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problem across the sector and there tested and assured. safety charge’ will be introduced and will
was “insufficient focus on delivering Also in 2020, the government make it easy for leaseholders to
the best quality building possible, in released its draft Building Safety Bill, see what they are being charged for
order to ensure that residents are safe, which is currently progressing through keeping their building safe. For the
and feel safe”. Parliament and sets out how it is using first time, new-build home buyers will
In response to Dame Hackitt’s the recommendations of Dame Judith also have their right to complain to a
report, the Competence Steering Group Hackitt’s report and the existing Fire New Homes Ombudsman, protected by
(CSG) was established to take her Safety Bill and fire safety consultation legislation, to which developers will be
recommendations forward. In turn, to provide the “biggest improvements required to sign up.
the CSG produced the Raising the Bar to building safety in nearly 40 years”.
report, which provided more detailed For residents, this means measures
recommendations, and the Setting the are being put in place to make people There will always be an
Bar report, published in October 2020, feel safer in their homes. There will ‘Accountable Person’,
which represented two years of work always be an ‘Accountable Person’, responsible for keeping
with 150 organisations involved. responsible for keeping residents safe residents safe in high-rise
The CSG concluded that everyone in high-rise buildings (18 metres and
taking on a safety-related role in the above) and, to ensure the Accountable buildings (18 metres and
design, construction and management Person is carrying out their duties above) and, to ensure the
of buildings should be competent in properly, there will be a national Accountable Person is carrying
their role and that the competence regulator for building safety within the out their duties properly, there
of those with critical roles should be Health and Safety Executive. A ‘building
will be a national regulator
for building safety within the
Health and Safety Executive

For the industry, the draft bill makes
sure those responsible for the safety of
residents are accountable for mistakes
and must put them right.
The regulator will enforce the rules
and take strong actions against those
breaking them. It will also have three
main functions:
To oversee the safety and standard of
all buildings
To directly assure the safety of higher-
risk buildings
To improve the competence of
people responsible for managing and
overseeing building work
For high-rise residential buildings,
there will be a more stringent rules
in operation, which will apply when
buildings are designed, constructed,
and then later occupied. At each stage,
it will be clear who is responsible for
managing the potential risks and what
is required to move to the next stage.
When residents move into a building
that falls under the new set of rules, it
must be registered with the Building
Safety Regulator and a Building Assurance
Certificate needs to be applied for.
The Accountable Person needs to
conduct and maintain a safety case risk
assessment for the building. A Building
Safety Manager must also be appointed to
oversee it on a day-to-day basis. Building
inspectors responsible for signing a
building off as safe for occupation will
also need to follow the rules and register
with the regulator. The draft bill gives
the government new powers to better
regulate construction materials and
products, ensuring they are safe for use.

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