BS 5839-9
Twice yearly
24 hours minimum
Every designated refuge
Mon–Fri 8am–5pm. 24/7 emergency line out of hours.
If your evacuation strategy relies on anyone waiting in a refuge — a protected lobby or stair landing — then that person needs to be able to talk to the people managing the evacuation. Waiting alone in a stairwell with no way to say where you are, and no confirmation anyone is coming, is not an evacuation plan.
Emergency voice communication systems provide exactly that: a call point at each refuge connected to a master panel at the fire panel or reception, with battery standby so it survives a mains failure.
Systems are designed to BS 5839-9, which covers refuge points, fire telephones, disabled toilet alarms and the master station. The design question is where refuges actually are in your evacuation strategy — and on a surprising number of sites that has never been formally decided.
We work from the fire strategy and the fire risk assessment. Each designated refuge gets a call point, each is labelled, and the master station clearly identifies which refuge is calling so a marshal is not guessing between floors.
Installation is usually straightforward retrofit — two-core fire-rated cable back to a master panel. Servicing is twice yearly, checking every outstation, the master, the battery standby and audibility at both ends.
Designated refuges identified from the fire strategy and risk assessment.
Type B outstations at each refuge, labelled and clearly identifiable at the master.
Type A fire telephone outstations where the strategy requires them.
Panel sited at the fire alarm panel or reception with battery standby.
Call systems and reset units, with signage and staff response guidance.
Every outstation and the master tested, with certification issued.
We confirm where refuges are, or flag that they have never been designated.
Outstation schedule, cable routes, master station position and a fixed price.
Fire-rated cabling, outstations fitted and labelled, audibility tested both ways.
Marshals shown how the master works and what to do when a refuge calls.
Twice-yearly service added to your compliance calendar with certification.
Refuge points are Type B in almost all buildings. Type A fire telephones are for the fire service and are specified by the fire strategy, not by preference.
If your evacuation strategy uses refuges, yes. If it does not, the first question is whether it should — most multi-storey buildings with disabled access need a defined assisted evacuation route.
Yes. It is a separate two-core fire-rated system, so retrofit is usually simple and non-disruptive.
Whoever is coordinating the evacuation — normally the fire marshal at the panel or reception. Response procedure is part of handover training.
Twice a year, testing every outstation and the master station along with battery standby.
We will review the strategy and tell you what communication provision it needs.
