FR Consultants Ltd.
                     THE FIRE 
SAFETY ACT 
An integ2ral pie0ce o2f law 1that all those responsible for multi-occupied buildings should know and understand
Presented by Dorian Lawrence, Managing Director of FR Consultants.
Dorian 
LawrMeCIOnBc, Ce.Build E, 
MCABE
Managiing Diirector,, FR 
Consulltants
A Chartered Building Surveyor and Chartered 
Building Engineer with 35 years' experience in 
external façades in construction, process, project 
management, materials, design, programming 
and testing.
The UK's 
Leading 
FWea woçrk anatdiionewiid e,, proviidiing an end-to-
end sollutiion to façade and fiire safety,, and 
Ecomxpllipiancee..rts
FRC''s mission is to make Britain''s buildings 
safer,, compliant,, saleable,, mortgageable and 
insurable.. We deliver services nationwide,, with 
a highly qualified workforce..
What is the 
Fire Safety 
•AThe Fcire Stafe?ty Act was introduced on the 19th of March 2020.
• It became an Act of Law on the 29th of April 2021 after passing through parliamentary 
process and receiving royal assent and commenced in full on the 16th of May 2022.
• The Act follows the Government Fire Safety Consultation
• The Fire Safety Act is the first legislative step in the process of implementing the 
recommendations from the Grenfell Tower Inquiry - Phase 1
The Fire Safety Act 
2021
The Act makes essential changes to the Fire Safety 
Order (2005).
Where a building contains two or more sets off 
domestic premise, the Responsible Person must 
take account off structure, external walls and flat 
entrance doors in a fire risk assessment.
• Section 1
Premises to which the Fire Safety 
Order applies
• Section 2 The Fire Safety Act 2021 
makes essential 
Power to change premises to 
which the Fire Safety Order amendments to the 
applies Regulatory Reform (Fire 
Safety) Order 2005, 
• Section 3 including the types of 
Risk based guidance about the premises to which it applies 
discharge of duties under the Fire and clarifications of the 
Safety Order scope.
• Section 4
Extent, commencement and short 
title
SECTION 1
All multi-occupied buildings (of any height) in England and Wales must have a Fire Risk 
Assessment which takes into account (via an FRAEW):
Structure and external 
walls (assessments may 
need to check through to Doors between 
internal plasterboard) domestic 
premises and 
common parts
Attachments to the 
external wall, 
including balconies
Doors and windows Any common 
within the parts
external wall
SECTION SECTION 3
2
Power to change premises to Risk based guidance about the 
which the Fire Safety Order discharge of duties under the Fire 
applies. Safety Order.
The Fire Safety Act 2021 gives ‘relevant Where it is alleged that a person has 
authority’ the power to amend the contravened regulations made under article 24 
Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order of the Fire Safety Order
2005 for the purposes of changing or 
clarifying the premises to which it applies. • Proof of failure to comply with applicable 
risk- based guidance may be evidenced 
• In England, the ‘relevant authority’ to establish a contravention
refers to the Secretary of State.
• Proof of compliance with applicable risk-
• In Wales, the ‘relevant authority’ refers based guidance may be evidenced to 
to the Welsh Ministers. establish that there was no 
contravention
SECTION 
4
Commencement
In 
England
Section 2 of the Act 
commenced on the 29th of 
June 2021 In Wales
Section 1 and Section 3 of the Act 
commenced on the 16th of May Welsh ministers have 
2022 meaning the Fire Safety Act is commenced all sections of 
now in full force. the Fire Safety Act as of the 
1st of October 2021.
What is the new Fire 
Risk Prioritisation 
AT noew Foire lRi?sk Assessment Prioritisation Tool has been made available following the commencement of sections 1 
and 3 of the Fire Safety Act. The tool can assist the 
Responsible Persons in showing due diligence and assist in Competent Fire 
establishing in any proceedings that they are meeting their Safety 
obligations under the FSO (as amended by the Fire Professionals are 
SFoalfleotwyi nAgc tc 2o0m2p1le).tion, a priority rating will be given which will 
assist with prioritising the review of the fire risk expected to 
assessments for the building, including external walls. prioritise buildings 
The results may be referred to, and relied upon, in relation to in Tiers 1 and 2.
any legal proceedings concerning a responsible person’s 
alleged contravention of the duties in the FSO as amended by 
the Fire Safety Act.
