Personal emergency evacuation plan (PEEP) template for workplaces

A PEEP records an agreed way for one person to respond and leave or reach a place of relative safety during a fire or other evacuation event. It should be developed *with* that person, matched to the building's actual fire strategy, and checked with those who will deliver any assistance. A form filled in without a usable route, trained helpers or working equipment is not a plan.

This template is for non-domestic workplaces in England. The Home Office's means of escape for disabled people guidance is the primary source and includes example PEEP documentation. It says not to assume every disabled person needs assistance or that someone with an invisible impairment does not. Invite the individual to explain what works for them and avoid collecting a diagnosis when the evacuation support can be described without it.

Separate residential route: England's Residential PEEPs regulations and official toolkit came into force on 6 April 2026 for specified residential buildings. That process includes person-centred fire risk assessment, a written statement and building-level arrangements. This workplace form does not satisfy or replace it. A residential responsible person should use the current statutory guidance and toolkit, not relabel this template as its compliance pack. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland require their own jurisdiction check.

Copyable plan cover sheet

The person may work in more than one area or building. If the routes and helpers change materially, add a site/shift annex rather than pretending one plan covers every location. For a visitor or short-term contractor, a proportionate arrangement may be needed for the visit; confirm this with the host and the person before they are placed in a location they cannot leave safely.

Copyable evacuation actions

Do not write “fire brigade will carry person down” as the sole measure without a responsible-person assessment, agreed response and realistic interim arrangement. The plan should not rely on an ordinary passenger lift during a fire unless the building design and fire strategy specifically provide for its use as an evacuation lift. Do not assign a “buddy” who has not agreed, been trained or may not be present on the relevant shift.

How to develop the plan

1. Offer a private conversation. Ask what barriers the person expects when an alarm sounds, the route changes, visibility falls or the workplace is crowded. Discuss mobility, hearing, sight, cognition, fatigue or temporary circumstances only as far as needed to design a safe response. HSE's disabled-worker risk guidance warns against assumptions and blanket policies. A person may be able to self-evacuate with a different alarm cue or a route adjustment rather than physical assistance.

2. Inspect the building and actual work pattern. Walk the route with the person where appropriate. Confirm doors, stairs, refuge provision, communication, alarm signals and assembly arrangements. Check where the person works during early or late shifts and who is present then. The plan has to fit the building's fire risk assessment; a generic form cannot cure an inaccessible escape design.

3. Agree assistance and alternatives. Name roles, not only one individual, so absence has a cover arrangement. Decide who checks a refuge, who communicates location to the incident lead and who accounts for the person at assembly. If equipment is proposed, confirm suitability, training, inspection and storage. An evacuation chair is not an answer merely because it was purchased.

4. Practice and refine. Discuss the plan with the person and helpers, rehearse the parts that can be safely practised, and record what did not work. The exercise need not force someone through an unsafe or distressing drill. Use a proportionate walk-through, demonstration or scenario discussion where appropriate. Update the plan and the general evacuation arrangements if practice reveals a gap.

5. Make operational information available without over-sharing. The people who must assist need the actions, contact and location they require. They do not necessarily need a medical diagnosis. The ICO's guidance on sharing worker health information notes that an emergency plan can account for necessary sharing. Use restricted access and an agreed emergency route to make the plan usable without making sensitive details public.

Review triggers

Review when the person asks, their work area or shift changes, routes or alarms change, a helper leaves, equipment is replaced, a drill exposes a problem, or the building's evacuation strategy changes. A planned periodic review is useful, but do not wait for it after a material change. Record the old version, new version, date, person consulted and what was communicated to helpers. The plan may also become unnecessary if the person's circumstances or building arrangements change; close it under the retention policy rather than leaving a stale plan in circulation.

Worked example: A laboratory employee hears the general alarm but cannot use one stair because of a temporary injury. The fire manager and employee agree a short-term route to a protected refuge, the communication method and trained assistance on both day and evening shifts. They confirm that the second shift has a covering helper and practise the communication link. The plan records the expected review after medical restrictions change, but does not circulate the employee's medical notes. If the designated refuge is closed for building work, the fire manager must reassess access immediately; the original PEEP is not silently valid.

Frequent mistakes

• Assuming disability equals a fixed method. Consultation may show self-evacuation is possible with an accessible signal or route; another person may need assistance that is not apparent from appearance.
• Relying on one helper. A plan fails if the named person is off-site. Assign roles and cover.
• Treating a refuge as the final destination. Record communication and onward response under the building strategy; a refuge alone is not a complete outcome.
• Ignoring visitors and night work. A plan for 9-to-5 access may fail during a late shift or at another site.
• Confusing the workplace form with Residential PEEPs. The 2026 England residential process has its own legal scope, person-centred assessment and official documents.
• Publishing sensitive information too widely. Share the minimum operational instruction needed for evacuation and protect health information.

Complys and related pages

The intended product relationship is a verified fire risk assessment software page, subject to exact route, host and live-feature verification. A product demonstration could show whether the current system can securely store a restricted plan, alert an authorised owner to review and link a building fire risk assessment. Do not claim that Complys generates legally sufficient PEEPs, dispatches helpers, integrates with an alarm system or shares data with fire services unless implementation evidence proves it. Link to the building fire risk assessment owner for premises-wide measures and to the official Residential PEEPs guidance when the reader's task is residential.

Source and writer-side QA record

Intent/cannibalisation: This is a reusable non-domestic workplace plan. The government residential toolkit owns statutory residential forms; do not target that intent with this page. Public search on 6 October 2026 found no exact Complys route at the proposed path; repository/canonical check remains open. Product truth: no automated PEEP creation, alarm integration or emergency-service sharing claim. Writer-side disposition: READY.