A third of 18 to 29-year-olds learn about fire doors mainly through social media, according to new research from the British Woodworking Federation (BWF). The finding raises questions over the accuracy of what younger people are absorbing as Fire Door Safety Week gets under way.
The survey, published to mark the campaign, ranks social media (33%) ahead of workplace training (31%) and school or college education (26%) as Gen Z’s leading source of fire door knowledge. That sits uneasily with an industry still working to rebuild public trust in building safety.
The problem is less the channel than the content. Formal training has an accountable author, and a feed does not. The BWF warns that AI-generated and misleading material online makes it harder for younger people to judge whether what they see is accurate, current, or relevant to the building they are standing in.
For older cohorts, employers do most of the teaching. Workplace training is the leading source for 42% of Millennials (30–45), 57% of Gen X (46–61) and 56% of Baby Boomers (62–80). Among the oldest respondents, the gaps are stark. A quarter of Baby Boomers and 40% of the Silent Generation (81+) say they have never received any information on fire doors at all. Those groups include many of the residents most dependent on compartmentation working as designed.
Helen Hewitt, chief executive of the BWF, said many people had never been taught how fire doors work. “Fire safety education should not stop when people leave school or complete a workplace induction – it should be engrained at every stage of life,” she said.
The research also tests the limits of headline-driven awareness:
- 28% of respondents said coverage of fires had made them more conscious of regulations and standards.
- 22% said it had raised doubts about whether buildings are adequately protected.
- 20% said it had prompted them to look for fire safety features and escape routes.
Among the young, the effect fades fast. 22% of Gen Z said fire news grabs their attention only briefly, and 18% said they had become numb to it.
“Those moments must be used to build lasting understanding rather than temporary attention,” Hewitt said.
For manufacturers, installers and maintainers of fire door sets, the practical point is clear. Since January 2023, the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 have required responsible persons in residential buildings over 11 metres to:
- check communal fire doors quarterly
- check flat entrance doors annually
- tell residents why fire doors matter
That regime depends on occupants recognising a door that has been wedged open or damaged, or whose closer has failed, and then reporting it.
This year’s campaign runs under the banner Check it, close it: Protection starts at the door. The BWF launched Fire Door Safety Week in 2013.
Why this Matters: The weakest link in any fire door is rarely the leaf, frame or glazing; it is the person who wedges it open. Industry has invested heavily in tested, certificated door sets, yet this research shows occupant knowledge is patchy, generational and increasingly shaped by unvetted feeds. With the 2022 Regulations relying on residents to spot and report defects, manufacturers and installers have a commercial and moral stake in clear, authoritative handover information for every building.
