Why Emergency Lighting Is Essential for Proper Fire Safety

Emergency lighting is an essential part of a building’s fire safety arrangements as it provides illumination when the normal lighting supply fails. During a fire or other emergency, a loss of power can leave escape routes, stairs, and exits difficult to identify, particularly for occupants who are unfamiliar with the building.

A suitable emergency lighting system helps people find their way towards a place of safety while also making important features, such as fire alarm call points and firefighting equipment, easier to locate. For businesses and ‘Responsible Persons’, ensuring emergency lighting is correctly designed, installed, maintained, and tested is therefore an important part of effective fire safety management.

In this blog, we look at the role of emergency lighting in fire safety, along with where it needs to be installed and the key considerations for commercial premises.

What does emergency lighting do?

Emergency lighting provides an alternative source of illumination if the normal lighting supply fails. It’s designed to help people navigate a building safely when the usual lighting is no longer available.

During an emergency, darkness can make it difficult for occupants to identify exits, negotiate stairs or changes in floor level, and find their way along escape routes. They can be particularly challenging in larger or unfamiliar buildings, such as hotels, restaurants, offices, warehouses, and public premises.

Emergency escape lighting can help to:

• Illuminate escape routes and emergency exits
• Make stairs and changes in level easier to identify
• Highlight changes in direction along escape routes
• Help occupants locate fire alarm call points
• Make firefighting equipment easier to identify
• Reduce confusion during an evacuation
• Allow people to move towards a place of safety

Government guidance recommends that a reasonable standard of emergency escape lighting to illuminate escape routes and areas without natural lighting should be checked as part of a fire risk assessment.

This makes emergency lighting an important part of the wider measures used to support a safe and effective evacuation.

When should emergency lighting be used?

Emergency lighting should be available where the failure of normal lighting could put occupants at risk or make it difficult for them to leave a building safely. 

Although emergency lighting plays a particularly important role during a fire, it’s not exclusively used for fire emergencies. A power cut, electrical fault, or other incident could also cause the normal lighting supply to fail.

The extent of emergency lighting required will depend on the premises. Factors such as the building layout, number and type of occupants, escape routes, and activities taking place should all be considered as part of the fire risk assessment.

For example, a small office with straightforward escape routes will have different requirements from a large hotel containing sleeping guests, a busy restaurant, or an industrial facility containing machinery and higher risk processes.

Ultimately, emergency lighting should be designed so that people aren’t left reliant on the normal lighting system to evacuate safely.

Should emergency lights be on all the time?

Emergency lights don’t necessarily need to be illuminated all the time. Whether they remain on during normal operation depends largely on whether the system uses maintained or non-maintained emergency lighting.

Maintained emergency lighting

Maintained emergency lights operate as part of the normal lighting system and remain illuminated during normal occupation. If the mains electricity supply fails, they continue operating using their emergency power supply.

Maintained lighting can be particularly useful in premises where occupants may be unfamiliar with their surroundings or where normal light levels are intentionally low.

Hotels, restaurants, bars, theatres, and other hospitality or entertainment venues are examples of premises where maintained emergency lighting may be appropriate in certain areas.

Non-maintained emergency lighting

Non- maintained emergency lights are normally switched off while the normal lighting system is working. They automatically illuminate when normal electrical supply to the relevant lighting circuit fails.

These systems are commonly used in workplaces and other commercial premises where sufficient normal lighting is available during everyday occupation.

The appropriate arrangement should be determined by the building, its use, and the findings of the fire risk assessment rather than assuming every emergency light must operate continuously.

What are the different types of emergency lighting?

Emergency escape lighting can serve different purposes depending on the building and the risks present, and it can be divided into several different categories.

Understanding these different categories is important when deciding what type of system is appropriate for your circumstances.

Escape route lighting

Escape route lighting is designed to illuminate designated escape routes so occupants can move safely towards an exit.

It’s particularly important around corridors, stairways, changes in direction, and changes in floor level, where darkness could increase the risk of trips, falls, or confusion during an evacuation.

Exit signs and final exits should also remain sufficiently visible so that occupants can understand where they need to go.

Open area or anti-panic lighting

Open area lighting, sometimes referred to as anti-panic lighting, is used within larger open spaces.

