NEWS New fire and building safety measures announced


HOUSING SECRETARY Robert Jenrick announced ‘the biggest change in building safety for a generation’, which include a new regulator, changes to height limits and new consultations. The government said the measures would ‘go faster and further to improve building safety’, with the building safety regulator to be sited within the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and ‘established immediately’. In turn, ‘clarified and consolidated’ advice for building owners was released, while proposals and a consultation were launched to extend the combustibles ban and lower mandatory sprinkler limits. Mr Jenrick stated that the ‘slow pace of improving building safety standards will not be tolerated’, adding that the regulator will ‘give effective oversight of the design, construction and occupation’ of high risk buildings, as part of the HSE, which will ‘quickly begin to establish’ the regulator ‘in shadow form immediately’, prior to full establishment with legislation. The regulator will ‘raise building


safety and performance standards’ and oversee a ‘new, more stringent regime’ for higher risk buildings, while Dame Judith Hackitt will chair a board to ‘oversee the transition’. The HSE was chosen for its ‘strong track record of working with industry and other regulators to improve safety’, and would ‘draw on experience and the capabilities of other regulators to implement the new regime’. Recent fires have ‘highlighted that


many building owners have still not taken sufficient measures to ensure the safety of residents in buildings at all heights’, with the expert advisory panel having ‘clarified and updated’ advice for building owners on actions to take ‘to ensure their buildings are safe’, specifically on external cladding. The ‘consolidated’ advice


simplifies language and condenses previous advice into one place, and ‘vitally’ makes clear owners ‘need to do more to address safety issues’ on residential buildings under 18m. This advice also reflects the panel’s view that aluminium composite material


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(ACM) cladding with an ‘unmodified polyethylene core’ should ‘not be on residential buildings of any height and should be removed’, with a call for evidence published on risks within existing buildings. Regarding cladding remediation,


the government is appointing a construction expert to review timescales and ‘identify what can be done to improve pace in the private sector’. It is also ‘considering different options’ to support the process, including mitigating costs for individuals or alternative financing routes. A consultation was launched – closing 17 February – into fire safety risks and the combustibles ban, including proposals to lower the 18m threshold to ‘at least’ 11m. On sprinklers, a consultation last


year saw the government propose lowering the height threshold for new buildings, with ‘detailed proposals’ to come on how a technical review of fire guidance will be delivered. On fire doors, the advice ‘makes clear’ further actions to be taken by building owners, and the government welcomed the Association of Composite Door Manufacturers’ commitment to ‘work with building owners to remediate their doors which failed tests’, stipulating that the situation be monitored ‘closely to ensure that this commitment is followed through’. More details on the Fire Safety


Bill were released, with its aim to ‘clarify’ the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 and require


MARCH 2020 www.frmjournal.com


building owners to ‘fully consider and mitigate’ risks of external wall systems and individual flat front doors. Such changes will ‘make it easier to enforce’ where owners have not remediated ACM ‘by complementing the powers under the Housing Act’. Finally, the government will


work alongside local authorities and support ‘enforcement options’ where ‘there is no clear plan for remediation’, as building owners are ‘responsible for ensuring their buildings are safe’. Mr Jenrick ‘made clear’ that from February the government will ‘start to name building owners where remediation has not started’ to remove ACM. Mr Jenrick added: ‘The


government is committed to bringing about the biggest change in building safety for a generation. Progress on improving building safety needs to move significantly faster to ensure people are safe in their homes and building owners are held to account. ‘That’s why today I’m announcing a major package of reforms, including establishing the Building Safety Regulator within the [HSE] to oversee the new regime and publishing consolidated guidance for building owners. ‘Unless swift progress is seen in the coming weeks, I will publicly name building owners where action to remediate unsafe ACM cladding has not started. There can be no more excuses for delay, I’m demanding immediate action.’


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