Hi R

My crystal ball says that it will only be a matter of time before some elements of rules that are being put in place for defined "high rise" buildings will trickle down to smaller structures whether via legislation or best practice. After all the definition of "high rise" is substantially an arbitrary one based on the capability of fire appliances decades ago.

My crystal ball does not tell me whether or not accreditation will become mandatory for higher or lower risk premises, not least since defining the level of risk is dependent not only on the number and height of the storeys, but other variables.

However, my crystal ball does say that those who do fire risk assessments will be more in the spotlight than in the past and that will not be limited to those doing FRAs for defined "high rise" structures.

No harm in doing a fire qualification, though not necessarily the NEBOSH one, but going forward people will be looking at how much expertise FRA people have in terms of structural and fire engineering and, where more relevant, process safety issues. 

If nothing else gaining a fire qualification might make you better placed to consider whether your external fire risk assessors are up to the mark. Ditto whether their FRAs are worth the paper they are printed on. You might not be able to identify some of the issues but you would be more likely to pick up the more glaring errors.

I would like to be able to say that I think that there will be a fair few prosecutions of individuals who have done FRAs that are not up to scratch but that's not actually likely due to resourcing constraints within those responsible for regulation.

In my mind FRA during construction is a whole different ball game to the completed building.  I have done hundreds of such fra's and found everyone different, obviously due to the continuing construction.

There are many different accreditation companies, NEBOSH fire cert will open a door into one of them, whichever you choose.  There are always some hoops to jump through but most if not all require evidence of previous, recent, fire risk assessments.  They all require a fee £££

I was always amused by some of the "failings" when I came across hazards that had not been risk asessed for example I went up onto a mezzanine where floor boards had been removed to allow access for electricians.  There were lots of holes a man could fall through and while up there I was talking with the Project Manager and asked him what we would do if the lights went out. Then guess what?  The lights went out haha.   Proved my point.

Assessing a high rise uder construction should be very interesting as each floor will probably be in a different stage of construction so the risks may not be the same on all floors.  You have to keep your wits about you as all hazards may not be made safe.

I think they are all as good as each other as long as they are recognised by whoever makes the rules