NEWS Hackitt review sees debate ahead of final report
AFTER DISCUSSIONS on desktop studies and limited combustibility, the review of building regulations and fire safety led by Dame Judith Hackitt saw new developments and disagreements as it moved towards a final report.
Desktop studies Nearly 50 cross party MPs wrote to the government to warn about a ‘dangerous weakening’ of building regulations on desktop studies. Inside Housing reported on the letter sent to Housing Secretary Sajid Javid from 47 Labour, Conservative, Green Party and Liberal Democrat MPs, after the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) announced it would ‘revise the wording’ on desktop studies in the regulations’ fire safety guidance, Approved Document B (ADB). At that point however, Inside Housing noted, ‘there is currently no specific mention of desktop studies in the guidance’. With such studies used ‘in place
of carrying out a full-scale fire safety test on cladding systems for high- rise buildings’, experts have ‘warned against their use’, with the National Fire Chiefs Council stating that attempting to determine building material fire resistance with a desktop study ‘may lead to errors or a reduction in safety margins’. At present, ADB demands insulation materials used on high rises are ‘of limited combustibility’ or able to resist fire spread based on ‘full-scale test data’, so the guidance ‘does not specifically say this can be proved through a desktop study’. The site found out however that the government ‘believes the wording’ for Appendix A, paragraph 1(b), which states materials can be assessed from ‘test evidence’, is ‘loose enough’ to ‘permit them’. In response, the letter to Mr Javid
states that it is ‘unfathomable’ that the government’s response to the Grenfell Tower fire would be to make building regulations ‘less tough and less stringent’ in terms of the use of combustible materials on high rises. In addition, the letter says: ‘We are deeply concerned about
8 MAY 2018
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the culture of cost-cutting and unsafe practice that came to light post- Grenfell’, and that any change to ADB permitting desktop study use ‘to allow combustible materials on high-rise buildings’ would ‘represent a significant and dangerous weakening of fire safety regulations’. The letter concludes by urging
the government to ensure changes ‘do not result in combustible materials being cleared for use on tower blocks without a fire test taking place’, as this would be ‘totally unacceptable, highly dangerous and would put lives at risk’. Dame Judith Hackitt’s interim report called for the government to ‘significantly restrict’ the use of desktop studies, while the Royal Institute of British Architects believes they ‘should be banned entirely’. In early April, the government published a consultation in response, including ‘tough new rules designed to strengthen fire testing for cladding systems on residential buildings’. It aims to ‘improve building safety’, while looking at ‘restricting or banning the use of “desktop studies” as a way of assessing the fire performance of external cladding systems’. It pointed out that the changes
‘come directly as a result’ of the interim report, and claimed that it is ‘going further’ by asking if desktop studies ‘should be used at all’. The consultation seeks views on whether such desktop studies are ‘appropriate for all construction products, wall systems (cladding) or for any other purpose’.
If deemed appropriate, proposed
changes include ‘improving the transparency of assessments, enabling proper scrutiny of results and ensuring that the studies can only be carried out by properly accredited bodies that have the relevant expertise’. The consultation ends on 25 May, and MHCLG will consider all the comments’ and ‘provide a response as soon as possible’. Mr Javid commented: ‘We have
listened carefully to Dame Judith Hackitt and we are taking action to strengthen building regulations guidance, which could mean that the use of “desktop studies” are either significantly restricted or banned altogether. This demonstrates the tough measures we are prepared to take to make sure that cladding tests are as robust as possible and people are safe in their homes.’ In addition, the government commissioned the British Standards Institution (BSI) to draft a standard for the ‘extended application’ of BS 8414 results. This would ‘provide detailed rules for assessments relating to cladding systems, in support of the new proposed requirements’, and once the standard is introduced for cladding systems, ‘following it would be the expectation’.
Limited combustibility Dame Judith also told MPs that using limited combustibility materials on high rise buildings is the ‘low-risk option’. Inside Housing reported on her letter, in which she stated that using
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