Statutory Compliance & PUWER Regulations
Installing evacuation chairs satisfies only the first phase of an organisation’s legal obligations. Specifically, employers must protect vulnerable occupants during a fire emergency under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005. However, true readiness requires ensuring your designated workplace operators can manage the equipment safely. Therefore, deploying a device is not the same as being operationally ready.
Evacuation chairs and transit sledges are Class 1 Medical Devices. Consequently, they fall under the statutory mandate of PUWER 1998 regulations. This legislation places a strict legal duty on equipment providers. To understand your facility setup guidelines thoroughly, read our diagnostic overview on Evacuation Chairs: What You Need to Know.
Specifically, employers must guarantee that all operators receive adequate, documented training. Alternatively, you can review procurement models across a mixed estate by consulting our guide on Choosing the Right Evacuation Chair: A Comprehensive Guide. Our bespoke curriculum incorporates all core safety proficiencies to ensure absolute workplace compliance.
What You Will Learn
- The Legal Architecture: Navigating workplace duties under PUWER 1998, the Fire Safety Order 2005, and explicit PEEP requirements.
- Vulnerability Tracking: Understanding how physical realities, mobility impairments, sensory loss, and temporary injuries impact emergency movement.
- Disability Awareness & Etiquette: Mastering clear emergency communication and maintaining casualty dignity under stress.
- Manual Handling Principles: Applying ergonomic lifting, lowering, and transfer mechanics to protect operators.
- Pre-Use Inspection Frameworks: Executing vital visual safety checks on tracks, wheels, brakes, and straps.
- Immersive Practical Scenarios: Conducting active, physical descents down fire escape stairs under expert supervision.
Course Details
- Format: Private on-site training at your facility or scheduled open classroom courses
- Duration: Half-day course running promptly from 9:00am to 3:00pm
- Accreditation: Fully CPD certified and compliant with statutory PUWER 1998 mandates
- Assessment: Multiple-choice theory paper (70% pass mark) and a continuous 100% practical operational evaluation
- Certificate: Formal digital certificate valid for 3 years issued upon successful completion
Course Access & Requirements
- On-Site Customisation: Evacuation chairs interact uniquely with different building layouts. Training teams inside your own building produces vastly superior real-world preparedness.
- Physical Fitness Thresholds: Operating an evacuation chair down stairs requires excellent core stability and upper-body strength. Therefore, we advise against enrolling individuals with chronic injuries.
- Footwear Safeguards: All candidates must wear flat, closed-toe shoes with non-slip soles. Staff arriving in inappropriate footwear cannot participate in handling drills.
- Late Arrival Policy: Strict compliance standards enforce uncompromising contact-time criteria. If an attendee arrives more than 15 minutes late, they will be turned away and forfeit their paid booking fees.
- Flexible Certification Outcomes: Smaller workers who cannot lower a heavy load safely may be certified as assistants. This outcome still protects your team significantly since most escapes require two people.
Useful Links & Resources
Related Courses
Group Training & Corporate Enquiries
Do you need to train your team or purchase bulk licences? We provide flexible corporate options across our entire course catalogue to suit your organisation's schedule and budget.
- Classroom & Blended Courses: Our expert instructors can travel directly to your venue to deliver private group training. Alternatively, we can host your team at our dedicated training centre in Knutsford. This is the most cost-effective route for group compliance.
- Online E-Learning Courses: We offer volume tier discounts for corporate clients purchasing multiple training seats. Our team handles the enrolment setup on our end to get your candidates registered quickly and seamlessly.
To arrange a private group session, discuss international travel logistics, or request a custom price breakdown for bulk e-learning licences, please visit our dedicated Corporate & Bespoke Training Quotations page.
What Happens After You Book?
We make the onboarding process completely frictionless. This allows you or your team to focus entirely on your training:
- Instant Email Confirmation: The moment you complete your booking, our system automatically delivers your order confirmation and receipt straight to your inbox.
- For Online & Blended Learning Elements: Following your order confirmation, our team will validate your booking and issue your unique access keys. We release these digital platform login details as quickly as possible during normal working hours. Once received, you can log in on any device and study entirely at your own pace.
