Greater Manchester college saved by sprinklers

Real life school fire underlines urgent need to protect new education buildings with sprinklers.

Summary

A fire in a third-floor science laboratory at a Greater Manchester college has demonstrated once again the vital role sprinklers can play in protecting pupils, staff, firefighters and valuable community assets.

Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) attended the incident on 11 March 2026. On arrival, the incident commander confirmed that the premises’ sprinkler system had activated, containing the fire to the room of origin, preventing it from spreading throughout the college building. Firefighters extinguished the fire using appropriate firefighting media. No injuries were reported.

This incident stands in stark contrast to the 2020 fire at Ravensdale Infant School in Derbyshire, where the absence of sprinkler protection contributed to devastating damage. The school was destroyed by fire disrupting pupils, parents and staff until it was rebuilt with sprinklers at a cost of £6.9 million reopening in 2022. Following a pledge from the city council following the fire to fit sprinklers in any new school they build is fitted with sprinklers.

The British Automatic Fire Sprinkler Association (BAFSA) perspective is that the Greater Manchester college fire highlights why sprinklers should be mandatory in all newly built schools and colleges in England. At the very least, BAFSA is calling on government to maintain the existing ‘sprinkler expectation’ in any revised version of Building Bulletin 100 (BB100), the Department for Education’s fire safety design guidance for schools.

Sprinkler systems are already required in new school buildings in Scotland and are a condition of government funding in Wales. Yet they are not mandatory in schools in England or Northern Ireland, despite mounting evidence of their effectiveness and the wider educational, financial andcommunity costs caused by school fires.

A [1] report commissioned by the National Fire Sprinkler Network has warned that school fires cost more than £126 million each year and cause widespread disruption to children’s education, with six incidents every week damaging at least one classroom. The research also found that more than 97% of school fires over the past 14 years occurred in buildings without sprinkler protection. Where sprinklers were installed and activated, they contained or controlled the fire in 71% ofincidents and extinguished it in a further 27%, giving an overall effectiveness rate of 98%.

This incident in Greater Manchester reinforces why sprinklers matter. The sprinkler system did what it was designed to do, it contained the fire, limited fire damage contributing to keeping a vital educational building in use without that protection, the outcome could have been very different.

BAFSA, working in conjunction with the NFSN and the NFCC, is urging ministers to act on the evidence and ensure that new schools and colleges in England are designed with automatic fire suppression from the outset. The association says the cost of prevention is far outweighed by the human, educational and financial consequences of a major

The NFSN, The Case for Fire Sprinklers in Educational Buildings: The message is clear: protecting schools with sprinklers is not an optional extra, but a necessary investment in educational continuity, community resilience and long-term economic security.

The Incident

• During a science lesson, a member of staff observed a burning smell.
• The investigation found that combustible material had built up between the laboratory.
• worktops and ignited after being exposed to a nearby lit bunsen burner.
• The member of staff raised the alarm, enabling the college’s emergency plan to be implemented resulting in the building being fully evacuated.
• Thankfully, no injuries were reported.
• Upon the arrival of GMFRS, crews confirmed that the building’s sprinkler system had activated in the third-floor science laboratory classroom.
• Three sprinkler heads activated, containing and controlling the fire in the room of origin preventing further fire spread through the building..
• Firefighters extinguished the fire using firefighting media.

Impact of the fire

• Fortunately, the fire caused only limited disruption to the college. The building was closed for four days while the sprinkler system was reinstated, safety checks completed allowing reoccupation of the building to be approved. Further work was required to restore the classroom where the fire occurred.
• If it was not for the presence of the sprinkler system, the outcome of this incident could have been so much different resulting in the loss of a critical local infrastructure, providing not only education but also community services, support networks and spaces for local groups.
• By contrast, the 2020 fire at Harrington Junior School in Derbyshire, where sprinklers were not installed, caused far greater disruption. The school was destroyed, forcing 235 pupils to be taught in a local family centre for eight weeks before moving into temporary accommodation. They remained there for two years while a new £5.5 million school was built.

Myths & Misconceptions

It is disappointing that the college press release focussed on the damage was caused by water from the sprinkler system, affecting three hub areas and eleven classrooms below the fire floor. For context, the sprinkler system:

• Contained and controlled the fire in the room of origin, prevent the fire from spreading through the building preventing conflagration of the college building
• Provided valuable time for the college to be safely evacuated and allow GMFRS to implement a tactical action plan to extinguish the fire.
• In comparison water damage from a sprinkler system will be far less severe than the damage caused by water from firefighting jets/hoses.
• Modern sprinklers release 45-200 litres of water per minute compared to 700-4000 litres per minute discharged by fire service hoses and jet.

If it was not for the presence of the sprinkler system, the outcome of this incident could have been so much different resulting in the loss of a critical local infrastructure, providing not only education but also community services, support networks and spaces for local groups.

Business Recovery Plan

• Firefighters are increasingly likely to respond to incidents in buildings equipped with sprinkler systems, it is therefore critical for building managers and duty holders to integrate an effective business recovery plan into the premises’ emergency protocols.
• The benefit of which will allow the fire service to efficiently manage water following sprinkler system activation during a fire or in the rare event of accidental discharge, thereby mitigating potential disruptions to business operations or occupancy.

Legislation

The installation of AWSS It is a requirement in Scotland and a condition of government funding in Wales, but despite the rising number of school fires since the 1lockdowns of 2020/21 there is no requirement in England or Northern Ireland for the installation of sprinklers in schools.

The National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) report that in May 2021, the government announced a proposal to make the installation of sprinklers mandatory in new schools over 11m in height, However, given that only a few schools currently meet this threshold, the benefits of this proposal are likely to be limited. When replying to the consultation on these proposals, the NFCC was clear that their strongly held belief is that they constitute a lessening of standards from previousguidance.

The original guidance, when first released in 2007, acknowledged the important role of sprinklers and stated that “all new schools should have fire sprinklers installed except in a few low-risk schools.” The proposed changes in the guidance are a retrograde step and represent a real lessening of standards in this area.

Now approaching over 5 years since the government first consulted on a revised version of Building Bulletin 100: design for fire safety in schools, we are still waiting for a decision to be announced.

Conclusion

• The sprinkler system contributed to preventing conflagration of the school building, protecting a valuable community resource.
• The importance of an onsite business recovery plan for firefighters to respond to incidents in buildings equipped with sprinkler systems to manage the release of water.
• Providing further supporting evidence to under pin BAFSA’s advocacy, turning operational evidence into persuasive tools for policy and parliamentary engagement, and reinforcing the case for wider sprinkler inclusion within national building policy.
• The installation of sprinklers in news schools in England should be made mandatory following Scotland and Wales regardless of height.

Lobbying for change

• Effective advocacy and policy lobbying require the collection of robust supporting evidence. If you have knowledge of a sprinkler incident that may contribute to this initiative, please provide the pertinent details using the sprinkler activation reporting form available at www.sprinklersaves.co.uk

Sources/further reading

• [1]NFSN, Optimal economics report, “What is the cost if fires in schools”
• Sprinkler Saves Review 2025/26
•  Sprinkler Saves spring update
• National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) sprinkler position statement
• August 2025 London primary school sprinkler activation
• NFSN Winter newsletter 2025