cumulative breaches in compartment lines through service penetrations and construction junctions.
Compartment Walls & Floors
Inspection of compartment walls and floors between tenancies and between different uses in multi-storey commercial and mixed-use buildings, checking for correct fire resistance ratings.
Service Penetrations
Survey of all mechanical, electrical and data cable penetrations through compartment lines, particularly where IT infrastructure creates dense penetration patterns in commercial buildings.
Cavity Barriers
Review of cavity barrier provision in external wall rainscreen systems, raised access floors and suspended ceiling voids common in City commercial buildings.
Other services we provide in City of London
Passive Compartmentation Assessment
Parent London service page for this instruction type.
View Passive Compartmentation AssessmentFire Safety Assessments in the City
Fire risk and external wall assessments for City of London buildings.
View ServiceEWS1 Form & External Wall Advice in the City
External wall fire review certificates for residential developments.
View ServiceBuilding Surveys in the City
RICS regulated building condition surveys across the City of London.
View ServiceFire compartmentation survey FAQs for City of London
Why do City commercial buildings need compartmentation surveys?
Commercial buildings undergo frequent tenant fit-out works creating penetrations through compartment walls and floors. Over successive tenancies, cumulative breaches significantly compromise compartmentation.
How do tenant alterations affect compartmentation?
Each fit-out involves new data cabling, mechanical services and electrical installations that penetrate compartment lines. Without proper fire stopping, these create routes for fire and smoke spread.
Do City residential developments need compartmentation surveys?
Yes. Residential developments in the City are subject to compartmentation requirements, and higher-risk buildings (at least 18 metres or seven storeys, with two or more residential units) have additional Building Safety Act obligations.
What happens when compartmentation issues are found?
We provide a detailed report with all deficiencies, severity ratings and remediation recommendations. For commercial buildings, we can coordinate remediation with tenant lease obligations.
What this costs in City of London
City of London sits inside our London coverage, so an instruction here is quoted on the same published scale as the rest of London rather than on a separate local rate.
Typical fees: Fire Compartmentation Surveys instructions in London typically start from £380 plus VAT; we confirm a fixed fee after scoping the building and the brief.
The Fire Compartmentation Surveys London for Blocks, Schools & Estates page sets out the full scope behind that figure.