15th March 2023

‘High Rise’ Residential Buildings Registration Opens in April 2023

What’s Happening?

This is an important notice to remind those clients responsible for the safety of high-rise residential buildings in England that they have six months from April 2023 to register with the new Building Safety Regulator.

Within England, there are approximately 12,500 affected ‘high-rise’ buildings. The new regulator will require all of them to be registered from April 2023, with a named person responsible for maintaining their safety.

To this end, The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has recently launched a new campaign aimed at owners and managers of high-rise residential buildings. The campaign’s aim is to highlight their new legal duties.

Registration

Under the Building Safety Act 2022, high-rise residential buildings are defined as 18 metres tall or higher, or at least seven storeys, with two or more residential units. Buildings of this type are classed as higher risk.

Building registration is a major step in a range of new measures to ensure that both new and existing high-rise residential buildings are safe for residents and users.

The registration process is a key stage in setting up the new building safety regime, and registering affected buildings is a legal requirement. Owners and managers who fail to comply by October 2023 will be investigated and may face prosecution.

The Building Safety Act 2022

The Building Safety Act 2022 was enacted on 28 April 2022. The new legislation gives residents and homeowners within affected high-rise building more rights, powers and protections.

The Act also overhauls existing regulations and makes clear how residential buildings are to be constructed, maintained and made safe. Full implementation of the Act is in October 2023, which means each building owner should have their building safety regime in place by this time.

The Building Safety Regulator

The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) is a new enforcement body established to protect high-rise residents from unsafe building practices in England. The BSR was developed in response to the Grenfell Tower tragedy.

The BSR is an independent body established by the Building Safety Act, 2022, and is part of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

Further Information

A campaign will run throughout March 2023 to help owners and managers of high-rise residential buildings prepare for their legal responsibilities.

Further guidance on the new registration requirement can be found on the government website.