If normal lighting suddenly fails in a large room, occupants may become disorientated and struggle to identify an escape route. Emergency illumination helps people orientate themselves and move towards an appropriate exit.

This can be relevant in spaces such as larger offices, function rooms, dining areas, conference spaces, and other areas occupied by significant numbers of people.

High risk task area lighting

Some workplaces contain activities or processes that could become dangerous if the normal lighting suddenly failed.

High risk task area lighting provides sufficient illumination for people involved in potentially hazardous activities to shut down equipment, stop a process, or otherwise make an area safe before evacuating.

This may be particularly relevant within industrial, engineering, or manufacturing environments.

Standby lighting

Standby lighting serves a different purpose from emergency escape lighting. Rather than primarily supporting evacuation, it can allow normal activities to continue following a failure of the normal lighting supply.

Whether standby lighting can also fulfil an emergency safety function depends on how the system has been designed and whether it satisfies the appropriate requirements.

The latest BS 5266-1:2025 has expanded its scope to include standby lighting and local area lighting alongside emergency escape lighting.

Emergency lighting and fire safety law

Emergency lighting forms part of the wider fire safety responsibilities placed on businesses and Responsible Persons.

Under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, suitable emergency routes and exits must be provided and, where necessary, adequately illuminated. The precise measures required should be determined through the fire risk assessment and the characteristics of the individual premises.

In addition to legal requirements, BS 5266-1:2025, Emergency lighting of premises – Code of practice, provides current recommendations and guidance covering the design, installation, and wiring of emergency lighting systems. 

It’s important to distinguish between the legislation itself and British Standards. The law establishes the fire safety duties that must be met, while standards such as BS 5266 provide recognised guidance that can help Responsible Persons, designers, and contractors achieve appropriate emergency lighting provision.

The fire risk assessment should ultimately consider whether the emergency lighting arrangements are appropriate for the building and the people who use it.

Where should emergency lighting be installed?

The location of emergency lighting should be carefully considered so occupants can safely follow the escape route and identify important features during an emergency.

Depending on the building, emergency lighting may be required around:

• Emergency exits and final exit doors
• Corridors and designated escape routes
• Staircases
• Changes in direction
• Changes in floor level
• Intersections between corridors
• Fire alarm call points
• Fire extinguishers and other firefighting equipment
• Areas without sufficient natural light
• Larger open areas
• Areas containing higher risk processes or equipment
• External areas immediately beyond final exits where illumination is necessary for safe dispersal

The objective isn’t simply to install as many emergency lights as possible. The system should provide appropriate illumination in the places where occupants need it to navigate the escape route and reach safety.

The exact positioning and level of illumination required should therefore be established through an appropriate fire risk assessment and system design.

How often should emergency lighting be tested?

Installing emergency lighting is only effective if the system works when it’s needed. Regular testing and maintenance are therefore essential.

Emergency lighting should typically undergo a monthly functional test to confirm that the units illuminate when the normal lighting supply is simulated as having failed. Government guidance also specifies annual inspection and testing by a competent person.

Depending on the system, testing may include:

• Visual checks of central controls where applicable
• Monthly functional testing
• Checking that individual emergency luminaires illuminate correctly
• Annual testing and inspection by a competent person
• Recording tests, faults, and remedial work

Government guidance also recommends an annual full discharge test should be completed and notes that care is required afterwards because batteries can take time to recharge.

If an emergency light fails during testing, the fault should be investigated and appropriate repairs or replacement arranged. Testing records should also be maintained so the Responsible Person can demonstrate that the system is being appropriately managed.

Keep your emergency lighting compliant and operational with Pyrotec

Emergency lighting is most valuable at the moment when the building’s normal lighting can no longer be relied upon. Correct design, installation, testing, and maintenance are therefore essential to make sure the system is ready to operate when required.

At Pyrotec, we provide emergency lighting services for commercial premises across Brighton, Eastbourne, Crawley, and the wider UK with the support of the LS Fire Group, helping businesses manage their wider fire safety responsibilities.

From assessing existing emergency lighting arrangements to installation, testing, and ongoing maintenance, our experienced team can help ensure your system remains suitable for your premises.

Contact our team today to discuss your emergency lighting requirements and find out how we can support the fire safety of your building.