The Building Safety Act at Grace House

The Building Safety Act 2022 is a piece of legislation introduced in response to significant safety failings, such as the Grenfell Tower fire in London in 2017.

The Act was introduced to ensure the safety of residents in high-rise buildings that are at least 18 metres tall or seven or more storeys. It brought in new regulations and standards to address fire safety, structural integrity, and the overall safety of buildings.

As a resident of Grace House, we want to assure you that your safety in one of our ‘high-rise’ buildings is our utmost priority. Within the building, we already have a range of ongoing safety measures and practices in place. This includes regular fire safety inspections, rigorous maintenance protocols, and strict compliance with relevant safety regulations. See your building’s evacuation strategy here.

What is in the Building Safety Act?

Building owners must carry out regular fire risk assessments, install appropriate fire safety measures, maintain fire escape routes, and make sure fire safety standards are being followed.

The act emphasises the importance of resident engagement in building safety matters. It encourages building owners to establish effective communication channels with residents, allowing you to raise concerns, report safety issues, and participate in safety-related discussions.

The act makes it clear who is responsible for building safety. Building owners need to appoint an accountable person who will make sure safety regulations are followed and act as a point of contact for residents.

Under the Act, we need to provide you with clear information about the safety of your building. We need to share relevant safety information, such as building safety case summaries, and keep residents informed about any significant safety issues or repair works.

Where safety issues are identified, the act means regulatory bodies can take enforcement action against non-compliant building owners. This may involve issuing enforcement notices, requiring remediation works, and ensuring that necessary safety improvements are carried out. As a resident, you can expect that any identified safety issues will be addressed as quickly as possible.

An independent Building Safety Regulator has been introduced who is responsible for overseeing and monitoring building safety. This regulator will set standards, enforce regulations, and provide guidance to make sure safety requirements are followed.

Fire Safety at Grace House

In accordance with the Fire Safety Regulations 2022, we are committed to writing to you every year by letter to explain:

How to report a fire
A reminder of what the evacuation strategy is for your building
Any other instruction that tells you what you must do once a fire has occurred, based on the building’s evacuation strategy
The importance of fire doors.

We will also keep this webpage updated regularly with fire safety information for your home.

How to report a fire

Call the emergency services on 999.

Information is provided in your communal areas about what to do if there is a fire; this is called a Fire Action Notice. You can see a copy of your Fire Action notice below.

If there are no Fire Action Notices within your communal areas, please contact C&C on 020 7922 5300 to report this.

Please ensure you’re familiar with and confident about what you must do if there’s a fire.

The evacuation strategy for your building

A stay-put evacuation strategy is in place at Grace House. This means that unless you are directly affected by a fire, you can remain in your flat.

Therefore the advice is as follows:

If the fire is in your flat, leave the flat and close the front door behind you
If you are in a communal area, leave the building and do not return until you’re told it’s safe to do so
If the fire is outside the flat you are in, stay put with the front door closed
If at any time you experience heat or smoke, evacuate the building if it is safe to do so. If your escape route is blocked, stay in your flat and shut the door.

The evacuation strategy is not compulsory. You can leave your flat if it is safe to do so. Call the emergency services on 999 as soon as you can.

The importance of fire doors

Fire doors are vital to the evacuation plan and your safety within your home. They are designed to hold back fire and smoke for at least 30 minutes. Your flat front door is a fire door, and you may have fire doors in your communal area and storage and service cupboards within your block. There are some basic checks you should do to ensure that your fire door is effective:

Ensure that fire doors are kept shut
Do not tamper with the self-closing device
Check for any obvious signs of damage to the door.

If there is damage to your fire door, or those within the communal areas, you should raise this immediately to C&C on 020 7922 5300 020 7722 5300.

We will continue to check and inspect fire doors on a regular basis; however it is very important that if you see something that does not look right, report it to us.

General fire safety information

Please check that you have working smoke alarms within your home and test them regularly
Keep fire doors closed and corridors, escape routes, communal areas and staircases clear
It’s better not to smoke on balconies, but if you do, please use a suitable ashtray and make sure you put cigarette butts out completely and dispose of ash carefully
BBQs pose a huge risk to everyone and are unsuitable for balconies. It is very important that you do not use a barbecue on your balcony. Please remove any that you have to keep you and your neighbours safe.

Report your fire safety concerns

If you have concerns over fire safety or would like to ask a question, please contact C&C on 020 7922 5300 020 7722 5300 and ask to speak to the Fire Safety Team. Alternatively, you can send us an email at FireSafety@Aster.co.uk. Further fire safety information is available on your local Fire and Rescue Service website.

Works and safety inspections

We may need to access some homes from time to time to carry out surveys and risk assessments. We'll try and do this work in empty homes as far as possible. As soon as we know if work will be required in your home, we will let you know and explain the impact and timescales.

If we have to do any works, we will make sure to let you know as soon as possible what we propose doing, what the impact will be and whether or not there are any options in terms of what we do or how works are done.

We conduct safety inspections every year. We inspect fire safety equipment and systems on a more frequent basis – this can vary across our schemes. We also have a building safety team who will monitor these buildings (see above for more information).

Getting in touch

Complaints or comments related to building safety risks can be made by anybody, not just residents within that building. Complaints or comments can be submitted via our website enquiry form or you can call us on 020 7922 5300 020 7722 5300.

We will always speak to you about our work carried out under the Act. This may include regular meetings, newsletters, online platforms, or dedicated communication channels (such as this page).

Find out more

For more detailed information about the Building Safety Act 2022, you can refer to official government websites, local authorities, or consult legal professionals specialising in building and construction law. Get started here. Additionally, you can access relevant publications or guidance materials provided by the regulatory bodies overseeing building safety.