The United Kingdom’s fire safety arrangements at nuclear sites have been positively received by international experts following a recent European peer review.
The review was part of the European Nuclear Safety Regulators Group’s (ENSREG) second Topical Peer Review (TPR 2), which focused on fire safety as a central theme. Although the UK is no longer an EU member, it voluntarily participated in the review as an ENSREG observer.
The national assessment submitted by the UK drew on input from six licensed nuclear operators in Great Britain and inspectors from the Office for Nuclear Regulation’s (ONR) Nuclear Internal Hazards and Site Safety team. Reviewers commended the transparency of the UK’s self-assessment, which enabled a robust peer review process.
ENSREG identified four examples of good performance in the UK’s nuclear fire safety practices. These included a comprehensive evaluation of combustible cladding risks inspired by the Grenfell Tower fire, enhanced safety verification steps for hot work at Sizewell B, the deployment of position monitoring systems for fire doors at multiple sites, and automatic fire suppression systems on material transport tugs at Sellafield.
The UK’s report also acknowledged three areas for improvement. These included better evaluation of compound hazards at Springfields Fuels, improved alignment between operational load management and safety cases at Dounreay, and the finalisation of a site-wide fire safety strategy at Sellafield. ENSREG endorsed these as ongoing areas of development.
Participating countries in TPR 2 are now expected to develop national action plans addressing the review findings. The UK’s involvement—despite its EU exit—was seen as a chance to maintain alignment with European fire safety standards and foster international collaboration.
Diego Lisbona, ONR’s Head of Profession for Nuclear Internal Hazards and Site Safety, stated that the review’s findings reflect the UK’s effective regulatory regime and recognised strengths. He affirmed ONR’s ongoing commitment to collaborative initiatives like TPR 2 as part of its mission to uphold transparency and improve sector-wide safety.
