REFORMING THE BUILDING SAFETY REGULATION SYSTEM

The Independent Review of Building Regulations and Fire Safety set up following the tragic Grenfell Tower fire made various recommendations for improving the regulatory regime covering safety for high rise buildings.

The Government has now launched a consultation on proposals as to how the system of building regulations will be improved.

Under the new proposals 5 duty holders (client, principal designer, principal contractor, designer and contractor) will be responsible for the safety of a building when it is being designed and built, including ensuring that building regulations are complied with.

For higher risk domestic buildings when the building is finished it is proposed that a new “accountable person” role will be created. This “accountable person” will be responsible for making sure that building fire and that structural safety risks are reduced as much as reasonably practicable when people are living in the building.

Among other things the accountable person will be required to provide residents with the information they need so that they understand the protections in place to keep their building safe from structural or fire issues.

To oversee enforcement of the new system a building safety regulator will be created along with new criminal offences to make sure that those responsible for the safety of a high rise residential building during the design and construction of the building, as well as when residents are living in the building, comply with their responsibilities.

Finally there are plans for stronger regulation of construction products.

You can view the proposals and respond to the consultation, which runs until 31^st July 2019, on the Gov.UK website at: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/building-a-safer-future-proposals-for-reform-of-the-building-safety-regulatory-system