Building regulations - proposed review of fire safety topics: consultation

1 Introduction and how to respond to the consultation

1.1 Introduction

1.1.1. Purpose

The purpose of this review is to consider changes to the standards and processes set within The Building (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (as amended) and other published guidance documents to improve provisions addressing fire safety.

This consultation seeks to obtain the views and opinions of stakeholders on a review of building standards relating to the fire safety of historic buildings converted for hotel use and several other specific fire safety issues, to help ensure the safety of people in and around Scotland's buildings.

The consultation is set out in six parts, as follows:

• consider introducing for future conversions of historic buildings to be used as hotel accommodation, a requirement to have active fire suppression systems installed;
• consider the special risks which existing hotels and similar premises may pose through the presence of hidden cavities or voids, varying standards of workmanships, age, and the variance from current standards and if revising the guidance provided by the Scottish Government and others is needed;
• the scope of application of mandatory building standard 2.15 Automatic Fire Suppression Systems to lower risk works - alterations, extensions and conversions of buildings currently within the scope of the standard;
• Review of regulation 8 to mandate non-combustible external wall cladding systems in new build hotels, boarding houses and hostels with a storey over 11 m in height;
• Several miscellaneous fire safety issues
• A broader call for evidence on three further topics

Proposed changes are supported by an Interim Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment.

1.2 The driver for the current review

1.2.1. Why are we consulting

The Fatal Accident Inquiry (FAI) report into the deaths of Simon Midgley and Richard Dyson following a building fire at Cameron House Hotel on 18 December 2017 was published on 11 January 2023. Six recommendations were made, two of which were directed at The Scottish Government.

• Recommendation 4: The Scottish Government should consider introducing for future conversions of historic buildings to be used as hotel accommodation a requirement to have active fire suppression systems installed.
• Recommendation 5: The Scottish Government should constitute an expert working group to more fully explore the special risks which existing hotels and similar premises may pose through the presence of hidden cavities or voids, varying standards of workmanships, age, and the variance from current standards and to consider revising the guidance provided by the Scottish Government and others

In February 2023, The Scottish Government established a short life working group (SLWG) as a forum to consider the recommendations from the FAI. It brought together those parties directly referenced within the FAI report by Sheriff McCartney, including the Scottish Government, Scottish Tourism Alliance (STA), UK Hospitality Scotland (UKHS) and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS).

Following meetings of the group throughout 2023, a final SLWG report was published on 2 October 2023 outlining further actions to be taken in response to the two relevant recommendations in the FAI.

As short term measures the Scottish Government:

• amended the guidance in the Technical Handbooks (clause 2.0.7) to strengthen key messages on the challenges faced when converting traditional buildings and to promote the use of automatic fire suppression systems for historic building conversions to hotels,
• amended the Section 34 letter to Local Authority Chief Executives under the Building (Scotland) Act 2003 (Section 34 - Reports and Information - Notification of Application for Building Warrant - Section 2 – Fire) to require that a verifier must notify the Scottish Government where future conversions of historic buildings are to be used as hotel accommodation and
• have worked with partners including industry to promote key fire safety messages around the special risk associated with historic construction techniques, materials, and fire spread in hidden voids.

The Building and Fire Safety Expert Working Group was created to look at the long-term commitments outlined within the Cameron House Hotel SLWG Report and to review other aspects of Scottish Building Standards and fire safety guidance.

This consultation reflects the outcomes and proposals of the Expert Working Group.

Information on the review process to date, including minutes of the building and fire safety expert panel meetings, can be found at: Building and Fire Safety: Ministerial Working Group - gov.scot (www.gov.scot).

The Scottish Government is now seeking the views of any organisation or individual with an interest in ensuring building standards legislation and associated Technical Handbook guidance fully address the issues raised in relation to:

• mandating of automatic fire suppression systems through the building regulations when traditional buildings are converted to hotels.
• the role of voids and cavities in fire spread in traditional buildings used as hotels
• associated guidance including the use of lath and plaster wall coverings, the presence of any fire-resistant material and low-level emergency lighting in hotels

In addition, proposals on a range of other fire safety topics are also offered for views:

• the application of mandatory building standard 2.15 Automatic Fire Suppression Systems to alterations, extensions and conversions of buildings within scope of the standard
• mandating of non-combustible external wall cladding systems in new build hotels, boarding houses and hostels over 11 m in height
• miscellaneous issues within Section 2 (Fire) of the Technical Handbooks.

