Balcony fire safety

Advice on how to keep your balcony fire safe as part of our communal area and private balconies storage policy.

Balcony fires can cause problems for our fire and rescue services. If a fire starts on your balcony, it can spread faster than a fire inside your building. The flames can ignite items on other balconies, spreading the fire even more quickly.

We have developed a communal area and private balconies storage policy with residents. The aim is to keep you, your family, and your neighbours safe, lowering the risk of fires on balconies.

Balcony storage

Items allowed

  • metal framed tables and chairs
  • clothes line, clothes must not overhang balcony railings but placed as close to balcony doors as possible, there have been incidents of cigarette ends being thrown from other balconies presenting a fire risk
  • living plants and flowers, must be placed so they do not pose a hazard of falling, and planted in pots made of limited combustible materials. 

Items not allowed

  • plastic or upholstered furniture on balconies as these are combustible items
  • barbecues on balconies, they pose a serious fire risk and falling embers could set light to other items on balconies
  • gas canisters, or patio heaters
  • e-bikes and e-scooters, lithium batteries can start incredibly ferocious fires, which are hard to control and spread extremely quickly
  • combustible items, this includes flammable liquids, paints, oils, paint thinners, fuel, and sources of ignition (fuel-powered equipment such as generators or gardening tools)
  • excessive furniture or items cluttering the balcony
  • gazebos, tents, sheds or storage boxes, wooden furniture, screening or matting of any description, rubbish or recycling
  • trailing cables, sockets, or electrical white goods
  • curtaining or enclosing off the balcony on any side, for example, bamboo screens, artificial trellis and plants
  • gating off any communal area or balcony

If you need assistance with removing anything, contact your tenancy officer using the online form.

Smoking on balconies

  • always ensure cigarettes or other smoking materials are completely extinguished using a proper ashtray 
  • never drop cigarettes over the side of your balcony, the wind can take cigarette ends and ignite items on other balconies or the dry grass below