Making Sprinklers Mandatory For New Care Homes

In 2023, we reported on a Government consultation covering proposals to introduce a requirement for all new care homes in England to be fitted with sprinkler systems. The consultation concluded last year, and following an announcement on 2^nd September, the Government has now published amendments to Approved Document B: Fire Safety to introduce those changes.

Most building work being carried out in England must comply with the Building Regulations 2010. Guidance on how to meet the technical requirements of those regulations is given in a series of “Approved Documents”. Separate regulations and guidance covers building work in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Approved Document B covers Fire Safety and is split into separate volumes for dwellings and other buildings.

The requirement for sprinklers to be fitted in new care homes will come into force on 2^nd March 2025. The current will continue to apply to any building work that has started and is sufficiently progressed prior to that date.

A separate amendment, which comes into force on 30^th September 2026, recommends that more than one common staircase should be provided in new blocks of flats with a storey 18 m or more in height.

A statement made by Rushanara Ali MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Building Safety and Homelessness, regarding these changes can be found at: https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2024-09-02/hcws62

It is important to note that these requirements only apply to new building work; they do not apply retrospectively to existing care homes or blocks of flats.

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