1.2.2. The Scottish building standards system

The building standards system in Scotland is established by The Building (Scotland) Act 2003 (The 2003 Act). The purpose of the building standards system is to protect the public interest. The system regulates building work on new and existing buildings, to provide buildings that meet reasonable standards which:

• Secure the health, safety, welfare and convenience of persons in or about buildings and of others who may be affected by buildings or matters connected with buildings,
• Further the conservation of fuel and power, and
• Further the achievement of sustainable development.

The building standards system is pre-emptive and is designed to check that proposals meet building regulations. The main principles of the system are that a building warrant must be obtained from a verifier before work commences on site and a completion certificate is accepted by a verifier if, after undertaking reasonable inquiry, they are satisfied the building work meets the building regulations, prior to the building being occupied. The thirty-two local authorities in Scotland are appointed by Scottish Ministers as verifiers to administer the building standards system in their geographical areas. Responsibility for compliance with the building regulations lies with the “relevant person” as the party instructing building work and, ultimately, with the building owner.

Requirements applicable to building work are set through Building Regulations as a set of mandatory functional standards. These are simple statements on what outcomes must be achieved when undertaking building work. These standards are supported by a body of guidance set out in Domestic and Non-domestic Technical Handbooks. This published guidance assists by defining the scope of action expected under each standard by providing one or more examples of how compliance with the standard can be achieved. Noting that the standards can also be met through solutions not included in published guidance.

The Building Standards Division (BSD) is part of the Scottish Government Directorate for Housing. Our purpose is to provide and maintain a robust legislative framework to ensure that the buildings standards system in Scotland protects the public interest. The BSD prepares and updates building standards legislation and guidance documents, conducting any necessary research and consults on changes as The 2003 Act requires.

We also work in partnership with Local Authority verifiers in the delivery of the system and contribute to wider policy objectives of government on issues such as energy efficiency, climate change and building safety.

1.2.3. Fire standards within building regulations

Section 2 of the Technical Handbooks relates to standards and guidance for fire safety. Life safety is the paramount objective of fire safety standards. Buildings should be designed and constructed in such a way that the risk of fire is reduced and if a fire does occur, there are measures in place to restrict the growth of fire and smoke to enable the occupants to escape safely and fire-fighters to deal with fire safely and effectively. The standards and guidance are designed to work together to provide a balanced approach to fire safety.

The Scottish Government regularly reviews the standards relating to fire safety. For example, following the fire at Grenfell Tower in 2017 and the risks associated with cladding, changes to requirements on fire safety of external wall cladding systems was introduced on 1 June 2022 to ban highly combustible metal composite material panels, a ban on combustible cladding for buildings in scope over 11 m, strengthening the clarity of the standard 2.7 for spread on external walls and ensuring replacement cladding must comply with current regulations.

New hotel buildings in compliance with the regulations and following the Technical Handbook guidance will, in simple terms, generally be designed with fire resisting walls, doors and floors to separate parts of the building (known as compartmentation/ sub-compartmentation) including for example to provide protected escape routes, cavity barriers to hidden voids to inhibit the spread of flame and smoke (for example within roof and wall spaces), minimum number of exits (and dimensions of travel distances and widths of escape etc.), provisions of escape lighting, general provision of a category L2 automatic fire detection and alarm system (however the category is based on a risk assessment of the particular circumstances), and so all of these active and passive provisions, properly designed and installed, combine to provide expected minimum time frames for escape and fire-fighting operations. Suppression is not currently a requirement for a hotel design adopting this Technical Handbook guidance approach.

However, it should be appreciated that, due to the generic nature of the guidance it cannot cover all building designs or, for example, innovative or new methods of construction. In such cases the designer or engineer will be required to show, by alternative means, that compliance with the building standards will be achieved in the completed building.

1.2.4. Fire safety standards for buildings in use

Part 3 of the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005 Act, along with the Fire Safety (Scotland) Regulations 2006, sets out the fire safety duties and legal framework in respect of the majority of non-domestic premises in Scotland.

The responsibility for complying with the fire safety duties sits with the employer and/or other persons who operate or have control of the premises to any extent. This might include managers, landlords, owners and those having responsibility generally referred to as ‘dutyholders’.

The legislation requires the provision of fire safety measures; this includes risk reduction measures, means of fire warning, fire-fighting, escape, staff training and instruction, as well as emergency procedures. It sets out fire safety responsibilities and seeks to ensure the safety of persons from harm caused by fire. Under fire safety law, all dutyholders are required to take all reasonable measures regarding the safety of persons as part of a comprehensive fire risk assessment and its findings.

While the responsibility for compliance with the legislation sits with dutyholders, there is provision in the legislation for an enforcing authority with enforcement powers. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) enforces Part 3 of the 2005 Act and relevant regulations in respect of the majority of relevant residential non-domestic premises.

