Compliance
Fire Safety in Higher-Risk Buildings: An Ongoing Obligation
Fire safety duties under the Building Safety Act do not end at practical completion. Here is what continues through occupation and refurbishment.
20 November 2024 · 4 min read
Fire safety does not end at handover
It is tempting to treat fire safety as something that gets signed off once, at design approval or practical completion, and then filed away. Under the current regime, fire safety in higher-risk buildings is an ongoing obligation that continues through occupation, routine maintenance, refurbishment, and resident communication for the life of the building.
The evidence record needs to make clear, at any point, how fire risks are identified, what controls are in place, how those controls are reviewed, and what happens when a gap is found.
Evidence that actually supports a fire safety case
A strong fire safety position rests on several categories of evidence working together, not a single fire risk assessment sitting in a folder.
- Fire risk assessments and the actions raised from them, with completion dates
- Remedial action logs showing issues found, who fixed them, and when
- Product data and certification for fire-rated materials, doors, and systems installed
- Compartmentation records, particularly after any works that could affect fire separation
- Training evidence for anyone carrying out fire-safety-related work
- Resident-facing fire safety information and evidence it was communicated
Where refurbishment work creates risk
Refurbishment and maintenance work is where fire safety compliance most often quietly degrades. Cutting a hole through a fire-rated wall for a new cable run, replacing a fire door without matching certification, or removing insulation without reinstating it correctly can each compromise compartmentation in ways that are not visible without a proper inspection.
Anyone carrying out this kind of work needs to understand what they are cutting into, record what they did, and confirm the fire performance was reinstated, not just that the job looks finished.
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