Fire Compartmentation

The best way forward is to get a survey done with a mutually appointed surveyor who is not pressurised into skewing the results one way or the other. For this reason, Cladding Consulting works very closely with developers and trusted surveyors when assisting with a fire compartmentation survey. Get in touch if you’d like to discuss initiating a fire compartmentation survey.

It is important to note that The Building Safety Fund does not cover any costs associated with the remediation of Compartmentation Defects.

The answer to this question is not a simple one because once a building is completed, repair works are carried out and these may impair the fire compartmentation of the property. The best course of action is to make sure your survey is done by a mutually appointed surveyor who ios not pressurised into skewing the results one way or another. Cladding Consulting works very closely with developers and trusted surveyors when assisting with a fire compartmentation survey.

All new BSF applications now call for applicants to provide an assessment of the risks posed by fire spread over external walls to identify what, if any, work is required. This process, known as the Fire Risk Appraisal of External Walls (FRAEW), must be carried out by competent professionals in line with the new PAS 9980:2022 code of practice, which aims to make remediation solutions more proportionate to the building’s individual level of risk.

For applicants already registered with the BSF before it was paused, there is the choice to continue with the original process, or switch to the new procedure using an FRAEW. If you are unsure of the best route to take in your individual situation, you are welcome to get in touch for a free consultation. If you choose us to manage your cladding remediation, the fees will be covered by the government’s cladding remediation fund.

The government asked major UK developers to sign the Developer Pledge in 2022, which asked them to commit to remediating life-critical fire safety works on buildings of 11 metres and over that they were involved in building or renovating over the plast 30-years in England.

The agreement was made after discussions between the Secretary of State for the Department for Levelling Up Housing and Communities and the Home Builders Federation to protect leaseholders from having to incur the costs of remediation work required on life-critical fire safety defects.

49 developers signed the pledge and in January 2023, the government wrote to them and asked them to sign a legal contract, committing to the remediation work. If they refused, the government explained it would make it very difficult for them to continue constructing – planning permissions would be revoked and work on existing developments would be halted.

The Building Safety Fund was set up to cover the cost of cladding remediating for any buildings more than 18 metres in height with a 30cm tolerance, which have been clad in combustible material.

It covers ‘reasonable’ costs for the works necessary to remove the unsafe cladding and will also cover Cladding Consulting’s fees.

The Developer Pledge is a promise made by some of the UK’s biggest house builders, to admit that leaseholders should not be made to pay for remediation and that they, the developer, take responsibility for any necessary work to put right fire safety issues on buildings of more than 11 metres they had a role in either developing or refurbishing. It covers both the inside and outside of the building.

Where cladding needs to be removed and the developer is not part of the pledge, you can apply to the Building Safety Fund or the new Mid-Rise scheme, which is being piloted and launches in the spring.