We would always recommend that you attend organised Bonfire Night events rather than having your own fire.
When they go wrong, bonfires represent a big risk to people and property. They can get out of control very quickly and be challenging to put out.
If you must have your own bonfire, please follow our safety advice so this doesn’t happen to you.
Bonfires and nuisance fires predominately occur around Bonfire Night. However, we do attend incidents throughout the year where people have been burning rubbish or garden waste.
Making a plan for your bonfire can help you avoid danger and inconveniencing your neighbours.
Tell your neighbours you plan to have a bonfire and its intended location.
Be mindful of smoke – don’t build the fire near a roadway.
Check the weather forecast – avoid having a fire in high winds.
Don’t build it too far in advance. This can encourage anti-social behaviour.
Build the fire well away from any trees, fencing, or structures like sheds.
Use only untreated wood to build the fire. No waste materials or pallets.
Before you light it, check no children or animals are hiding inside.
Light the fire using only firelighters, kindling and/or tapers.
Do not use accelerants like petrol to start the fire.
Follow our safety advice so you can enjoy your bonfire without worrying about the dangers.
Consider attending a public event instead.
Keep a safe area around it that nobody is allowed to enter.
Keep a water source like a hosepipe nearby to help you extinguish the fire.
Do not drink excessive amounts of alcohol while tending the bonfire.
Place any additional fuel onto the fire gently; do not throw it.
Never leave it unattended, especially if children or animals are present.
Douse the ashes with water before leaving or going to bed. Don’t leave it burning.
Remember: if your fire gets out of control, don’t try to tackle it yourself. Stay well away and call us out on 999.
If you are considering setting off fireworks, please visit:
Our firework safety page.
Our Bonfire Night advice page.
As a fire service, we get called to hundreds of incidents a year that involve a garden bonfire that has grown out of control. Usually these fires end up spreading to fences, sheds and even properties – causing a huge amount of damage.
Whilst it isn’t strictly against the law to burn rubbish in your own garden, there are laws around burning certain types of waste and to prevent bonfires causing a nuisance.
Our general advice is that you avoid garden bonfires altogether. When it comes to disposing of waste, you should try to either compost or recycle as much as possible, so you don’t need to have a fire.
Where you have particularly heavy or bulky items, your local council should be able to take that away for you.
You cannot burn waste if it will cause pollution or harm to people’s health.
Council’s have a duty to investigate any smoke coming from premises, such as from a bonfire, that could be classed as a statutory nuisance.
For the smoke to count as a statutory nuisance it must do one of the following:
unreasonably and substantially interfere with the use or enjoyment of a home or other premises
injure health or be likely to injure health
If they agree that a statutory nuisance is happening, has happened or will happen in the future, councils must serve an abatement notice. This requires whoever’s responsible to stop or restrict the smoke.
The notice will usually be served on the person responsible but can also be served on the owner or occupier of the premises.
If you see a bonfire that is dangerously out of control, i.e. it is about to spread to a shed, fence or other property, you should call 999 and ask for the fire service.
However, if it isn’t out of control and close to spreading, we are limited in what we can do.
Where you have a neighbour that is constantly burning, and this is having an impact on the quality of your life, you should contact your local council’s environmental health team.
You can find out more about how council’s deal with smoke and bonfire complaints on the Government website.
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