What information is What do the priority ratings 
required? mean?
Before the responsible person can utilise the Tier 1 - take immediate action to engage a 
new tool, they will need to ensure they have competent
the following information: (Very High) professional who can advise on external 
walls and update the FRA
• Height of the building (in storeys)
• Composition of external wall and Tier 2 - take action as soon as practically 
possible to engage a (High)competent professional 
covering materials and update the FRA
• Most recent fire risk assessment for 
the building Tier 3 - appoint the services of a competent 
• Details of any balconies on the professional (Medium) when they are able to do so 
(this reflects the understanding of availability of 
building competent fire safety professionals)
• Composition of windows
• Number of staircases Tier 4 - not expected that the responsible 
• Details of current evacuation person will need (Low) to appoint a competent 
strategy professional to assess the external walls. May wish 
to bring forward review of FRA.
• Information on the buildings fire safety 
systems, sprinklers or communal fire Tier 5 - consider those duties in the FSO 
alarms amended by the (Very Low) FSA when next 
• If the building is designed as reviewing FRA
‘general’ or ‘specialised’
• Details of any recent fires
How will we 
assess the 
at risk 
buildings?
PAS 9980 & 
FAs pRart oAf ongEoingW reforms, the Government have commissioned a new Publicly Available 
Specification (PAS) code of practice for examining external walls of existing multi-
occupied buildings of any height.
The PAS 9980 has been developed by the British Standards Institute (BSI) and was 
published 12th January 2022.
The FRAEW to which PAS 9980 refers is not within the competence of a typical Fire Risk 
Assessor who carries out the FRA for a block of flats.
Where an FRAEW is considered necessary, the PAS is intended to provide 
recommendations and guidance tailored to the particular risk posed by fire spread over 
external walls, and to provide tools for a competent person to carry out the FRAEW.
Examples are buildings in which the external wall construction can readily be confirmed as 
being of traditional masonry construction, or cases in which it can, otherwise, readily be 
determined by a typical fire risk assessor (e.g., from the age of the building if it predates 
the mid-1960s, from an operation and maintenance manual or an existing report by a 
competent person, based on a relevant BS 8414 test) that no FRAEW is necessary.
How do the risk ratings 
wPAS otakresk a ?risk-based approach rather than a 
compliance-based approach
HIGH RISK
Category 3 The PAS seeks to 
ACM apply a degree of 
MEDIUM RISK quantitative and 
qualitive judgement, 
however any FRAEW 
LOW RISK
will inevitably be to a 
75mm masonry wall
large degree 
subjective.
Factors for Consideration
Facade Configuration
Fire Strategy
Fire Performance Building Height | Height of 
Cladding above the Ground | Occupancy | Evacuation 
Cladding Material | Cavities and 
Extent of Cladding | Extent of Strategy | Escape Route Design 
Cavity Barriers, Fire Stopping & 
Continuous Cavities | Continuous | Compartmentation | Smoke 
Gaps | Insulation
sections of Spandrel Panels | Control | Fire Alarm and 
| Substrate including Fire 
Setbacks and Overhangs | Detection System | Fire 
Protection of Structural 
Proximity of Windows and Suppression | Fire-Fighting 
Frame | Sheathing Board | 
Openings | Presence of Vents or Facilities | Rising Mains | Fire- 
Spandrel Panels
Service Openings | Presence of Fighting Lifts | Specific Fire 
Combustible Materials to Hazards
Openings on the Escape Routes | 
Attachments such as Balconies
Risk 
Rating
Sample 
In each Rof oeur rpepoortsr wte ensure the Façade Materials, Façade Complexity and Fire 
Strategy Measures are assessed and ranked 
accordingly in a tabular format.
