Government to ban combustible materials on building façades

The government has announced that it is banning the use of combustible materials on the outside of buildings, including cladding and insulation.

The new policy will apply to schools, hospitals, care homes and high-rise buildings over 18 metres currently being built and in the future. Although the ban will not apply to buildings already built.

The ban comes after the Hackitt Review not recommending a ban on these materials despite ‘overwhelming’ support from almost three-quarters of the construction industry and institutions such as the Royal Institute of British Architects and The British Safety Council initially calling for a ban. Despite the Hackitt Review, the government launched a consultation on banning the use of combustible materials in June this year and was announced by the Housing Secretary, James Brokenshire.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government said: “We’re remediating all social residential buildings with cladding through a £400m fund [which was previously announced] and putting huge pressure on private owners to remediate.

“This is already having a big impact with multiple big developers already committed.”