
A group of Anthony Collins Solicitors (ACS) experts from across our various client sectors have gazed into their crystal ball and given us a view on how 2021 is looking.
The Fire Safety Bill (“the Bill”) had its second reading in the House of Lords on 1 October 2020 and amends the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (“the Order”) to provide further clarity regarding the responsibilities of those involved in the ownership, management and maintenance of multi-occupancy buildings.
The Order applies to all non-domestic premises, including the communal areas of residential multi-occupancy homes and allocates responsibility for complying with the duties set out within it to certain individuals and organisations with ownership or management of a property (referred to as “the Responsible Person”) and other relevant duty holders such as those with maintenance responsibilities.
The scope of the Order, at present, does not clearly cover certain areas of the buildings that may pose a serious fire risk, for example, the structure of buildings and the externals walls. This is a source of confusion for both those involved in the ownership and management of buildings and enforcement authorities alike.
The Government has stated that “the Bill will provide a foundation for secondary legislation to take forward the recommendations from the Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase One report which stated that building owners and managers of high-rise and multi-occupied residential buildings should be responsible for a number of areas including:
The key changes proposed in the Fire Safety Bill
The headline reforms introduced in the Bill include:
A look to the future of fire safety
The Fire Safety Bill brings welcome clarity regarding the responsibilities of the Responsible Person and other relevant duty holders. With the building’s structure, external walls and certain doorsets now expressly included, the Responsible Person will be required to carry out a broader fire risk assessment covering these areas and to put relevant fire precautions in place.
There are however some practical issues with the Bill that will need to be addressed.
Our fire safety experts are experienced in advising social housing providers on building safety issues. We also provide training for social housing providers regarding building safety issues. If you have any questions in relation to the Fire Safety Bill, or our bespoke training on the Building Safety Bill, please contact Lorna Kenyon or Kieran Binnie.
This is the fourth in a series of ebriefings on this topic. The full list can be found below:
A group of Anthony Collins Solicitors (ACS) experts from across our various client sectors have gazed into their crystal ball and given us a view on how 2021 is looking.
Luton Borough Council was prosecuted by the HSE late last year following an incident at a high school in which an assistant headteacher was attacked by a pupil and left with life-changing injuries.
This ebriefing looks at the proposal to set out 'public procurement principles' in the proposed procurement legislation.
Happy New Year - our first newsletter of 2021! Throughout this year we will continue to bring you news and developments relating to the charities sector.
Local authorities should be wary of reserving contracts for local suppliers, as recommended by Procurement Policy Note (PPN) 11/20. Other contracting authorities may want to maximise their use of this
Most housing practitioners have perhaps been waiting for this news since the latest lockdown was announced by the Prime Minister on 4 January 2021.
Climate change and biodiversity is an area where significantly faster changes are needed on a global and local basis.
Chris Lloyd Smith, Adrian Leonard and Lisa Whitehouse discuss the planning opportunities available to owners of businesses and how to prepare for unforeseen events.
In their 3rd podcast of the series, Chris Lloyd-Smith and Maria Ramon discuss a number of problems with and difficulties that can arise in mediation and the mechanisms they use to overcome them.
Our previous round-up began by sharing the news that two vaccines had shown very promising test results. Here we are, not even a month later, and the first vaccines have already been administered!
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