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Hackitt: fire service advice being ignored by building owners

The author of a government-commissioned interim independent report into building regulations has told cross-party MPs that the advice of fire services is being ignored in the design stages of a building’s development.

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Picture: Getty
Picture: Getty
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Hackitt: fire service advice being ignored by building owners #ukhousing

Building regulations review team will look at ‘stay put’ policy #ukhousing

Hackitt: fire risk assessment process “insufficient” #ukhousing

At an evidence session held by the Communities and Local Government Select Committee this afternoon, Dame Judith Hackitt was asked by chair Clive Lewis MP whether the fire safety advice of fire and rescue services should be “integral” to fire safety decisions made by a building owner in the design phase.

She replied: “That’s the easiest question of all, yes. I find it extraordinary that they are not consulted at an early stage in the process.”

She said fire and rescue services told her that they offer advice to building owners but it is not taken on board.

The ‘stay put’ policy adopted in most tower blocks will be looked at in greater depth by Dame Judith and her team in the next phase of the review.

She said one issue the team has “undoubtedly encountered” among residents is “that whole question of whether or not they would stay put, in spite of that being the instruction”.

“Whether human behaviour would override that at this point in time is a question that we have to revisit in this next phase.”


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She also said the current fire risk assessment process for tower blocks is “insufficient in many different ways”.

She said it is “rather strange” that fire risk assessments do not have to be reported to anyone and said at the “very least” the assessments should be carried out on an annual basis “even if there are no modifications” to be made.

She added: “What is more, in order to upgrade the quality of those assessments, they ought to be made available both to the fire and rescue service and to the residents so they are aware of the work and the review that has been done of their building.”

Dame Judith said she could “see no reason at all” why landlords are holding off on removing cladding that has failed fire safety tests.

She added: “The guidance – not from me but from the expert panel, on what has been tested and what is safe – is clear and unambiguous and there is no reason at all why that cannot be followed.”

What is the Hackitt Review?

Following the Grenfell Fire in June, which killed 71 people, questions were raised about the part that building regulations played in the tragedy.

On 28 July, Amber Rudd, the home secretary, and Sajid Javid, the communities secretary, commissioned Dame Judith Hackitt to conduct a review into building regulations and fire safety.

The review, which is being carried out independently of government, has a particular focus on regulations as they apply to high-rise residential buildings.

The review's interim findings were reported in December 2017.

Who is Dame Judith Hackitt?

Dame Judith is an engineer with extensive experience in the chemicals industry and former civil servant. She formerly chaired watchdog the Health and Safety Executive and is currently chair of manufacturing trade body EEF.

In 2006, she was awarded the Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for services to health and safety and in 2016 was named Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE).

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