Fire strategy and fire engineering cost calculator
There is no published fee scale for fire engineering in the UK, so every estimate is built the same way: days × rate, plus the things that reliably eat days (Gateway 2 support, change control, and the review cycles nobody programmes for).
This calculator builds the estimate from day rates and effort, and shows every assumption so you can change it. It is a starting point for a fee proposal or a client conversation, not a quote. For what sits behind the rates (what fire engineers charge, and what drives the number up), see how much a fire engineer costs in the UK.
£57,400 indicative
About 68 days of effort at £850 per day, roughly £4.78 per m². Every coefficient is shown in the working below; change the ones that do not match how your practice actually works.
Working
| Step | Value |
|---|---|
| Base effort from area6 × (12,000 ÷ 1000)^0.55 | 23.5 days |
| Base effort from storeys0.45 × 12 | 5.4 days |
| Project type factorResidential: higher-risk building, over 18 m | × 1.55 |
| RIBA stage factorStages 2–4: through to technical design | × 1 |
| Complexity factorSome departures needing justification | × 1.35 |
| Gateway 2 supportapplication, requests for information, change control set-up | + 7 days |
| Total effort60.5 + 7 | 67.5 days |
| Fee67.5 days × £850 | £57,413 |
What this means
- The duration includes an allowance for Gateway 2 determination at the published median for this application type. That is elapsed time, not effort, but it is elapsed time the client is paying for somewhere.
- Higher-risk work carries a tail: change control applications, mandatory occurrence reporting, and the golden thread. Price the tail, or absorb it.
- This is a modelling aid built on transparent assumptions, not market data. Change the day rate and the factors to match your own recorded outturn on comparable jobs; that is the only estimate worth having.
Sources
- MethodBase effort scaled by floor area and storey count, adjusted for complexity, then multiplied by a blended day rate. All coefficients are shown in the working.
- Building Safety Regulator application dataMedian determination times used for the Gateway 2 duration allowance.
- NoteFire engineering fees in the UK are not governed by a published scale. Treat any number here as an order of magnitude.
This is an engineering aid, not engineering advice. The result above is produced from the inputs you gave and the guidance cited. It does not account for everything a competent fire engineer would consider on a real building, and it is not a substitute for reading the current published standard. Check every number before it goes into a design.
Questions people ask
How much does a fire strategy cost in the UK?
For a straightforward building it is usually a few thousand pounds; for a higher-risk residential building taken from concept through to Gateway 2 and construction support, it is commonly tens of thousands. The dominant variables are the number of RIBA stages in scope, whether the building is higher-risk, and whether the design departs from prescriptive guidance.
How much does a fire engineer cost per day?
UK consultancy blended day rates in 2026 commonly fall between about £650 and £1,100, depending on the seniority mix and the region. A chartered fire engineer signing off a complex higher-risk building sits at the top of that range or above it.
Why does a higher-risk building cost more?
Because the Gateway 2 application demands a level of design maturity that used to be deferred: complete drawings, every departure justified, competence evidence, a construction control plan, and change control once approved. That work has to happen before construction starts rather than during it, and the review cycle is measured in months.
What is included in a fire strategy?
A report covering all five functional requirements (means of warning and escape, internal fire spread across linings and structure, external fire spread, and access and facilities for the fire service) plus fire strategy drawings, a schedule of assumptions and departures, and the information needed for Regulation 38 at handover.
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