Review Risk 
Factor 
As a baseline, you should assume during the analysis that the 
sAtarting poaint ils ‘yhighs riski’ Fsactoring in each of the three 
elements in turn determines how this effects the overall risk 
scale.
It will be important to detail your considerations and 
limitations when preparing this analysis.
The outcome of your assessment could require further 
intrusive analysis of fire engineering determination, especially 
where the conclusions cannot fully confirm whether the 
combustible elements within the wall can remain in-situ 
without further compensatory measures being required.
The scale is an intrusive tool and should only be used 
to indicate where the risk sits broadly within a band i.e. 
high, middle or low.
An 
Example 
Report
Location of 
façade/cladding set 
back from main 
elevation
High Pressure 
Laminate with 
combustible 
insulation
Expected Skillsets of a 
Competent External Wall Assessor
“The cultural change, training, metrics, tools and resources applied to health and safety 
now need to be applied to technical competency.”  - Adam Nicholson, McLaren Construction.
“The FRAEW to which PAS 9980 refers is not within the competence of a typical Fire Risk Assessor who carries out the 
FRA for a block of flats.”
PAS 9980 has been specifically developed for competent Fire Engineers and other competent building professionals undertaking 
a Fire Risk Appraisal of External Walls (FRAEW).
A key requirement for all three levels is to know the limitations of their skillset and can draw in additional skills if required.
Fire Safety Act Compliance 
with FRC
Regulations
Recommendations from the Hackitt report and the Grenfell Tower Inquiry 
will form part of future regulations under section 24 of the Fire Safety 
Order.
Secure Information Boxes Personal Emergency Evacuation 
Plans
The Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 will make it a legal 
requirement from 23 January 2023 for existing high-rise 
The Grenfell Tower Inquiry made recommendations for 
residential buildings to have a Secure Information Box 
installed on the premises. The regulations will require the the preparation of PEEPs for relevant people to be 
responsible person to install a suitably secure information box required by law and that the owner and manager of high-
in, or on, their building. rise residential buildings be required to keep these plans on 
site in a Secure Information Box.
They will also be required to provide: STATUS: The Fire Safety Consultation consulted on 
• Their UK contact details proposals for PEEPs but found that the issue was extremely 
• The UK contact details of any other person who has the complex. The Government sought further views from those 
facilities to, and is permitted to, access the building as the most likely to be impacted through a public consultation, 
responsible person considers appropriate which ended in July. The consultation raised more 
• Copies of the building’s floor plans – which identify specified questions around the substantial difficulties of mandating 
key fire-fighting equipment PEEPs in high-rise residential buildings around practicality, 
• A single page block plan – which identifies specified key fire- proportionality and safety. Given these concerns, the 
fighting equipment Government will undertake a new consultation, 
including a proposal called ‘emergency evacuation 
The information in the boxes is information only of use by and information-sharing’ (EEIS). 
interest for the fire and rescue service, who should have 
access provided. Boxes should be maintained, and their The consultation will look to ensure that the golden thread 
contents kept up to date in line with the duties imposed by exists between planning for the safe evacuation of a 
the regulations and the Fire Safety Order. mobility-impaired person when needed and the response 
of the fire and rescue services in the event that a building 
needs to be evacuated.
A Summary
The Fire Safety Act 2021 makes assessing the external walls (including attachments) 
and flat entrance doors in multi-occupied buildings of any height a mandatory 
requirement; meaning that even buildings that do not fall into the scope of the Building 
Safety Act are protected.
The Fire Safety Act commenced fully in England on the 16th May 2022, so those 
responsible for ensuring compliance with these new requirements will need to be 
planning accordingly.
The Building Safety Act is still in the process of being finalised. Once it passes, new 
and existing buildings over 18mtrs/7 storeys will be subject to a stringent new set of 
requirements, including safety case reports and Golden Thread information 
gathering.
Both pieces of legislation will greatly enhance life safety in all multi-occupied 
buildings through more stringent assessments, risk-management and accountability, 
albeit increasing the cost to the lessee.
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