Risk assessments, building standards and safety measures for properties with reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) construction: EIR release

Information requested

Information in respect of, variously:

• Risk Assessments and Safety Measures
• Blast Resistance Testing for RAAC
• Impact of Quarry Blasts and Historical Mining,
• Development Standards and Historical Context, and
• Additional Relevant Information

Response

As the information you have requested is 'environmental information' for the purposes of the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRs), we are required to deal with your request under those Regulations. We are applying the exemption at section 39(2) of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA), so that we do not also have to deal with your request under FOISA. 

This exemption is subject to the 'public interest test'. Therefore, taking account of all the circumstances of this case, we have considered if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exemption. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exemption, because there is no public interest in dealing with the same request under two different regimes. This is essentially a technical point and has no material effect on the outcome of your request.

Our aim is to provide information whenever possible and some information is set out below in respect of the fourth part of your request. However, with regard to other elements of your request (including risk assessments and safety measures, blast resistance testing for RAAC and impact of quarry blasts and historical mining) the Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested. Therefore these parts of your request are refused under the exception at regulation 10(4)(a) of the EIRs. The reasons why that exception applies are explained below.

Under the terms of the exception at regulation 10(4)(a) of the EIRs (information not held), the Scottish Government is not required to provide information which it does not have. The Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested because the Scottish Government is not responsible for the issues raised which are, primarily, matters relating to planning and building authorities and the implementation of legislation and regulations in force at any particular time. As indicated below, information on the more technical aspects of your request may be available from certain professional bodies and research organisations.

This exception is subject to the 'public interest test'. Therefore, taking account of all the circumstances of this case, we have considered if the public interest in disclosing the information outweighs the public interest in applying the exception. We have found that, on balance, the public interest lies in favour of upholding the exception. While we recognise that there may be some public interest in information about the impacts of mining, quarrying and blasting on RAAC, clearly we cannot provide information which we do not hold.

Previous legislation (development standards and historical context)

With regard to that part of your request asking for what building standards and regulations were in place in the 1960s and 1970s, we would direct you to the following legislation (primary and secondary). These are publicly available via https://www.legislation.gov.uk/.

THE BUILDING (SCOTLAND) ACT 1959 – 1959 c. 24 (Regnal. 7 and 8 Eliz 2) published: 30 April 1959

• The Building Standards (Scotland) Regulations 1963 - 1963 No. 1897 (S. 102), came into force: 15 June 1964
• The Building Standards (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 1964 – 1964 No. 802 (S. 50), came into force: 15 June 1964
• The Building Standards (Scotland) Regulations 1967 - 1967 No. 1136 (S. 94), came into force: 1 September 1967
• The Building Standards (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 1970 - 1970 No. 620 (S. 45), came into force: 15 May 1970

THE BUILDING (SCOTLAND) ACT 1970 - 1970 c. 38, published: 29 May 1970

• The Building Standards (Scotland) (Consolidation) Regulations 1971 - 1971 No. 2052 (S. 218), came into force: 9 February 1972
• The Building Standards (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 1973 - 1973 No. 794 (S. 65), came into force: 16 May 1973
• The Building Standards (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 1975 - 1975 No. 404 (S. 51), came into force: 21 April 1975
• The Building Standards (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 1979 - 1979 No. 310 (S. 29), came into force: 1 June 1979

Additional relevant information

The following information, which includes reference to current legislative provisions, as well as other authorities and organisations which may be able to assist, is primarily intended to respond to the final part of your request but may also help with those other elements of your request where the Scottish Government itself does not hold relevant information.

Building Standards

Building regulations in Scotland contain standards that must be met. These are functional building standards, supported by guidance contained in the Technical Handbooks. The building warrant applicant is required to satisfy the local authority verifier that the requirements of the building standard(s) will be met.

In respect of current standards, when constructing a new building, Section 1 of the Technical Handbook confirms that the stability of the building and other existing buildings in the vicinity can be affected by ground conditions which should be investigated and assessed to ensure that the ground can safely support the building for example when considering mine working or quarry operations.

