Daycares, schools and care homes have one thing in common that changes everything about fire safety planning: many of the people inside cannot get themselves out. Toddlers do not evacuate on their own. Residents with dementia may not understand an alarm. A Grade 1 class needs a teacher who knows exactly which door to use. The BC Fire Code treats these buildings differently for that reason, and fire departments review their plans with extra care. Here is what operators need to know.

Do these facilities need a fire safety plan?

Yes, in almost every case. Section 2.8 of the BC Fire Code requires fire emergency procedures, and a fire safety plan, for:

• every building containing a care, treatment or detention occupancy
• every building containing a school, college or university, or a daycare facility
• every building the BC Building Code requires to have a fire alarm system

That means a requirement exists whether or not your building has an alarm system, as long as it contains one of these uses. A daycare on the ground floor of a mixed-use building brings the whole building into the conversation.

What about a daycare in a house?

The Office of the Fire Commissioner’s guidance on the Fire Safety Act says that where part of a private dwelling is used as a daycare and parents and children regularly attend, that part may no longer count as a private dwelling and can be inspected as part of a municipality’s risk-based compliance monitoring. If you run child care from your home, talk to your local fire department about what they expect.

What the plan must address

Every BC fire safety plan covers the same core items under Article 2.8.2.1: emergency procedures, the appointment and organization of supervisory staff, training, diagrams of fire emergency systems, fire drills, control of fire hazards, and inspection and maintenance of safety features. For these occupancies, three of those items carry far more weight.

Evacuation of persons requiring assistance

The code requires the emergency procedures to include special provisions for evacuating persons requiring assistance. In a care home that can mean most residents. The plan should say who moves whom, by what route, in what order, and where they go. In larger care facilities that may include moving residents horizontally to another fire compartment on the same floor rather than down the stairs, where the building is designed for it.

Enough staff on duty

The code requires a sufficient number of supervisory staff to be on duty in care, treatment and detention occupancies to carry out the emergency procedures. BC replaced the national code’s daycare section with its own Section 2.10 on community care facilities, which says those facilities must be staffed in accordance with the Community Care and Assisted Living Act and its regulations. The fire safety plan and your licensing staffing have to fit together, especially on night shifts.

Drawings that work for responders

Fire crews arriving at a care home need to know at a glance where residents sleep, which areas are locked or secured, where the fire alarm panel is, and where the fire separations are. Clear, accurate CAD floor plans are not decoration here.

Fire drill frequency

The BC Fire Code is strict for these buildings:

• Daycare centres and Group B occupancies (care, treatment and detention): fire drills at intervals not greater than one month
• Schools attended by children: total evacuation fire drills at least three times in each of the fall and spring terms
• Other occupancies, including most colleges and universities: supervisory staff drills at intervals not greater than 12 months

The person in responsible charge decides how drills are run, taking into account the occupants, the building’s safety features and the fire department’s requirements. In a care home, a monthly drill is rarely a full evacuation of residents. It is usually a staff drill that tests the response, the communication and the assistance assignments. Our article on fire warden responsibilities explains how wardens fit in.

BC-specific rules for daycares and schools

BC’s 2024 amendments to the Fire Code add a few rules that operators should know about.

Monthly fire prevention inspections in larger daycares

Staff of daycare centres where more than 10 children are cared for must conduct fire prevention inspections, in conformance with the fire safety plan, at intervals not greater than one month. That is a separate task from the monthly drill. Your plan should include the checklist staff use and a place to record it.

Limits on artwork and paper on walls

In community care facilities under Section 2.10, which include licensed daycares, combustible materials such as artwork and teaching materials attached to walls must not exceed 20 per cent of the area of each wall. BC applies a similar limit in school classrooms, covering both walls and ceilings. It is one of the most common findings we see in schools and child care centres, especially near the end of a school year.

Storage and waste

Daycare waste receptacles must be non-combustible, and flammable and combustible liquids must be stored in conformance with the code and in areas children cannot reach.

Practical tips from our site visits

• Keep a current list of anyone who needs individual help to evacuate, and assign a named staff member and a backup
• Make sure evacuation cribs, wheelchairs or evacuation chairs are where the plan says they are
• Post the fire emergency procedures on every floor area, as the code requires, in language staff can follow quickly
• Brief new and casual staff on their fire duties before their first shift. The code requires supervisory staff to be trained before they take on fire safety responsibilities
• Plan for the assembly area in bad weather. Children and frail residents cannot stand outside for long, so name a warm, safe secondary location

Frequently asked questions

Is a licensing inspection the same as a fire inspection?

No. Child care and community care licensing officers work under provincial licensing legislation, while fire inspections happen under the Fire Safety Act and the BC Fire Code. Both may look at your emergency procedures, so it pays to keep one consistent plan that satisfies both.

Does a small group daycare need monthly drills?

The BC Fire Code requires drills in daycare centres at intervals not greater than one month. How the code applies to a small operation, particularly one in a home, depends on how the space is classified, so confirm with your local fire department.

Do schools need a separate plan for portables?

Portables and outbuildings need to be covered. Usually they are included in the school’s fire safety plan, with their own floor plans and evacuation routes, rather than written up as a separate plan.

A plan built for the people inside

GetFirePlan Fire Safety Inc. has prepared more than 1,000 fire safety plans in BC since 2003, including plans for daycares, schools and care facilities across Burnaby, Surrey, Vancouver and the Fraser Valley. We visit the site, map the assistance needs and draw the plans fire crews actually use. For a broader look at plan contents, see how a fire safety plan is made. Pricing is upfront and approval is guaranteed. Request a quote through our contact page or call (778) 574-2895.