It’s a good idea to familiarise yourself with the terms often used when discussing building and fire safety, so you know what they mean and how they may impact you.

ACM

ACM, or Aluminium Composite Material, is a type of cladding used on buildings and was the type of cladding used on Grenfell Tower.

ACM consists of two thin aluminium sheets surrounding a lightweight core material such as polyethylene or polyurethane.

Since the tragic fire at Grenfell, the government has said that ACM must be removed from buildings and has provided funding for this to be done.

We have removed the ACM from L&Q buildings.


Building Safety Bill

The Building Safety Act 2022 was introduced ensure that residents in high-rise buildings are safe, and feel safe, in their homes.

Your safety is our number one priority, and this law places strict legal duties on L&Q to actively assess, manage, and reduce risks relating to the spread of fire and structural failure.

For our buildings that are at least 18 metres or seven storeys tall, we must register them with the Building Safety Regulator and compile comprehensive safety case reports to prove we are managing hazards effectively.

We are also responsible for keeping a digital record of vital safety information, establishing a mandatory occurrence reporting system for residents to report building safety concerns, and creating a clear Resident Engagement Plan so you are always consulted on building safety decisions, such as decisions to carry out non-emergency building works.

The Building Safety Act also expects residents to play a part in keeping the building safe. You must keep all communal areas and escape routes completely clear of personal items or fire hazards, ensure you do not interfere with or damage safety equipment like fire doors or smoke alarms, and allow use to access your home for safety inspections and repairs when required. 


Building Safety Fund

The Building Safety Fund is a government fund, designed to cover some of the costs of replacing cladding. Building owners, such as L&Q, can apply for this fund.

To date, there have been three funds made available by the government. The first two were for removing ACM used on high-rise buildings (with the two funds only available to private building owners).

The current fund of £1bn is for removing non-ACM cladding from high-rise buildings, though the industry believes the cost will far exceed that amount.

The fund will not cover any safety issues other than the replacement of cladding, for example, the incorrect installation of cavity barriers (barriers used to restrict the movement of fire and smoke within a building) – and several criteria must be met for an application to be submitted. 


Building safety inspection

A building safety inspection will result in a Fire Engineer’s or Chartered Building Surveyor’s report which confirms whether a building meets the new building safety guidelines or what works needs doing if it doesn’t.

You may also hear these inspections called ‘consolidated advice note inspections’.

These inspections are different to the EWS1 form, which only exists to provide a fire safety rating for mortgage providers that helps them decide whether to lend or not.


Building safety programme

The Building Safety Programme is our plan to inspect L&Q's buildings and ensure they meet current building safety guidelines.

This programme will involve investigations into the materials used in the construction of our buildings and the delivery of remedial works where needed to ensure our homes are safe.

Once these are complete, or if no work is needed, an EWS1 form can be provided.


Building Safety Regulator

The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) is the Regulator for high-rise buildings in England established by the Building Safety Act 2022. The BSR operates as a standalone organisation sponsored by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG).

It was set up by the government to enforce strict new safety standards, give residents a stronger voice, and ensure that landlords and building managers take total responsibility for the safety of their properties.

The BSR has significant legal powers. If a landlord fails to comply with safety regulations, the BSR can issue enforcement notices and prosecute organisations who breach the law. 

 

EWS1 Form

The EWS1 form was developed by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) to help prove to mortgage lenders that a property meets the latest building safety guidelines.

The form rates the fire safety of a building based on the likelihood of improvement works being required. Find out more about the EWS1 process.

An EWS1 form is not a guarantee of safety, which is why the Building Safety Programme inspection is also required.

We are working with our sector partners to lobby the government to improve this system.


External wall system (EWS)

The external wall system is often referred to as the EWS.

This is the combination of materials used to make up the outer layer of your building. It can include blockwork (bricks), cladding, metal frames (including those that support cladding), render and insulation.

When the EWS is inspected we will also consider any attachments such as balconies to ensure these do not pose a fire risk owing to combustible materials, like decking. 


Freeholder

The freeholder is the building owner who, in most cases, is responsible for inspecting the building and completing any remedial works to ensure that it meets building safety guidelines.

For most L&Q homes the responsible freeholder is L&Q. However, in some of our blocks, we are only the managing agent or the head leaseholder and another organisation is the freeholder with responsibility for the buildings structure and external wall. 

 

High-Pressure Laminate (HPL)

HPL, or High-Pressure Laminate, is a type of cladding used on many buildings.

HPL panels are made by taking sheets of wood or paper fibre, layering them with a resin and bonding them under heat and pressure and may include additional chemicals to make the panel fire retardant (FR grade).  As such the fire classification of an HPL panel can vary depending on its thickness and whether or not it is fire retardant.

Our inspection programme will prioritise buildings that have significant amounts of HPL cladding. 


Intrusive inspection

An intrusive inspection is usually carried out on the outside of the building. This involves opening various sections of the building to understand the internal makeup.

In the case of our building safety inspections, this can mean removing cladding, removing a section of brickwork or drilling holes into materials to take samples.

These intrusive inspections should not interfere with your home, cause structural integrity or increase your building's fire risk.


Leaseholder

A leaseholder has a lease from the freeholder or head leaseholder, allowing them to occupy the home for a set number of years.

Typically this is for one of the multiple properties in a building.

In an L&Q building, leaseholders may own all or part of their lease (as a shared owner).


Waking Watch

Waking Watch refers to fire marshals who are often put in place to help prevent and detect fires and raise the alarm to residents and the Fire and Rescue Services in the event of a fire.

They will then coordinate the evacuation until they hand it over to the Fire and Rescue Services.

A Waking Watch consists of regular patrols of a building, throughout the day or night to ensure the safety of residents.

In the future, instead of putting a Waking Watch in place, we will install new communal fire detection and alarm systems instead.

This is more effective than Waking Watch because the system can detect the early warning signs of a fire anywhere in the building much earlier than a physical patrol.