On this 2nd Day of our 2023 Yule Blog, we consider the government's change of heart this year over whether residential buildings taller than 18 metres should have not one but two staircases, and look at where we are now.
One staircase was enough …
Following the Grenfell Tower tragedy in 2017, the government announced the "Independent Review of Building Regulations and Fire Safety" led by Dame Judith Hackitt (the Hackitt Review). The purpose of the review was to make recommendations to ensure that there was a sufficiently robust regulatory system for the future and that residents feel safe in the buildings that they live in. The Hackitt Review Interim Report was published in December 2017, and noted that "There needs to be a demonstration that there are sufficient layers of protection to ensure that building safety does not rely heavily on compartmentation. … There are a range of fire protection measures that can be retrofitted to or amended in existing buildings; for example, extra staircases". Despite this, the government resisted mandating a specific height at which tall or very tall residential buildings should include more than one staircase, instead leaving it to local authorities to decide on a case-by-case basis whether the requirements of the Building Regulations, specifically Approved Document B, were met for each scheme from a fire safety point of view.
Then two …
However, in August 2022 in a circular letter to local authorities, the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) agreed with the Building Regulation Advisory Committee (BRAC) that 'some very tall residential buildings are being designed on the incorrect premise that the guidance in the Approved Document is suitable for these types of uncommon building situations without due consideration by the designers on the applicability of the guidance'. This was quickly followed in December 2022 by the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) publishing its "Single Staircases Policy Position Statement", which recommended that new residential buildings taller than 18 metres should have more than one staircase.
On 23 December 2022, DLUHC published a consultation on various fire safety issues, including new rules to mandate second staircases in very tall residential buildings. However, despite the NFCC's recommendation, the government proposed that the new rules should apply only to new residential buildings over 30 metres tall. The Mayor of London also confirmed the 30 metres threshold in his December 2022 Statement regarding fire safety and tall buildings, which adopted the threshold for residential developments in London with immediate effect.
In December 2022, a requirement for two staircases therefore applied in new residential buildings over 30 metres in London, and this threshold was also expected to apply nationally once the government brought it into effect. This was despite calls from bodies such as RIBA and others to reduce the height threshold to 18 metres in accordance with the NFCC recommendation.
The December 2022 consultation stated there would be a 'very short transition period' before the new rules were adopted and encouraged "all developments to prepare for this now". Many developers did just that and adapted their existing proposals (absorbing the resulting loss of lettable floorspace at significant cost).
And then the threshold reduced
A mere seven months after the government's announcement on the 30 metre threshold, in its Long- term plan for housing published on 24 July 2023, the government again shifted the goalposts, confirming that the 18 metres threshold proposed by the NFCC would apply nationally. Further details were published three months later in a Written Statement on 24 October 2023. The October 2023 statement said that design details for changes to Approved Document B reflecting the 18 metres threshold would be published "soon", and provided high-level details of the transitional arrangements that will apply once the guidance is published. The transitional arrangements outline that, for 30 months from when the government formally publishes and confirms the changes to Approved Document B, developers of residential buildings taller than 18 metres will be able to choose whether to build in accordance with the old rules or in accordance with the new requirement for two staircases. If developers opt to build with only one staircase, construction must commence within 18 months (with "commencement" requiring the pouring of concrete for permanent placement of (i) a trench, pad or raft foundations or (ii) piling, to have begun, as set out in the Building (High Risk Buildings Procedures) (England) Regulations 2023). If construction does not commence within that time, a new building regulations application will be required.
Impact?
Another two months on and there is no further news or certainty for developers regarding the proposed changes to Approved Document B. This is one of many current causes of uncertainty in the market (for example, see our blogs on LURA 2023 and biodiversity net gain, as well as the National Planning Policy Framework and changes to building regulations), causing some developers to reportedly re-think their investment strategies.
While the market waits for more certainty it may in fact be self-regulating in relation to second staircases. Developers will be aware of the potential for perception about the safety of tall buildings that do not contain two staircases to deter purchasers and cause reputational harm. This could potentially impact on the values of residential flats in existing tall buildings and the risk of price differentials arising in the secondary market.
The October 2023 written statement seeks to assure that "existing and upcoming single-staircase buildings are not inherently unsafe" and "will not later need to have a second staircase added, when built in accordance with relevant standards, well-maintained and properly managed [emphasis added]". The statement adds that lenders, managing agents, insurers and others should not "impose onerous additional requirements, hurdles or criteria on single-staircase buildings in lending, pricing, management or any other respect". However, buyers, lenders, investors and insurers may be justified in demanding evidence that such buildings have in fact been built in accordance with relevant standards and/or have been well-maintained and properly managed. This could impact both the speed and cost of transactions and, in the absence of satisfactory evidence, the price achievable. Therefore, while we wait to see the proposed changes to Approved Document B, developers designing schemes now may choose to do so on the basis that residential buildings over 18 metres high should have a second staircase.
We'll be back on Monday with the final post of our 2023 Yule Blog!
Previous posts in our 2023 Yule Blog are here:
- Yule Blog 2023 – 12th Day – Drum roll please…
- Yule Blog 2023 – 11th Day – What’s in the pipeline for tenants in 2024?
- Yule Blog 2023 – 10th Day – The Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023
- Yule Blog 2023 – 9th Day – 9 ESG Steps for Real Estate
- Yule Blog 2023 – 8th Day – The property cases standing out from the herd
- Yule Blog 2023 – 7th Day – Nutrient and water neutrality
- Yule Blog 2023 – 6th Day – Laying out the new regime for Approved Inspectors
- Yule Blog 2023 – 5th Day – Golden rules for notices
- Yule Blog 2023 – 4th Day – Biodiversity net gain
- Yule Blog 2023 – 3rd Day – Changes to the Register of Overseas Entities
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