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Government publishes terms of reference for building regulations review
The government has published the terms of reference for its upcoming review of building regulations following the Grenfell Tower fire.
The terms promise to ensure “a sufficiently robust regulatory system for the future” and to assure residents that regulations keep their buildings safe.
One of the areas scrutinised will be “the competencies, duties and balance of responsibilities of key individuals within the system in ensuring that fire safety standards are adhered to”.
The review will also examine “the theoretical coherence” of the current system and how it works in practice compared to other countries’ building regulations.
It will be carried out by Judith Hackitt, a former chair of the Health and Safety Executive.
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She said: “It’s right that we consider the whole system together and ensure that everything possible is done to improve the safety of buildings.
“I will also be speaking to residents of multi-occupancy residential buildings who must have a voice about these important issues that affect their safety.”
Ms Hackitt will submit an interim report in the autumn and a final report in spring 2018, to which the government will issue a response in parliament.
Any recommendations following the review “will consider the implications of changes on wider government objectives”, including housing supply and rent levels.
Communities secretary Sajid Javid said: “We must learn the lessons of the Grenfell Tower tragedy and ensure that a fire like this cannot happen again.
“Following the fire, I commissioned a series of large-scale tests, which have raised the question of whether there have been potential systemic failures within the building regulatory and fire safety system.
“This independent review led by Dame Judith Hackitt will address any potential failures and recommend how we ensure the whole building regulations and fire safety system is robust. I am determined that we do everything possible to make people safe and to ensure that they feel safe.”
Inside Housing’s Never Again campaign calls on the government to immediately update and clarify building regulations, using the learnings from the Lakanal House inquest.
Never Again: campaign asks
Inside Housing is calling for immediate action to implement the learning from the Lakanal House fire, and a commitment to act – without delay – on learning from the Grenfell Tower tragedy as it becomes available.
LANDLORDS
- Take immediate action to check cladding and external panels on tower blocks and take prompt, appropriate action to remedy any problems
- Update risk assessments using an appropriate, qualified expert.
- Commit to renewing assessments annually and after major repair or cladding work is carried out
- Review and update evacuation policies and ‘stay put’ advice in light of risk assessments, and communicate clearly to residents
GOVERNMENT
- Provide urgent advice on the installation and upkeep of external insulation
- Update and clarify building regulations immediately – with a commitment to update if additional learning emerges at a later date from the Grenfell inquiry
- Fund the retrofitting of sprinkler systems in all tower blocks across the UK (except where there are specific structural reasons not to do so)
We will submit evidence from our research to the Grenfell public inquiry.
The inquiry should look at why opportunities to implement learning that could have prevented the fire were missed, in order to ensure similar opportunities are acted on in the future.
