Hinkley Point C contractor served fire enforcement notice — lessons for construction safety and ISO compliance

Hinkley Point C contractor hit with fire enforcement notice — a red flag for construction safety and compliance

Key facts

The main contractor at Hinkley Point C, already facing two separate prosecutions for health and safety failings, has been served with a fire enforcement notice. The notice follows a history of regulatory intervention on the project and signals continuing enforcement focus from the Health and Safety Executive and other authorities.

Why this matters to the construction industry

This is not just another story about a large project in trouble. It underlines a persistent truth for construction, especially in major infrastructure and high-hazard sectors such as energy and nuclear: fire safety lapses are not isolated operational problems, they are systemic risk indicators that threaten people, programme and reputation.

For contractors, subcontractors and clients the implications are immediate and practical. Regulatory notices and prosecutions can halt works, trigger additional inspections, increase insurance scrutiny and unsettle stakeholders. For businesses operating under complex delivery models, a fire enforcement notice is a sharp reminder that fire risk controls must be as disciplined and auditable as any other critical path activity.

What organisations on similar projects should learn

Organisations should treat this incident as an object lesson in defensive compliance and proactive risk management. Key lessons include:

• Fire controls must be integrated into planning and procurement, not bolted on after design or during commissioning.
• Temporary works, storage of combustible materials and hot work activities are frequent ignition points and require documented, enforced controls.
• Contractor and subcontractor competence must be verified and re‑verified on safety critical tasks.
• Regulatory engagement should be timely and transparent; avoidance or delay amplifies regulatory response.

Immediate and medium‑term actions for construction sites

Organisations should prioritise the following actions now:

1. Pause and review: Undertake focused inspections on hot work, temporary storage and welfare facilities to identify immediate ignition risks and remove them or apply robust controls.
2. Permit to work: Ensure hot work and confined space permits are current, authorised by competent persons and that permit compliance is actively monitored.
3. Competence and supervision: Reassess supervisory arrangements for safety critical activities and verify the competence of subcontractors with documentary evidence.
4. Emergency preparedness: Confirm fire response plans, evacuation routes and muster points are current and have been exercised with site personnel and emergency services where appropriate.
5. Incident assurance: Review recent near misses and minor fires for systemic weaknesses and ensure timely investigations with corrective actions tracked to closure.

Tie the fixes to standards and governance

To translate those actions into a durable compliance posture, map them to recognised standards and legal duties. ISO 45001 provides a structured framework for occupational health and safety management that helps embed risk assessment, operational control and continual improvement across an organisation. Synergos Consultancy’s ISO 45001 guidance is a practical starting point: https://synergosconsultancy.co.uk/iso45001/

Key ISO 45001 elements to apply:

• Context and leadership — ensure senior leaders take visible ownership of fire safety and allocate resources for risk controls.
• Risk assessment and operational control — document fire hazard identification, implement controls and maintain evidence of compliance.
• Competence and awareness — maintain training records and competency matrices for all safety critical roles.
• Performance evaluation and improvement — use audits, inspections and incident investigations to drive corrective actions.

ISO 9001 helps with contractor selection, procurement controls and supplier monitoring, so procurement processes can reduce the chance of unsafe subcontractors being engaged. See https://synergosconsultancy.co.uk/iso9001/

ISO 14001 is useful where fire incidents have environmental consequences, for example where runoff or contaminated materials are involved: https://synergosconsultancy.co.uk/iso14001/

For construction projects in the UK, statutory duties under the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations remain central. Principal contractors and designers should ensure fire safety is addressed in preconstruction information, construction phase plans and in coordination meetings.

A practical checklist mapped to standards

Use this short checklist to convert learning into action:

• Immediate: Conduct a focused fire risk sweep of active workfaces and storey‑high material stacks; suspend high‑risk activities lacking controls.
• Short term: Reinforce permit‑to‑work systems and authorisation matrices; provide refresher training for supervisors.
• Medium term: Commission an independent compliance audit against ISO 45001 and site procedures; close high‑risk findings within agreed timescales.
• Ongoing: Integrate supplier prequalification and SSIP accreditation into procurement; maintain records and spot check subcontractor competence. Synergos can advise on SSIP and competency frameworks: https://synergosconsultancy.co.uk/ssip/ and https://synergosconsultancy.co.uk/competent-person/

How independent support can help

Major projects often lack the internal bandwidth to deliver sustained improvement while meeting programme demands. Independent specialists can provide rapid audits, embed corrective actions, train supervisors and design realistic emergency exercises. Synergos Consultancy offers practical health and safety support including risk assessment and training resources: https://synergosconsultancy.co.uk/health-and-safety-risk-assessment/ and https://synergosconsultancy.co.uk/health-and-safety-training/

Final thoughts

A fire enforcement notice on a high‑profile construction project is both a regulatory and commercial alarm bell. For the industry it is a reminder that fire safety must be treated with the same rigour as structural design, critical path planning and quality assurance. Implementing disciplined risk management, evidenced through standards such as ISO 45001 and ISO 9001, reduces the chance of incidents, limits regulatory exposure and protects people and programmes.