Care homes remain outside HRB definition after government review

Care homes will not be brought into the higher-risk building (HRB) regime under the Building Safety Act for now, following a government review that stopped short of changing the legal definition despite longstanding fire safety concerns.

The decision means that care homes will continue to sit outside the in-occupation phase of the HRB regime, even though residents are widely regarded as particularly vulnerable in the event of a fire. Instead of altering the definition, the government has asked the Building Safety Regulator (BSR) to carry out an ongoing, evidence-led review of the position of care homes and other sensitive building types.

Under the Building Safety Act 2022, higher-risk buildings are defined as those that are at least 18 metres tall or seven storeys high and contain two or more residential units. Care homes and hospitals are treated as higher-risk buildings during design and construction, but are excluded once occupied, on the basis that they are already covered by other legislation, including the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.

The issue has been the subject of sustained debate, particularly following Phase 2 of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry, which questioned whether height alone was an adequate measure of risk. The inquiry recommended that greater account should be taken of occupant vulnerability and the difficulty of evacuation when defining higher-risk buildings.

However, the government’s review concluded that there is currently insufficient evidence to justify an immediate expansion of the HRB definition. The assessment considered fire incident data, the feasibility of embedding vulnerability into legislation, and the potential impact of widening the regime on regulators and the construction and building management sectors.

In a statement, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government emphasised the importance of an objective definition. It said: "One of the goals behind the original definition of a higher-risk building was to ensure that it could be clearly understood and applied. The current definition is objective… this is crucial for allowing industry to adjust effectively to the regime and preventing confusion around which buildings are in scope of the higher-risk regime impacting their work.

"Allowing subjective factors to be included would create uncertainty and inconsistencies as to whether a building was within or out of scope of the higher-risk building regime. Occupant vulnerability is a subjective factor."

The review also highlighted other safety measures affecting care homes, including changes to Approved Document B that now require sprinklers to be installed in all new care homes, regardless of height.

Rather than closing the door on future change, the government has committed to keeping the definition under continuous review. The BSR will monitor emerging evidence, engage with experts and stakeholders, and assess evolving fire safety risks as part of a rolling, risk-based approach.

A more formal opportunity to revisit the scope of the regime will come in 2027, when the Building Safety Act is subject to its statutory five-year review. At that point, changes to the HRB definition – including the treatment of care homes – could be proposed if supported by sufficient evidence.