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ARTICLE · 11 APRIL 2024

Building Safety: Amendments Confirm Second Staircase Threshold At 18 Metres

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On 29 March 2024, the Government published amendments to Approved Document B (Fire Safety).

United KingdomReal Estate and Construction
Charlotte Weeks
Charlotte Weeks
Sue Ryan
Sue Ryan
Emma Knight
Emma Knight
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On 29 March 2024, the Government published amendments to Approved Document B (Fire Safety).

The amendments confirm the long-awaited requirement for more than one common staircase to be provided in residential buildings of 18 metres plus.

This follows the announcement by Michael Gove in July 2023 that the Government would lower the proposed threshold for second staircases in new residential buildings in England from 30 metres to 18 metres.

Alongside this key amendment, the amendments to Approved Document B include design provisions to support the use of evacuation lifts in blocks of flats (although the inclusion of evacuation lifts has not been mandated as a matter of course). At this stage the amendments do not cover other issues that the Government also consulted on at the same time, such as sprinklers in care homes (of any height) and the removal of national classifications for construction products.

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