Hi all, 

In my FRA I am asked the question: "Are the windows leading onto the escape route above 1.1m fire resisting". 

i am under the impression that windows below 1.1m and less than 1.8m in distance from flat entrances in a block of flats escape route have to be fire resisting. Is this true? 

 

The question has been flipped the wrong way around - on open deck approach flats with a single escape route it would only be windows with a bottom sill under 1.1m that should be FR - above that it's not an issue (assuming they don't face an external stair)

Where do I stand please if I need to replace two windows in different rooms with fire resistance ones that are fixed shut BUT in both cases they are both the only window in that room and therefore the only source of fresh air AND both are meant to be used as an exit in case of fire? I understand you can get self closing windows but that doesn’t solve the ventilation issue. Also what is the definition of fixed shut please? Can it mean windows that can open but can be locked or do they need to be made so they can never open? Thank you. 

Fixed shut usually means incapable of opening. What reason was given for changing them - where are they?

They are close to a fire escape. One is already 60m fire resistant but has one openable section so people could get out onto the fire escape if needed. 
 

The second is on the ground floor and not currently fire resistant. Are intumescent ventilation grilles or extractor fans acceptable in these circumstances? Thank you for any advice you can supply. 

Are these flats or commercial? If this is an external stair the following usually applies:

Where an external stairway is provided, any door or window (other than toilet windows) opening onto the stairway, or within 1.8 metres horizontally or 9 metres vertically of it, should be fire-resisting. Windows should be unopenable and doors should be self-closing. In exceptional circumstances, a small number of unprotected, openable windows may be allowed, provided that the rooms containing them are separated from the rest of the building by fire-resisting construction and the external stairway is not the only one from the upper storeys.

 

The top one is a flat and the bottom commercial. The top one in the flat is the most confusing as we were told it needed to have an openable window for ventilation as the room is a bedroom and so that people could get out of needed, according to building regs. The openable part of the window is 1.1m from the fire escape. The fire escape is external and the only access to a separate flat. Thank you for your help so far. 

Is a first floor bedroom window able to be openable if it’s made of fire resistant glass and 1.1m from the fire escape please?