Fire Strategy Drawings for Building Control Submissions
Fire strategy drawings are colour-coded CAD plans that show a building’s fire-safety design (escape routes, fire-resistance ratings, compartment lines, fire door positions and firefighting provisions) so building control and the fire service can read the strategy visually. They are produced by a fire engineer, usually alongside a written fire strategy report, for a building regulations or planning submission. SustainPlan arranges fire strategy drawings across England and Wales through a network of chartered fire engineers.
Send your CAD or PDF plans for a fixed-fee fire strategy drawings quote.
What are fire strategy drawings?
Fire strategy drawings (also searched as “fire strategy drawing”) take the architect’s floor plans and overlay the fire-safety design in a clear, colour-coded format. CAD here means computer-aided design: the drawings are produced in software such as AutoCAD so they are precise, scalable and easy to revise.
A set of fire strategy drawings typically colour-codes and labels:
Escape routes and travel distances, arrows showing the direction of travel to a safe exit and the distance travelled.
Compartmentation: fire-resisting walls and floors, colour-coded by fire-resistance period (for example 30, 60 or 90 minutes).
Fire doors: positions and ratings (such as FD30S or FD60S, fire doors with smoke seals).
Detection and alarm, alarm zones and detector coverage.
Firefighting and access: firefighting shafts, dry/wet risers, hydrants and fire-service access routes.
Refuge and evacuation-lift positions where relevant.
Because they are drawing-based and use a consistent colour key, fire strategy drawings are the fastest way for a building control officer, the fire service or the wider design team to understand the fire-safety intent of a building.
A design output, not a fire risk assessment. Fire strategy drawings are part of designing a new or altered building for approval. They are separate from a fire risk assessment, which assesses an existing occupied building under the Fire Safety Order and is not a drawing package. If you need drawings to support a building control submission, you are in the right place.
When do you need fire strategy drawings?
Building control asks for the fire-safety design shown on colour-coded plans, not only described in text.
Your fire strategy report needs accompanying drawings as appendices (most do).
The design team needs a coordinated visual of escape routes and compartmentation.
You have existing architectural drawings that need a fire engineer to overlay the strategy.
A higher-risk building in England needs the fire strategy drawings as part of the fire and emergency file in the building control approval application (Gateway 2).
How it works: our 5-step process
Send your CAD or PDF plans (and building use and stage). We return a fixed-fee quote.
Design review against Approved Document B (2019 edition as amended in England; separate Welsh edition) and the relevant British Standard (BS 9991:2024 residential, BS 9999:2017 non-residential).
Drawing production: we overlay the fire-safety design in a colour-coded, labelled format with a clear key.
Drawings issued: as PDF and/or CAD, ready to submit with your fire strategy report.
Revisions: we update the drawings if the design changes, keeping the set current.
How much do fire strategy drawings cost?
Fire strategy drawings are quoted per project on a fixed fee, driven by the number of floors and plans, the building’s complexity, and whether we work from clean CAD files or need to redraw: a drawings-only markup from your own CAD is the cheapest route.
Table: Fire strategy drawings fee drivers by deliverable (UK, 2026)
What building control expects from fire strategy drawings
Building control expects fire strategy drawings to be clear, consistent and legible: a colour key, correct fire-resistance periods, compartment lines that match the report, escape routes and travel distances, and door ratings. Drawings that contradict the written report, or that are unclear, are a common cause of queries. Because we produce the drawings and the report together, they stay consistent, which is what moves a submission towards approval.
Drawings, plan or report: how they fit together
The three deliverables describe one fire-safety design in three forms, and on most UK projects the report and the drawings are submitted together.
Table: Fire strategy drawings vs plan vs report (UK, 2026)
On most projects the report and drawings are submitted together; the “plan” is the plan-led version of the same design.
Validity and turnaround
Drawings stay valid while the building is built as drawn; a design change means a revision. Turnaround depends on the number of plans and whether we work from CAD or redraw.
Our fire strategy services
Fire Strategy · Fire Strategy Report · Fire Strategy Plan · Fire Safety Strategy · Fire Strategy Consultant · Retrospective Fire Strategy · Fire Statement · Fire Engineer.
Who we work with
Architects and architectural technologists, CAD technicians and design teams, developers and contractors, and building owners who need professional fire strategy drawings to submit.
Why choose us
Chartered fire engineers, drawings arranged through a network of chartered fire engineers.
Fixed fees, CAD and PDF outputs, and drawings that stay consistent with the report.
Areas we cover
Across England and Wales, with particular coverage across Gloucestershire, Bristol, Somerset, Herefordshire, Worcestershire, Greater London and South Wales (Cardiff, Newport, Caerphilly, Swansea, Bridgend, Torfaen). (Links to ALL county hubs.)
Get a fixed-fee quote
Send your CAD or PDF plans for a fixed-fee fire strategy drawings quote. Send everything through the enquiry form.
Frequently asked questions
What are fire strategy drawings?
Fire strategy drawings are colour-coded CAD plans showing a building’s fire-safety design (escape routes, fire-resistance ratings, compartment lines, fire doors and firefighting provisions) so building control and the fire service can read the strategy visually. They usually accompany a written fire strategy report.
What is the difference between fire strategy drawings and a fire strategy report?
The drawings show the design visually on colour-coded plans; the report explains and justifies it in writing. Building control usually expects both, and they must be consistent with each other.
How much do fire strategy drawings cost?
They are quoted per project on a fixed fee, driven by the number of plans, the building’s complexity and whether we work from your CAD files or redraw. Send your plans for a fixed-fee quote.
Do you produce drawings from my existing CAD files?
Yes: we overlay the fire-safety design onto your existing architectural CAD or PDF plans and issue colour-coded fire strategy drawings, in CAD and/or PDF, ready to submit.
Are fire strategy drawings the same as a fire risk assessment?
No. Fire strategy drawings are part of designing a new or altered building for approval. A fire risk assessment assesses an existing occupied building under the Fire Safety Order and is not a drawing package.
Do I need fire strategy drawings for building control?
Most fire strategy submissions include colour-coded drawings so building control can see the design, not just read it. For higher-risk buildings in England the drawings form part of the fire and emergency file in the building control approval application (Gateway 2).
Get in touch
Send your drawings, get a fixed fee
Tell us about the building and what stage it has reached. Enquiries arriving in working hours are normally acknowledged the same day, with the fee following once the drawings have been read properly.
- We will tell you plainly if your project does not need one
- Fixed fee confirmed before any work starts
- Building control queries handled as part of the instruction
Everything routes through this form, so your enquiry reaches the engineer rather than a general mailbox.