What This Requirement Covers
The Grenfell Tower fire on 14 June 2017, which killed 72 people, exposed catastrophic failures in the regulation and installation of external wall systems on high-rise residential buildings. Since then, the Government has introduced sweeping reforms to the regulation of external wall materials, building safety management, and remediation of existing unsafe buildings.
This article covers the current regulatory position on external wall safety, the ban on combustible materials, and the remediation framework.
Key Requirements
Ban on Combustible Materials (Regulation 7(2))
Since 21 December 2018, the Building Regulations (Amendment) Regulations 2018 (SI 2018/1230) ban the use of combustible materials in the external walls of
- Residential buildings over 18 metres in height
- Hospitals over 18 metres
- Care homes and sheltered housing over 18 metres
- Student accommodation over 18 metres
- Hotels and hostels over 18 metres
Exemptions apply only to
- Membranes not more than 1 mm thick
- Seals, gaskets, and fixings where the total area is limited
- Cavity trays and DPCs
- Intumescent and fire-stopping materials
Buildings 11-18 Metres
Buildings between 11 and 18 metres in height must either
- Use materials achieving A2-s1,d0 or A1, or
- Use a complete external wall system that passes a BS 8414 large-scale fire test assessed against BR 135 criteria
EWS1 (External Wall System) Process
The EWS1 form was developed by RICS, UK Finance, the Building Societies Association, and the Fire Industry Association to provide a standardised fire risk assessment of external walls for mortgage lending purposes
- Option A: An assessor confirms that the external wall materials do not include any combustible materials requiring further investigation (A1, A2, or A3 ratings)
- Option B: Further investigation is needed; a B1 rating means the risk is sufficiently low with appropriate management, while a B2 rating means remediation is required
- The EWS1 form is valid for 5 years
- From January 2023, the Government announced that EWS1 forms should not be required for buildings below 11 metres
Remediation
- The Building Safety Fund provides funding for the remediation of unsafe cladding on residential buildings over 18 metres
- The Cladding Safety Scheme extends support to buildings 11-18 metres
- Under the Building Safety Act 2022, developers responsible for defective buildings are required to self-fund remediation through legally binding pledges
- Leaseholders in qualifying buildings are protected from remediation costs by the leaseholder protections in the Building Safety Act 2022
The Building Safety Act 2022 and External Walls
- The Building Safety Act introduced a new regulatory regime for Higher-Risk Buildings (residential buildings over 18 metres or 7 storeys)
- The Building Safety Regulator (within the HSE) is the Building Control authority for higher-risk buildings
- Developers must demonstrate external wall safety through the Gateway process (Gateway 2: before construction, Gateway 3: before occupation)
- The Golden Thread of building information must include full details of external wall materials and their fire performance
Practical Compliance Tips
- For new buildings over 11 metres, specify non-combustible (A1 or A2-s1,d0) external wall materials from the outset to avoid complications
- Obtain manufacturer declarations of performance and test certificates for all external wall components
- For existing buildings, commission an EWS1 assessment from a qualified assessor if required for lending or insurance purposes
- If unsafe cladding is identified, engage with the relevant remediation fund and appoint a competent fire engineer
- Keep comprehensive records of all external wall materials for the building safety case file
- Monitor Government guidance, which continues to evolve; the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 impose duties on responsible persons regarding external walls
- Leaseholders should seek advice on their rights under the Building Safety Act 2022 if facing remediation costs