In the light of this summer's tragedy at Lakanal House in London, the fire safety duties of social housing landlords have come under the spotlight. Susan Horridge and Gary Ekpenyoung examine the main legal requirements.

In the light of recent high profile fires and the relentless increase in fire losses, you can be forgiven for wondering whether fire safety in the UK is going backwards rather than forwards. Mike Wood examines our risk based approach and considers whether it is fit for purpose.

An unexpected increase in accidental domestic fire deaths revealed by the latest statistics suggests that a review of home fire safety is needed. In particular, variations in standards and regulations around the UK need to be addressed says Gerald Jones.

The principle of fire compartmentation is easy enough to understand, so why are there still so many examples of deficiencies in this area? Bill Parlor takes up the cudgels on behalf of better built-in protection.

Why should end users use third party certificated companies when sourcing contractors for the design, installation, commissioning and maintenance of fire detection and alarm systems? Julian Stanton sets out the benefits of doing so and explains the approval process that such companies go through.

After more than two years' work, the revision to BS 5306-3 on the commissioning and maintenance of portable fire extinguishers is published. Keith Goodwin highlights some of the main changes.

Andy Nicholson sets out the fire safety strategy for the Natural History Museum's new Darwin Centre, which combines scientific research, public access and the storage of valuable specimens.

When the terminal building at Stansted airport underwent an extension, it had to remain operational throughout the project. Arthur Nelmes explains how a 160m wide fire curtain provided a cost-effective solution.

On completion next year, Heron Tower will be one of London's tallest buildings. David Stow and Graeme Flint discuss the fire engineering work they undertook to help maintain the architectural vision of multi-storey open spaces in the building.

With more than a thousand fires a year, prisons in England and Wales need very specific means to suppress fires and allow the safe but secure evacuation of cells. Kelvin Annable reports on some ground breaking research.

Guidance for fire safety in car parks is based on data on vehicles which are now decades old. Here we report on the findings of a three year government-sponsored project carried out by BRE to investigate the fire characteristics of modern vehicles and the potential fire spread hazard in car parks.