- For Classroom & Practical Sessions: Most face-to-face courses begin promptly at 09:00am. We recommend arriving 15 minutes early to settle in. Please check your specific course description page for exact daytime run timings.
- All-Inclusive Transparent Pricing: The price you see covers your registration fees, official course textbooks (where applicable), examination materials, and final certificate processing. We never charge hidden additions.
Please visit our comprehensive Joining Instructions page to review specific venue directions, local parking options, and clothing recommendations for practical modules.
Get Notified of Upcoming Course Schedules
Course availability depends entirely on your chosen delivery method:
- Online E-Learning Courses: You do not need to choose a date. Following checkout, our team will validate your booking and issue your access keys as quickly as possible during working hours. You can then begin learning immediately.
- Classroom & Blended Courses: We regularly release new open-course dates throughout the month across our training centres. To view currently active schedules, simply scroll back to the top of this page and click the green "Choose an option" dropdown menu.
If our published diary dates do not match your setting's availability, don't worry. Drop your details into the contact form below. Our team will automatically notify you the moment our next block of course schedules goes live.
Why Choose Chris Garland Training?
Chris Garland Training is a multi-award-winning, ethical training provider. We operate on the principle of Honest Stewardship. We do not treat safety compliance as a corporate checkbox exercise. Instead, we view it as a vital investment in protecting human lives.
Accreditation & Authority
- Established Quality: We deliver expert safety training with a consistent 5-star rating from thousands of corporate and private clients.
- Certified Excellence: Our courses carry full backing and certification from Chris Garland Training alongside Ofqual Regulated Awarding Organisations. They meet all Health & Safety Executive (HSE) and Ofsted standards.
- Expert Instructors: Professionally qualified instructors deliver every session. They hold enhanced DBS certificates and undergo rigorous quality assurance monitoring.
Environmentally & Socially Responsible
Your booking actively advances global sustainability and supports critical humanitarian networks through our certified eco-partnerships:
- Global Reforestation: Every course place you book funds native tree planting across heavily deforested areas with JUST ONE Tree.
- Charity Support: We proudly co-fund the life-saving aviation networks of the North West Air Ambulance Charity.
- Ocean Cleanup: Your training helps purchase beach clean kits through our active association with Surfers Against Sewage.
Terry (verified owner) –
Chris delivered a really good training event
ChrisGarland –
Hi Terry,
Thank you. It was a pleasure working with you & I hope the knowledge that you gained about the evacuation chair comes in handy (not that you want to be using it!)
Best regards
Chris
ChrisGarland –
Recent reviews collected directly after the course:
⭐⭐⭐⭐ – “A useful, practical refresher”
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – “[no comments left]”
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – “Informative, with a good balance of practical & theory”
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – “Brilliant! I thought everything was great. Very informative.”
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – “[no comments left]”
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – “Excellent course”
Nikki Tregay (verified owner) –
Staff were really impressed with the training and the additional advice that was provided. They training and service we received was above and beyond what we expected.
ChrisGarland –
Thank you for your kind review, Nikki. I look forward to working with you & your colleagues again in the near future.
Best regards
Chris
ChrisGarland –
Recent comments:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – “The practical hands on training was brilliant, and having the disability awareness and etiquette training was really helpful as well.”
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – “Being able to get real-life practice for an emergency situation using both the 30kg manakin and having a colleague in the chair was brilliant.”
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – “The best part was being able to use the evac chair with a person in it, giving us real life experience. Much better than our last training.”
ChrisGarland –
Recent Comments:
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – Mr McFarlane
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – Miss Jordan
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – Mr Smalley
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – Mrs Dyson
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – “Helpful & informative. The practical work was very helpful.” – Miss Twissell
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – “An informative course” – Mr Duncalf
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – “Very informative” – Mr Harrison
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – “All about heat and fire” – Mr Collier
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – “Very helpful. Useful information. Thank you!” – Miss Gooderson
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – “Would recommend” – Mr Grimley