THE BUILDING SAFETY ACT
It is recognised that the Act is a significant change, and the challenges for hospitals are only beginning to be understood. It is recommended that any concerned hospital Trusts seek external advice to review their site and define the extents of HRBs, independent sections, and therefore what the BSA means to them
for their members working within HRBs. To support hospital Trusts, NHS England’s ProCure23
team has developed a simple Competency Checklist toolkit (see link at the end of this article). This checklist covers both Construction Design Management (CDM) and BSA requirements, serving as a best practice tool for all projects. It has been validated by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, who have ensured its credibility and effectiveness, and is endorsed by the Building Safety Regulator and Local Authority Building Control (LABC).
Maintaining ‘a golden thread’ of information As with many of the existing systems used to support the safe operation of hospital buildings, information is crucial. Working with the Construction Leadership Council, NHS England ProCure23 teams have adopted the principles of the Golden Thread Advice and Summary.4
This document
Pages from the Building Safety Act, a significant legislative change that impacts new and existing hospital buildings undergoing building work during both design and construction.
a detailed guidance document on the application of the BSA to hospital trusts; updates to template contracts and construction documents, and additional supporting information in response to the BSA.
Complex sites split into small sections Importantly, the Technical Bulletin provides an explanation and examples of the provisions that allow complex hospital sites to be split into smaller independent sections (so long as they have their own entrance / exit, and are not connected to any other sections with residential units). The test to determine whether something is a HRB (i.e. height and use) is then applied to these smaller independent sections, rather than the entire wider site. This means that some parts of sites will not be subject to the new HRB regime, so traditional (quicker) building control approval routes can be followed. It is hoped that this will assist Trusts and contractors, as well as local authorities, who in some instances wrongly categorise existing buildings as HRBs and refuse to submit or accept building control applications. The Technical Bulletin is supported by the NHS England
ProCure23 BSA Support Document (link at the end of this article). This document includes 21 different hospital- specific scenarios, flowcharts, workflows, and hospital- specific guidance to support hospital Trusts to understand the nuances of their site. Competency is now a focus for ensuring building
safety. The new Part 2A inserted into the Building Regulations 20103
introduces a new competency
regime to ensure that all individuals involved in the design, construction, and management of buildings are adequately trained and competent, in terms of skills, knowledge, experience, and – importantly – behaviours for various roles. Many professional bodies within the sector are developing specific competency requirements
provides essential advice on maintaining a golden thread of information throughout the lifecycle of a building – an approach emphasised in the BSA – and is directly applicable to hospital buildings. The approach has been reflected in the latest ProCure23 workflows and Building Information Management templates. Through ongoing initiatives, the NHS England and ProCure23 teams continue to support NHS Trusts on the processes and compliance requirements within the BSA. It is recognised that the Building Safety Act is a significant change, and the challenges for hospitals are only beginning to be understood. It is recommended that any concerned hospital Trusts seek external advice to review their site and define the extents of HRBs, independent sections, and therefore what the BSA means to them.
References 1 The Building Safety Act 2022. July 2022.
https://www.gov. uk/guidance/the-building-safety-act
2 NHS Estates Technical Bulletin (NETB) No. 2024/2 Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA) – application to healthcare buildings. NHS England, 7 August 2024.
https://www.england.nhs.uk/ publication/netb-2024-2-building-safety-act-2022/
3 The Building Regulations etc. (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2023.
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ uksi/2010/2214/contents
4 Delivering the golden thread: Guidance for dutyholders and accountable persons. Construction Leadership Council, August 2024.
https://tinyurl.com/46zmtwzu
Further resources A range of information and resources on the Building Safety Act are available from the Estates and Facilities Collaboration Hub – see
https://tinyurl.com/yhyt2xwv – under the ‘Fire’ section, including: n Competency Checklist toolkit created by NHSE ProCure23 (August 2024).
n NHS England ProCure23 BSA Supporting Document inclusive of 21 pictorial scenarios (August 2024).
n Recording of the national webinar on the Building Safety Act (February 2024).
Louise Mansfield
Louise Mansfield, a Legal director at Bevan Brittan, specialises in advising clients on building safety, fire safety, and health and safety, as well as other areas of criminal regulatory law. She is currently advising numerous NHS Trusts, housing providers, and local authorities, on building safety.
Andrew Rolf
Andrew Rolf MEng, CEng, FIStructE, CARES, is the Healthcare Technical Advisory lead at Mott MacDonald. He draws on experience across the development of multi-award healthcare projects, leading multi- disciplinary design teams, technical assurance, and strategic advisory roles. He has a range of expertise in areas including Modern Methods of Construction, Carbon, and Specialist Conservation Engineering, and sits on a number of study groups.
January 2025 Health Estate Journal 27
Courtesy of the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
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