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Approved Document B: Fire Safety. New enhanced fire safety updates

Contents

[edit] Three amendment booklets update Approved Document B (Fire Safety)

Three amendment booklets updating the guidance in Approved Document B announced in government circular: 2025 Approved Document B amendment booklet, 2026 Approved Document B amendment booklet and 2029 Approved Document B amendment booklet. Relevant MHCLG Circulars: Correspondence Approved Document B (Fire Safety): new updates to support enhanced fire safety, circular 03/2024, circular 04/2024 and circular 05/2024

[edit] 2025 Approved Document B amendment booklet- Sprinklers in care homes, National classes and Reaction to fire.

The first amendment booklet (2025 Approved Document B amendment booklet) accompanies Circular number 03/2024 and contains amendments coming into force on 2 March 2025 (subject to transitional provisions). The amendments in this booklet include the removal of references to BS 476 in relation to reaction to fire and roofs and introduce new guidance around the provision of sprinklers in care homes.

[edit] Sprinklers in care homes

The amendments bringing in these changes to the guidance are included in the Approved Document B amendment booklet that takes effect on 2 March 2025.

Following consultation, the government has decided to extend the provision of sprinklers in Approved Document B to all new care homes irrespective of height. The changes to the guidance also remove previous allowances associated with the provision of sprinklers in care homes. New care homes will be expected to limit compartment sizes to 10 beds while ensuring self-closing devices are fitted to doors.

Transitional arrangements: The changes highlighted in this amendment booklet take effect on 2 March 2025 for use in England. The 2019 edition incorporating the 2020 and 2022 amendments will continue to apply where a building notice or an initial notice has been given to, or a building control approval application with full plans made to, the relevant authority before 2 March 2025 and either the building work to which it relates:

  • a. has started and is sufficiently progressed before that day; or
  • b. has started and is sufficiently progressed within the period of six months beginning on that day.

[edit] National classes

Currently, Approved Document B operates a dual system for reaction to fire and roofs and fire resistance testing and classification for construction products. This includes both the National Classes (BS 476) and the European Standard (BS EN 13501 series).

The National Classes are seldom used by industry, but certain sectors still rely on fire resistance tests for their products. Recognising the specific needs for these parts of industry, we are implementing changes to the guidance in two stages - first removing references to BS 476 associated with reaction to fire and roofs then in a later stage removing references to BS 476 associated with fire resistance.

[edit] Reaction to fire

The update to guidance removes the national classification system (BS476) for reaction to fire and roofs from Approved Document B, which provides statutory guidance for fire safety in new building work.

The European Standard (BS EN), deemed more current and robust than the National Classes, will be the sole route of specification within Approved Document B for reaction to fire and roofs classifications.

Transitional arrangements: The changes highlighted in this amendment booklet take effect on 2 March 2025 for use in England. The 2019 edition incorporating the 2020 and 2022 amendments will continue to apply where a building notice or an initial notice has been given to, or a building control approval application with full plans made to, the relevant authority before 2 March 2025 and either the building work to which it relates:

  • a. has started and is sufficiently progressed before that day; or
  • b. has started and is sufficiently progressed within the period of six months beginning on that day.

[edit] 2026 Approved Document B amendment booklet

The second amendment booklet (2026 Approved Document B amendment booklet) accompanies Circular number 04/2024 and contains amendments coming into force on 30 September 2026 (subject to transitional provisions). This booklet includes amendments in relation to second staircases in 18m+ residential buildings that were originally published in the amendment booklet accompanying Circular 01/2024.

[edit] 2029 Approved Document B amendment booklet

The third amendment booklet (2029 Approved Document B amendment booklet) accompanies Circular number 05/2024 and contains amendments coming into force on 2 September 2029 (subject to transitional provisions). This booklet contains the removal of references to BS 476 in relation to fire resistance.

[edit] Fire resistance

The update to guidance removes the national classification system (BS 476) for fire resistance from Approved Document B, which provides statutory guidance for fire safety in new building work.

The European Standard (BS EN), deemed more current and robust than the National Classes, will be the sole route of specification within Approved Document B for fire resistance classifications.

Transitional arrangements: The changes highlighted in this amendment booklet take effect on 2 September 2029 for use in England. The 2019 edition incorporating the 2020, 2022, 2025 and 2026 amendments will continue to apply where a building notice or an initial notice has been given to, or a building control approval application with full plans made to, the relevant authority before 2 September 2029 and either the building work to which it relates:

  • a. has started and is sufficiently progressed before that day; or
  • b. has started and is sufficiently progressed within the period of six months beginning on that day.

[edit] Consequential amendment and summary of transitional arrangements

The department is withdrawing circular 01/2024 and the notices of approval and withdrawal that accompanied it and issuing circular 04/2024 and the associated amendment booklet in its place. This was deemed appropriate in order that the circulars introduce changes that occur in chronological order. The changes described in circular 03/2024 such as those relating to sprinklers in care homes will take effect in 2025. The changes relating to second staircases take effect in 2026 and will now be associated with circular 04/2024. The changes described in circular 01/2024 had not yet come into force and have been replaced by circular 04/2024 and the changes made by the notices that accompany it. Therefore, the withdrawal of circular 01/2024 and its notices will have no practical impact. Minor typographical errors were also corrected.

2025 Approved Document B amendment booklet also includes updates relating to Regulation 38 reflecting the latest changes to the regulations following the implementation of the Building Safety Act and ensures that guidance remains current.

The following table provides an overview of the transitional arrangements above.

NAME OF AMMENDMENT BOOKLET CONTENT* COMING INTO FORCE* AMMENDING PREVIOUS APPROVED DOCUMENT B VERSION PERIOD TO DEPOSIT APPLICATION:
2025 Approved Document B amendments booklet Removal of references to BS476 in relation to reaction to fire and roofs Sprinklers in care homes Consequential amendment to Regulation 38 2 March 2025 Amending Approved Document B 2019 incorporating the 2020 and 2022 amendments 6 months
2026 Approved Document B amendments booklet Second stair provisions in residential buildings over 18m in height. 30 September 2026 Amending Approved Document B 2019 incorporating the 2020, 2022 and 2025 amendments 18 months
2029 Approved Document B amendments booklet Removal of references to BS476 in relation to fire resistance. 2 September 2029 Amending Approved Document B 2019 incorporating the 2020, 2022, 2025 and 2026 amendments 6 months
  • For the detail of the content and transitional arrangement please refer to the relevant documentation

Please note that for the purpose of all the amendments highlighted above:

1) ‘building notice’, ‘initial notice’ and ‘building control approval application with full plans’ have the same meaning as in the Building Regulations 2010.

2) building work is to be regarded as ‘sufficiently progressed’:

a) where the building work consists of the construction of a building, when the pouring of concrete for the permanent placement of the trench, pad or raft foundations has started, or the permanent placement of piling has started; or
b) where the building work consists of work to an existing building, when that work has started; or
c) where the building work consists of a material change of use of a building, when work to effect that change of use has stated.

This article is based on the correspondence 'Approved Document B (Fire Safety): new updates to support enhanced fire safety' dated 2 September 2024.

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