North-West London

Fire Safety & Security Services in Cricklewood

Fire alarm installation, fire risk assessments, CCTV and automatic gates for shops, landlords, hoteliers and trade occupiers across Cricklewood, Dollis Hill and Staples Corner.

Cricklewood Broadway is the A5 and the boundary between Barnet and Brent, so a street of shops can answer to two councils. At Staples Corner, where the A5 meets the A406 and the M1, an industrial district sits beside the Brent Cross Town development.

IDS Global has traded since 2011 from its Hayes office and is a member of the IFSM and the FPA. From Hayes the A40 leads to the Hanger Lane junction with the A406 North Circular.

Businesses and buildings in Cricklewood

Brent's Local Plan lists Cricklewood as a district centre. Its town centre runs along the Broadway, where the plan describes predominantly three storey Victorian terraces with shops below. The Crown, a terracotta Grade II listed Victorian pub on the Broadway, is a local landmark. The plan also records a concentration of vehicle repair centres on Hassop Road, behind the Broadway, which it says affects neighbouring homes.

The plan treats Staples Corner as a 42.7 hectare Strategic Industrial Location, with light and general industry, storage, distribution, wholesale and a high number of trade counters, mostly in older buildings that have had limited investment. A Metroline bus depot stands at 329 Edgware Road. In Dollis Hill, the former Post Office Research Station where Tommy Flowers's team built the Colossus computer is now Chartwell Court, with 62 flats, and Gladstone Park covers 35 hectares.

Fire Risk Assessments in Cricklewood

Barnet's appraisal of the Railway Terraces conservation area counts about 180 houses and 52 flats, and says some properties, especially on Gratton Terrace, were converted to HMO use, several without planning permission. A converted house needs its own assessment of escape routes, detection and doors, whatever its planning history.

Brent's plan describes the 245 to 289 Cricklewood Broadway block as inter-war commercial units with warehouse access, vehicle repair garages and parking on the roof. Where workshops, stores and other users share a structure, we assess the whole building and record ignition sources, storage and escape routes.

Fire risk assessments

Fire Alarm Installation in Cricklewood

In October 2022 about 180 people left a hotel on Cricklewood Broadway before crews arrived, after a fire damaged part of a sub-basement laundry room. In July 2025 a fire at a dental practice on the Broadway damaged part of the second floor and half of the staircase between the second and third floors.

We design BS 5839 systems for hotels, surgeries and upper-floor commercial space, with detection in service rooms and stair areas and sounders that reach every floor.

Fire alarm installation

CCTV Installation in Cricklewood

Police.uk data for August 2025 to July 2026, counted inside Metropolitan Police neighbourhood boundaries, records about 269 shoplifting offences, 143 vehicle crimes and 78 burglaries in the Cricklewood neighbourhood. The Cricklewood and Mapesbury neighbourhood recorded about 147 vehicle crimes and 77 burglaries, with about 8 shoplifting offences. Police.uk anonymises locations, so the figures are approximate.

We cover tills, entrances and delivery doors for Broadway retailers, and yards, loading areas and car parks for Staples Corner occupiers.

CCTV installation

Automatic Gates at Staples Corner

Brent's plan describes Staples Corner as a mix of light and general industry, storage, distribution, trade counters, cash and carry and some housing. A unit with a yard needs a gate that opens for delivery vehicles and closes behind them.

We fit automatic sliding and swing gates with photocells and safety edges, and link them to fobs, intercoms or cameras so a manager can see who has entered.

Automatic gates

Staples Corner Growth Area and Brent Cross Town

Brent's Local Plan says the Staples Corner industrial land will be transformed into a mixed use community of around 2,200 homes, combined with more industrial floorspace, studios and managed workspace, and linked to Brent Cross West Thameslink station. It identifies the area for buildings above 30 metres, or ten storeys.

Brent Cross West opened on 10 December 2023, backed by £419 million of government funding. Plans for Brent Cross Town cover 6,700 homes and workspace for 25,000 people, with construction from 2020 and the first residents in 2025. Units that share a site with new homes need detection and compartmentation planned around both uses.

Cricklewood Broadway redevelopment sites

Brent's plan allocates the Cricklewood Broadway Retail Park, with Wickes and Matalan stores, for about 380 homes. On 4 August 2025 Brent's planning committee considered a scheme on the Matalan site of two buildings of three to nine storeys with 826 student bed spaces, which officers recommended for approval subject to a section 106 agreement.

On the former B&Q site on Cricklewood Lane, the government approved 1,049 homes of up to 18 storeys on 4 December 2023. In May 2025 the developer said a start on site was anticipated for mid-2026, subject to approval of detailed plans, and KMDC's project page records permission for the reserved matters in September 2025. The Brigade always attends automatic alarms at student accommodation and flats.

Railway Terraces conservation area

Barnet designated the Railway Terraces in March 1998. Five terraces were built from the late 1860s for Midland Railway workers, and Burlington Parade has six shops with flats above. Barnet's 2016 appraisal lists a Grade II milestone fronting Cricklewood Broadway.

A borough-wide Article 4 Direction has required planning permission for new HMOs since May 2016. We survey before any work and keep external fixings to a minimum on frontages here.

Local fire stations and alarm attendance

Crews from Willesden, Hendon and West Hampstead, a Camden station, were among those at the July 2025 dental practice fire. On 23 September 2026 eight engines and around 60 firefighters from Willesden, West Hampstead and Finchley tackled a fire at a car body repair workshop on Waterloo Road, which destroyed one car and affected part of the ground floor. In August 2024 a commercial unit on Adrian Avenue was destroyed, and a 32 metre turntable ladder was used.

The Brigade does not attend automatic alarms between 7am and 8.30pm unless someone confirms a fire by phone. Hotels, flats, HMOs, schools and Grade II listed buildings are always attended.

Services available in Cricklewood

Frequently asked questions

Does a Cricklewood rental need a Barnet selective licence?

Barnet consulted from 15 June to 15 September 2026 on selective licensing in ten wards, including Cricklewood. Proposals in 2021 and 2023 were not implemented, so check the outcome with the council. Mandatory HMO licensing covers five or more occupants, and additional licensing has applied borough-wide since 27 October 2022. The HMO fee was £1,872 plus £37 per unit above five in August 2026.

Will the fire brigade attend our Staples Corner unit if the alarm sounds at midday?

Not unless someone confirms a fire. Between 7am and 8.30pm London Fire Brigade does not attend automatic alarms at most commercial premises, though it does between 8.30pm and 7am. Your procedure should name who checks the panel, who calls 999 and where staff gather. We can train staff and fire marshals to follow it.

Which fire service and council cover each side of Cricklewood Broadway?

The fire service is London Fire Brigade on both sides, with crews from Willesden, West Hampstead and Hendon attending recent calls. Planning is different: Barnet and Brent are separate councils, and Edgware Road forms the boundary. Check which council holds permission for any shopfront, sign or camera before work starts, and we can prepare drawings.

Do you install fire alarms in flats above Cricklewood shops?

Yes. Flats and HMOs are always attended by the Brigade for automatic alarms, so a false alarm brings crews at any hour. Above a shop, we design detection so that the flat, shared stair and shop work as one scheme. We can assess the building first.