Entitled Building a Safer Future: Independent Review of Building Regulations and Fire Safety: Final Report, the report addresses how the current regulatory system covering high rise and complex buildings isn't fit for purpose, but goes short of recommending that all cladding of the sort used on Grenfell is removed.
The report makes over 50 recommendations to the government as to how to deliver a more robust regulatory system for the future. It covers a wide range of issues from the design, construction and refurbishment of buildings, to product safety and the establishment of new competence standards for the fire safety industry.
Whilst many of the recommendations are aimed primarily at multi-occupancy higher risk residential buildings that are 10 storeys or more in height (HRRBs), Dame Hackitt recommends that the government considers applying a number of the recommendations to wider set of residential buildings used as living accommodation where people sleep, including boarding schools and halls of residence (Institutional Residential Buildings).
These recommendations include:
There is unlikely to be any immediate impact on the current school's compliance framework, but fire safety should remain high on your agenda. You should be mindful of the move towards greater regulation and scrutiny of fire safety arrangements for Institutional Residential Buildings.
There has been much discussion over the difficulties in assessing the competence and expertise of those who hold themselves out as fire experts, and Dame Hackitt recommends further regulation in this area.
You should review the arrangements in place with your current fire safety advisors in order to assure that you are 'competent' advisors and that your fire safety risk assessments and fire safety arrangements are safe, particularly in relation to boarding houses.