The Scottish Government have prepared several fire safety guides for various premises Fire safety guidance - gov.scot For example, fire safety guidance for existing premises with sleeping accommodation (2022), offers fire safety advice in respect of certain existing premises with sleeping accommodation.

1.2.5. Scope of this consultation

This consultation explains the proposed rationale for the components of the proposed changes and the outcomes we seek to deliver. It seeks your views on these proposals. Responses to the consultation will be used to inform the final policy and impact assessments that will be prepared in support of any legislative changes or amendment of recommendations offered in supporting guidance.

1.2.6. Consultation documents

This consultation comprises of the following elements:

• Consultation proposals and questions (this document, published in html and pdf), supported by commissioned research and a Draft Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment.
• The online consultation form for your response.
• A Respondent Information Form and list of consultation questions is provided in Word format on the consultation webpage for consultees who are not able to provide a consultation response online.

Any other related draft impact assessments will be listed on the consultation webpage.

References are made within this document and the review webpage to external resources produced as part of the review process to date. Consultees may find these useful in setting out engagement and discussion on the review topic to date.

1.2.7. The Scottish Government consultation process

Consultation is an essential part of the policy-making process. It gives us the opportunity to consider your opinion and expertise on a proposed area of work. You can find all our consultations online at http://consult.gov.scot/. Each consultation details the issues under consideration, as well as providing a way for you to give us your views – either online or by post.

Responses will be analysed and used as part of the decision-making process, along with a range of other available information and evidence. We will publish a report of this analysis for every consultation. Depending on the nature of the consultation exercise, the responses received may:

• indicate the need for policy development or review,
• inform the development of a particular policy,
• help decisions to be made between alternative policy proposals, or
• be used to finalise legislation before it is implemented.

While details of particular circumstances described in a response to a consultation exercise may usefully inform the policy process, consultation exercises cannot address individual concerns and comments, which should be directed to the relevant public body.

When responding to questions which offer a choice of responses, please also provide information or evidence to explain your view on the topic wherever possible. This assists us in assessing and understanding the reason for your view and presenting the overall picture when reporting on each topic and on the overall proposal in general.

1.2.8. Responding to this consultation

This consultation runs for 12 weeks from 13 December 2024.

We are inviting responses to this consultation by 7 March 2025.

Please respond to this consultation using the Scottish Government consultations Hub - Citizen Space . You can save and return to your responses while the consultation is still open. Please ensure that consultation responses are submitted by the closing date of 7 March 2025. If you use Citizen Space to respond, you will receive a copy of your response via email.

If you are unable to respond via Citizen Space, please complete the Respondent Information Form and the consultation questionnaire available on the consultation webpage and return to:

Consultation: Proposed review of fire safety topics

Scott Young

Building Standards Division

Scottish Government

Denholm House

Almondvale Business Park

Livingston

EH54 6GA

Or email: buildingstandards@gov.scot with the email title ‘Consultation: Proposed review of fire safety topics’.

1.2.9. Handling your response

If you respond using Citizen Space, you will be directed to the ‘About You’ page before submitting your response. Please indicate how you wish your response to be handled and, in particular, whether you are content for your response to published. If you ask for your response not to be published we will regard it as confidential and we will treat it accordingly.

All respondents should be aware that the Scottish Government is subject to the provisions of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 and would therefore have to consider any request made to it under that Act for information relating to responses made to this consultation exercise.

To find out how we handle your personal data, please see our privacy policy.

1.2.10. Next steps in the process

Following the consultation closing date, all responses will be analysed and considered along with any other available evidence provided. After we have checked that they contain no potentially defamatory material, responses will be published (where we have been given permission to do so) on the consultation webpage:.https://consult.gov.scot/local-government-and-communities/building-standards-fire-safety-cameron-house-hotel/

The Scottish Government will review consultation responses received and the issues raised during engagement with stakeholders to inform recommendations to Scottish Ministers on the elements of the review to take forward through amendment of current regulations, standards and guidance. A consultation analysis report and Scottish Government response will then be published on the consultation webpage. It is the current intent that any regulatory changes will be confirmed and implemented by early 2026.

1.2.11. Comments and complaints

If you have any comments about how this consultation exercise has been conducted, please send them to:

Consultation: Proposed review of fire safety topics

Scottish Government

Directorate for Housing

Building Standards Division

Denholm House

Almondvale Business Park

Livingston

EH54 6GA

Or email: buildingstandards@gov.scot with the email title ‘Consultation: Proposed review of fire safety topics’.