Safety Case Workflow: A systematic process that outlines the steps and actions required to develop and maintain a safety case, ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements throughout the building safety journey.

Safety Case Action Plan: A proactive plan that identifies and guides the tasks and actions necessary to develop a comprehensive safety case, enabling stakeholders to prioritise and efficiently manage their safety case development process.

Safety Case: A documented argument supported by evidence, demonstrating how a building’s design, construction, and operation address safety risks and comply with building safety regulations, providing a structured approach to managing and mitigating risks.

Safety Case Report: A comprehensive document that presents the findings, analysis, and conclusions of the safety case, including the identified risks, control measures, and safety strategies implemented, providing a detailed overview of the building’s safety measures and compliance with regulatory requirements.

In this step, a safety case action plan is created to outline the tasks, responsibilities, and timelines for developing the safety case. It helps in organising and prioritising actions needed to address safety risks and requirements.

The Buiding Safety Regulator (BSR), want you to ‘be curious’ about your buildings, as such, they are not been overly prescriptive about the information you need to provide about your buildings, as every building is individual and will have individual risks associated with them. Therefore, the last thing your organisation should be doing, is running around finding information about your buildings, as you currently have very little idea about what information you need.

Remember, the primary piece of information and, therefore, your focus is the risk assessment.

The information you collect about your buildings should be focussed on backing up your risk assessment. For instance, if you have a 40-year-old HRB in occupation, you do not have to go and instruct building surveyors and structural engineers to carry out trial holes and investigations to determine your foundations if there is no risk associated with the structural stability of the property, such as evidence of movement, subsidence, cracks etc. Instead, you should assess the risks associated with your foundations, determine that there is no risk, explain and provide evidence, then move on to the next risk.

We have already heard stories of organisations pulling together paper, pdf and digital information about their HRBs, only to then think about what parts of it they actually need for their Safety Case. This can be a very costly and time-consuming exercise.

We have also heard stories of organisations instructing ‘Digital Twin’ vendors produce laser-scans of their HRBs in which to develop 3D BIM models, as they have been sold the idea that these are imperative to producing the digital golden thread of information. This is incorrect; Dame Judith Hackett recommended the use of Building Information Modelling (BIM), as a process for creating structured building data. She did not suggest populating, storing and sharing information via complicated 3D models. The two things are very different, please do not spend your valuable resources on this unless you have an agreed organisational objective for doing so.

We have also seen ‘Asset Management’ software vendors selling the idea that the golden thread is all about having extensive information about individual assets, with little focus on the primary need, risk prevention. Whilst information about assets is of course useful, it is only important if the assets are associated with risks relating to fire, structural and MEP safety.

Lastly, we have seen organisations sign up to expensive, long-term enterprise licenses with ‘Common Data Environment (CDE)’ vendors that promise to store your golden thread in their filing system. But this has little benefit to the golden thread unless you are able to edit, update and continue supplementing the information against the actual entity it is relevant too. So adding reams of PDFs to an extensive filing system is not really going to help.

This is why Operance developed its unique Safety Case Action Plan:

The Safety Case Action Plan offers a comprehensive planning approach that enables users to prioritise tasks, streamline the development of a compliant Safety Case and Safety Case Report, and achieve significant time and cost savings, ultimately enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of the process.

Here’s an insight into our Safety Case Action Plan prompts users to think, before they act:

Initial Assessment:

1. Identify the building’s characteristics, risks, and hazards.
2. Conduct site inspections and gather relevant data.

Stakeholder Engagement:

1. Involve key stakeholders to ensure a comprehensive understanding of the building and its safety requirements.
2. Define roles, responsibilities, and tasks for each stakeholder.

Task Identification:

1. Break down the safety case development process into specific tasks.
2. Determine the sequencing and dependencies of tasks.

Timeline and Milestones:

1. Establish a timeline for completing each task and milestone.
2. Set realistic deadlines based on available resources and regulatory requirements.

Information Gathering:

1. Collect relevant information, such as building plans, maintenance records, and inspection reports.
2. Analyse data to identify risks and prioritise actions.

Task Assignment and Monitoring:

1. Assign tasks to appropriate stakeholders.
2. Monitor progress and provide the necessary support throughout the process.

Review and Approval:

1. Conduct internal reviews to ensure compliance and quality.
2. Obtain necessary approvals from regulatory authorities.

Continuous Improvement:

Establish mechanisms to monitor and update the Safety Case Action Plan regularly.

Learn from experiences and adapt the plan as needed.

The Safety Case Action Plan serves as a roadmap for stakeholders, ensuring a systematic and structured approach to developing the safety case. It facilitates effective planning, resource allocation, and collaboration among the involved parties, streamlining the overall process and maximising efficiency.

The risk assessment is a critical step that involves identifying, analysing, and evaluating potential hazards and risks associated with the building. It helps in understanding the specific risks and developing appropriate mitigation strategies

You should collect detailed information about the higher-risk building, including its construction history, refurbishment works, and resident profiles. Conduct thorough risk assessments to identify potential hazards and vulnerabilities associated with the building.

Assessment:

1. Evaluate potential risks and hazards associated with the building.
2. Identify appropriate risk mitigation strategies.

Mitigation Measures:

1. Define and implement specific measures to mitigate identified risks.
2. Ensure compliance with relevant regulations and standards.

Develop Safety Measures and Document Findings

1. Based on the identified risks, design and implement appropriate safety measures.
2. Document all findings, including risk assessment reports, safety measures implemented, certifications, testing reports, and maintenance records.

Conducting a comprehensive risk assessment allows stakeholders to identify potential hazards and vulnerabilities within the building. By analysing and evaluating these risks, they can implement targeted control measures and mitigation strategies, minimising the likelihood of incidents and ensuring the safety of occupants and the surrounding environment.