Quick Fire – Fiona Perrin

Fiona Perrin, Innovative Safety Leader and Fire Engineer, Royal Academy of Arts

What does ‘fire protection’ mean to you? 

Fire protection is first and foremost about life safety.  This could include both passive (e.g. fire stopping and fire doors) and active fire protection measures (e.g. fire alarms) and even take into consideration how humans behave in a fire scenario (i.e. human factors).  I currently work in a heritage building.  So, fire protection to me also includes property protection and ensuring we protect our beautiful building and its history for future generations to enjoy.

What made you want to work in the industry? 

I kind of fell into fire (thankfully not literally).  I have worked in health and safety for about 20 years.  I saw fire safety as something a lot of safety professionals dabbled in but never excelled at.  So, I wanted to change that and started to expand my knowledge and confidence in all things safety – from large scale events, pyrotechnics and fire engineering.

If you could talk to your younger self, what would you say? 

Worry less, embrace those challenges and learn from your mistakes.

Describe a funny thing that happened to you recently? 

I had to research the safety implications of elephant poop!

What three traits define you? 

Dedicated, enthusiastic, supportive

Rebecca Morpeth Spayne,
Editor, International Fire Buyer
Tel: +44 (0) 1622 823 922
Email: [email protected]