Consultation Launched on the New Safety Regime for Occupied Higher Risk Buildings

The Building Safety Act 2022 received Royal Assent at the end of April and introduces a new more stringent regulatory regime for the construction and use of buildings, in particular for high-rise residential buildings.

In order to make the new regime work, the Government now needs to introduce a range of secondary legislation and regulations to support the Act. As part of the process a number of consultations are now being launched.

One of the consultations covers the management of higher risk occupied buildings, that is buildings which contain at least 2 residential units and are at least 18 metres in height or at least 7 storeys. Once occupied these buildings will require at least one clearly identifiable accountable person who will have the same statutory obligations for assessing and managing building safety risks.

It is proposed that principal accountable persons must register their buildings with the Building Safety Regulator by 1 October 2023. Also the principal accountable person must apply for a building assessment certificate upon receiving a direction from the Building Safety Regulator to do so.

The new regulations will introduce a safety case approach to managing fire and structural safety during occupation, duties to engage residents, the ongoing management of a digital golden thread of information throughout the building lifecycle and the creation of a mandatory occurrence reporting framework.

This will all be enforced by a new Building Safety Regulator as part of the HSE.

Th consultation runs until 12^th October 2022. You can view the proposals and respond to the consultation using the Gov.UK website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/consultation-on-the-new-safety-regime-for-occupied-higher-risk-buildings/consultation-on-the-new-safety-regime-for-occupied-higher-risk-buildings

Please speak to your normal PIB Risk management contact or get in touch using [email protected]  if you have any questions about managing safety in any residential premises you are responsible for.