BSR chief tells industry to raise its game on building safety

Some firms appear not to share the Building Safety Regulator’s (BSR) aim of driving up safety standards, according to the body’s inspector of buildings.

In an online update, Philip White (pictured) outlined a list of reasons why 44 per cent of applications for residential buildings classed as higher-risk – at least seven storeys or 18 metres in height – are still being rejected at the validation stage.

Following the 2017 Grenfell Tower blaze, the Building Safety Act 2022 brought in a new regime for higher-risk buildings (HRBs), with the BSR overseeing a system whereby plans are approved at three stages, known as ‘gateways’. But the system has been plagued by well-documented bottlenecks and delays to approvals. 

White said flaws identified in applications “aren’t minor omissions” and are being highlighted by the BSR to meet the aim of driving up safety standards from the outset of projects.

“But some players do not appear to share this aim,” he said.

“Despite all the communications and publicity over the years before the Act came into force, and despite the terrible loss of life from Grenfell [where 72 people died] and the unflinching commentary in the two inquiry reports, some organisations haven’t stepped up.

“It’s high time they did.”

White said that issues leading to rejection cover problems with both structural and fire safety.

Missing structural information relates to information on:

• How the building has been designed to prevent collapse
• How the foundations will support the building
• How the stairs, balconies, handrails and other fixtures will be supported
• How building materials (concrete and structural steel) are capable of supporting any loads required by the building

Fire issues include:

• The risk of the smoke-extracting design pulling smoke from the source of a fire (in a flat) into the evacuation stairs; applicants’ own smoke analyses have shown smoke will be pulled into the lobby ‘safe area’
• No assurance that the wall will be built to required fire resistance
• No details of required fire barriers in the external (cladding) to prevent a fire spread externally
• Some corridors not being wide enough to allow total evacuation if recommended by the fire service
• No smoke detectors provided in the flats; only one heat detector in the kitchen
• No rationale on how the building parts are tied together to prevent it from collapsing

White said: “This isn’t ‘red tape’ for the sake of it. We’re preventing risks and problems from being designed into the built environment.”

He held his hand up to the BSR’s problems in dealing with the volume of applications submitted to it when it took building control responsibility for HRBs last year.

However, he said the regulator had almost cleared the backlog that had built up.

White advised firms to “help themselves” by factoring around 18 to 20 weeks for building control into their project plans.

A spokesperson for one contractor involved with HRBs told Construction News: “We speak to people in the sector every day, and they’re frustrated by the delays and lack of clarity in approvals.

“The guidelines and regulations are incredibly important for safety and necessary for the industry to move forward, but the regulator needs to provide clearer guidance and more flexibility to support progress across the construction industry.”