Scottish government publishes new fire safety guidance for multi-storey buildings

The guidance sets out under what circumstances intrusive appraisals should be carried out on buildings to determine the fire risk and under what circumstance such an appraisal should not be necessary.

It also outlines when temporary measures, such as a waking watch, should be implemented within a building where a fire risk has been identified.

The advice note sets out a range of factors that should be considered by those determining the risk posed by external wall systems.

As part of this, it places a distinction between buildings that are “extensively clad” and “partially clad” with the most dangerous types of cladding.

The guidance also provides separate guidance for buildings above 11 metres and below 11 metres.

This is a different approach to the Westminster government, which often assesses risk based on an 18 metre threshold and has not emphasised a difference between extensively and partially clad buildings.

Like in England, flat owners in Scotland have often found themselves unable to move home since mortgage lenders began requiring that EWS1 checks are carried out on their building before they are willing to lend.

This check requires a qualified fire inspector to check the materials on a building’s external wall and decide if it needs remediation, or whether it can be given a clean bill of health for the banks to lend on.

Last month the UK government announced that EWS1 checks should no longer be carried out on buildings below 18 metres.

However, the country’s largest mortgage providers told Inside Housing they will not change their policies on EWS1 checks until the government revoked its own consolidated advice note, which asks building owners to check cladding systems on buildings regardless of height.