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With pupil numbers rising and school infrastructure under pressure, the Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA) has become a game-changer for education projects across England. It’s reshaping how schools are designed, built, and managed and it’s had a direct impact on how AtkinsRéalis delivers safe, high-quality learning environments. By helping clients navigate the new legislation, we’re making sure every project meets compliance standards while still being innovative and fit for the future.
The Building Safety Act hasimplemented widespread changes to secondary legislation including The Building Regulations etc. (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2023, which introduce newduty holders for the design and construction of projects.Clients now have prescribed duties to ensure suitable arrangements for planning, managing, and monitoring a project, including allocating sufficient time and resources, to comply with all relevant requirementsof the building regulations.
This change in legislation emphasises the importance of the client’s dutyto appoint a competent team anddevelop and maintain a sense of ownership and responsibility for building safety and compliance. This means clients can no longer distance themselves from the delivery of a project and requires them to adopt a more hands-on approach to project delivery and compliance.
Within AtkinsRéalis, when evaluating the clients' duties against those of other duty holders, it was clear that each duty holder, including designers and contractors, shared the same ultimate goal: to ensure that both design and building work complied with all relevant requirements.
From speaking with our clients, we recognised that the new client duty holder role was causing some apprehension and uncertainty. As a business, AtkinsRéalis have invested heavily in ensuring we are best placed to support clients with their duties, removing ambiguity and advising on all things building safety. Our industry-leading team of consultants, with their extensive knowledge and understanding of the Building Safety Act and related secondary legislation have proven invaluable to our clients.
Please note that you are now leaving the AtkinsRéalis website (legal name: AtkinsRéalis Group inc.) and entering a website maintained by a third party (the "External Website") and that you do so at your own risk.
AtkinsRéalis has no control over the External Website, any data or other content contained therein or any additional linked websites. The link to the External Website is provided for convenience purposes only. By clicking "Accept" you acknowledge and agree that AtkinsRéalis is not responsible, and does not accept or assume any responsibility or liability whatsoever for the data protection policy, the content, the data or the technical operation of the External Website and/or any linked websites and that AtkinsRéalis is not liable for the terms and conditions (or terms of use) of the External Website. Further, you acknowledge and agree that you assume all risks resulting from entering and/or using the External Website and/or any linked websites.
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Such waiver and release specifically includes, without limitation, any and all rights and claims pertaining to reliance on the data or content of the External Website, or claims pertaining to the processing of personal data, including but not limited to any rights under any applicable data protection statute. You also recognize by clicking “Accept” that the terms of this disclaimer are reasonable.
The information provided by Virtua Research cited herein is provided “as is” and “as available” without warranty of any kind. Use of any Virtua Research data is at a user’s own risk and Virtua Research disclaims any liability for use of the Virtua Research data. Although the information is obtained or compiled from reliable sources Virtua Research neither can nor does guarantee or make any representation or warranty, either express or implied, as to the accuracy, validity, sequence, timeliness, completeness or continued availability of any information or data, including third-party content, made available herein. In no event shall Virtua Research be liable for any decision made or action or inaction taken in reliance on any information or data, including third-party content. Virtua Research further explicitly disclaims, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, any warranty of any kind, whether express or implied, including warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose and non-infringement.
The consensus estimate provided by Virtua Research is based on estimates, forecasts and predictions made by third party financial analysts, as described above. It is not prepared based on information provided by AtkinsRéalis and can only be seen as a consensus view on AtkinsRéalis' possible future results from an outside perspective. AtkinsRéalis has not provided input on these forecasts, except by referring to past publicly disclosed information. AtkinsRéalis does not accept any responsibility for the quality or accuracy of any individual or average of forecasts or estimates. This web page contains forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by third parties. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between AtkinsRéalis' actual future results, financial situation, development or performance, and the estimates given here.
In an industry where statutory compliance can often be unclear and confusing, our goal has been to provide clarity for our clients, helping them to navigate the Building Safety Act 2022, whilst simplifying processes that align their duties at each stage of project delivery.
Our expert team have developed systems and procedures for delivering services under the Building Safety Act, ensuring our clients are supported in discharging their dutiesthroughout every stage of project delivery.
Our AtkinsRéalis team has been offering this service to the Department for Education (DfE) since the new legislation took effect. The increased coverage and visibility over their projects from a statutory compliance standpoint, have not only provided reassurance, but has also enhanced the overall safety culture across the framework. Project delivery teams have benefitted from having a dedicated Building Safety Act Technical Advisor on each one of the DfE's projects, supporting and encouraging statutory compliance from procurement and design, through to project handover.
With many of the statutory changes being left to industry interpretation, AtkinsRéalis has provided clear guidance on what compliance looks like from our team of industry experts. This has enabled the DfE to not only demonstratecompliance but also find industry best practice more attainable.
