Definitive, holistic and risk-based guidance is essential for buildings of all heights and for both external and internal defects, so that safety assessments and the remediation required will be absolutely clear and consistent.
Buildings cannot be made half-safe. The building safety crisis goes far beyond external cladding and so must solutions.
- A truly holistic approach must give equal consideration to non-cladding defects that require remediation, such as balcony structures, means of escape and internal safety issues.
- There must be a robust national standard for assessing internal building safety issues – including the building structure, roof voids, compartmentation and fire-stopping – which is comparable with the national standard for external wall assessments.
- Both cladding and non-cladding defects should be remediated in a single holistic project for each building, wherever possible; otherwise, work will drag on for years in separate phases, causing even more unnecessary disruption to leaseholders’ and residents’ lives.
There must be a comprehensive risk assessment methodology that applies to buildings of all heights.
- There must be a clear and consistent risk assessment standard that can be applied to buildings of all heights. A “case-by-case” approach is unsustainable for dealing with the magnitude of affected buildings under 11 metres in height. Where professional risk assessments call for remediation or mitigation measures, then action to make the building safe must follow, regardless of building height.
- The government should work with all stakeholders to ensure their view of risk in buildings under 11 metres is not contradicted by the approach taken by lenders, insurers, fire engineers and building owners. If there is no consensus, leaseholders and residents will remain trapped – and the market for flats will remain broken – for years to come.