The following extracts, intended to demonstrate the relevant functional standards and guidance, are taken from Section 1 of the 'Domestic Technical Handbook' most recently published in January 2025 and accessible here:
https://www.gov.scot/publications/building-standards-technical-handbook-january-2025-domestic/.

Mandatory Standard 1.1

Every building must be designed and constructed in such a way that the loadings that are liable to act on it, taking into account the nature of the ground, will not lead to:
a) the collapse of the whole or part of the building
b) deformations which would make the building unfit for its intended use, unsafe, or cause damage to other parts of the building or to fittings or to installed equipment, or
c) impairment of the stability of any part of another building.

1.1.4 Nature of the ground

The foundations of buildings should be designed to sustain and transmit the loadings to the ground in such a manner that there will be no ground movement which will impair the stability of the building. All aspects of the nature of the ground should be taken into consideration including ground movement caused by:

• swelling, shrinkage or freezing of the subsoil, or
• landslip, or
• subsidence such as that arising from the collapse of abandoned mineral workings or quarrying operations.

There may be known or recorded conditions of ground instability, such as that arising from landslides, disused mines or unstable strata which, if ignored, could have an adverse effect on a building. Such conditions should be taken into account in the design and construction of the building and its foundations.

Standard 1.2

Every building must be designed and constructed in such a way that in the event of damage occurring to any part of the structure of the building the extent of any resultant collapse will not be disproportionate to the original cause.

1.2.0 Introduction

All buildings must be designed to accommodate unforeseen or accidental actions in such a way as to prevent the extent of any resulting collapse being disproportionate to the cause of the collapse. Buildings should be designed so that they are robust which is defined in BS EN-1991-1-7:2006 as the ability of a structure to withstand events like fire, explosions, impact or the consequences of human error without being damaged to an extent disproportionate to the original cause.

National Records of Scotland

While review of files and a search of the National Records of Scotland (NRS) online catalogue using a range of search terms relevant to various parts of your request indicates no information in scope, you may wish to utilise the search facility on the NRS website for historical information of potential interest. This facility is accessible here: https://catalogue.nrscotland.gov.uk/nrsonlinecatalogue/welcome.aspx with contact details for NRS here: https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/contact-us/.

Local Authorities

You may also wish to note that the risks of mineral workings or quarrying operations for new build properties should be considered by the local authority verifier (and designers) during the building warrant process as part of the specific sites geotechnical design considerations. Reports detailing any risks and possible mitigation measures will typically be kept by the local authority verifier for the geographical location. We would therefore suggest that questions specific to properties in any particular location, such as Chapelle Crescent, Tillicoultry should be directed to the appropriate local authority, in this instance Clackmannanshire Council. Contact details for Clackmannanshire Council can be found here: https://www.clacks.gov.uk/site/contact/. Contact details for all Scottish Local Authorities can be found on the COSLA website: https://www.cosla.gov.uk/councils.

Health and Safety Executive

As well as approaching Local Authorities as a primary source of information for issues relating to planning matters you may also wish to contact the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) who may be able to offer advice on the implementation of various relevant legislation, for example the Quarries Regulations 1999 and the Environmental Protection Act 1990. Contact details for the HSE can be found here: https://www.hse.gov.uk/scotland/contact.htm.

Other Organisations

In respect of more technical, industry led assessment of issues concerning RAAC, such as impacts of mining, quarrying or blasting activities, you may wish to contact organisations such as the Institution of Structural Engineers (IStructE). Contact details for IStructE can be found here: https://www.istructe.org/contact-us/. As referenced in the Technical Handbook, information on the nature of problems arising from mining instability etc is available from the British Geological Survey (https://www.bgs.ac.uk/) and The Coal Authority (https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/thecoal-authority). The University of Loughborough has also undertaken some RAAC related research which may be of interest. Contact details for the relevant research area at Loughborough can be found here: https://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/abce/research/structures-and-materials/raac/. In addition, you may also wish to access the 'RAAC Playbook' published by the Manufacturing Technology Centre: https://www.the-mtc.org/raac-playbook.

About FOI

The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at https://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.