The Government consulted on its proposals to implement this recommendation in its Fire Safety Consultation (which ran in 2020). The Government’s response to the consultation was published last year (link).

In the last thematic update (published in May 2022), we reported that the Government had intended at the time to lay regulations under article 24 of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 later that year to implement this recommendation. Ahead of laying these regulations, Section One of the Fire Safety Act 2021 had to be commenced. The Fire Safety Act was commenced in full on 16 May 2022.

Commencement of the Act allowed the Government to lay The Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 (available on legislation.gov.uk). The regulations were laid on 18 May 2022 but will not come into force until 23 January 2023 in order to allow responsible persons, FRSs and anyone else affected by them time to prepare and for supporting guidance to be published in advance.

Under the Regulations, the responsible person for a high-rise residential building must install wayfinding signage in line with the recommendations for new buildings as set out in Building Regulation guidance (Fire Safety: Approved Document B), on each landing within the stairways and in the lift lobbies of the floor level marked in such a way as to be visible both in low level lighting conditions or when illuminated with a torch.

On 26 November 2020, the amendments to Building Regulation guidance (Fire Safety: Approved Document B) was published and sets provisions for consistent wayfinding signage in new block of flats or new mixed-use buildings containing flats with a top floor more than 11 mtres above ground level.