An example of this is the competency assessment of duty holder appointments. In line with the new legislation, the Client must take all reasonable steps to ensure that the duty holder appointments are competent. To aid the Client in this process, a framework for competence specification has been developed in PAS 8671. To help the DfE comply with this requirement, AtkinsRéalis has proactively requested the necessary information and ensured it is formatted to meet the PAS 8671 criteria before submitting it to the DfE for approval. This assures the Client that due diligence has been thoroughly conducted before making the duty holder appointments.
This review process extends to all compliance documents, includingthe Building Regulation Relevant Requirement Compliance Tracker. The tracker aims to demonstrate how a design meets compliance with the relevant requirements of the Building Regulations. To standardise this approach across the DfE framework, AtkinsRéalis helped develop a template tracker for all project BR Principal Designers. This has instilled confidencein the client that all BR Principal Designers appointed on DfE projects are effectively planning, managing, monitoring and coordinating the designto ensure compliance with all relevant requirements.
AtkinsRéalis has also engaged in a number of workshops and Q&A sessions alongside other consultants involved in the DfE framework. These collaborative efforts have enabled us to exchange ideas and perspectives on the recent statutory changes, ensuring we deliver the highest quality service possible.
The Building Safety Act has significantly affected education projects by increasing duty holder requirements, prioritising compliance in both design and construction, and emphasizing accountability for everyone working in the construction industry. Through a combination of technical expertise and a client-focused approach, AtkinsRéalis has helped clients such as DfE navigate the complexities of the BSA 2022 and associated legislation, planning carefully to ensure safe, compliant, and future-ready buildings.
Please note that you are now leaving the AtkinsRéalis website (legal name: AtkinsRéalis Group inc.) and entering a website maintained by a third party (the "External Website") and that you do so at your own risk.
AtkinsRéalis has no control over the External Website, any data or other content contained therein or any additional linked websites. The link to the External Website is provided for convenience purposes only. By clicking "Accept" you acknowledge and agree that AtkinsRéalis is not responsible, and does not accept or assume any responsibility or liability whatsoever for the data protection policy, the content, the data or the technical operation of the External Website and/or any linked websites and that AtkinsRéalis is not liable for the terms and conditions (or terms of use) of the External Website. Further, you acknowledge and agree that you assume all risks resulting from entering and/or using the External Website and/or any linked websites.
BY ENTERING THE EXTERNAL WEBSITE, YOU ALSO ACKNOWLEDGE AND AGREE THAT YOU COMPLETELY AND IRREVOCABLY WAIVE ANY AND ALL RIGHTS AND CLAIMS AGAINST ATKINSRÉALIS, AND RELEASE, DISCHARGE, INDEMNIFY AND HOLD HARMLESS ATKINSRÉALIS, ITS OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES, DIRECTORS AND AGENTS FROM ANY AND ALL LIABILITY INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LIABILITY FOR LOSS, DAMAGES, EXPENSES AND COSTS ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH ENTERING AND/OR USING THE EXTERNAL WEBSITE AND/OR ANY LINKED WEBSITES AND ANY DATA AND/OR CONTENT CONTAINED THEREIN.
Such waiver and release specifically includes, without limitation, any and all rights and claims pertaining to reliance on the data or content of the External Website, or claims pertaining to the processing of personal data, including but not limited to any rights under any applicable data protection statute. You also recognize by clicking “Accept” that the terms of this disclaimer are reasonable.
The information provided by Virtua Research cited herein is provided “as is” and “as available” without warranty of any kind. Use of any Virtua Research data is at a user’s own risk and Virtua Research disclaims any liability for use of the Virtua Research data. Although the information is obtained or compiled from reliable sources Virtua Research neither can nor does guarantee or make any representation or warranty, either express or implied, as to the accuracy, validity, sequence, timeliness, completeness or continued availability of any information or data, including third-party content, made available herein. In no event shall Virtua Research be liable for any decision made or action or inaction taken in reliance on any information or data, including third-party content. Virtua Research further explicitly disclaims, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, any warranty of any kind, whether express or implied, including warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose and non-infringement.
The consensus estimate provided by Virtua Research is based on estimates, forecasts and predictions made by third party financial analysts, as described above. It is not prepared based on information provided by AtkinsRéalis and can only be seen as a consensus view on AtkinsRéalis' possible future results from an outside perspective. AtkinsRéalis has not provided input on these forecasts, except by referring to past publicly disclosed information. AtkinsRéalis does not accept any responsibility for the quality or accuracy of any individual or average of forecasts or estimates. This web page contains forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by third parties. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between AtkinsRéalis' actual future results, financial situation, development or performance, and the estimates given here.