The Building Safety Act 2022 represents a fundamental shift in how the UK approaches building safety—from reactive compliance to proactive accountability. The year 2025 is not simply about meeting deadlines; it’s about embedding a new culture of transparency, competence, and lifelong responsibility in the built environment.

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As the Building Safety Act (BSA) continues to reshape the landscape of the UK’s built environment, 2025 marks a watershed year—one defined by heightened compliance expectations, greater accountability, and a genuine cultural shift across the construction and property sectors.

Whether you are a designer, contractor, developer, or building owner, your responsibilities under the Act are now broader, deeper, and more enforceable than ever before. Every stakeholder must actively demonstrate competence, maintain clear information flows, and prioritise safety throughout a building’s life cycle.

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Below is a comprehensive overview of the key duties and actions required under the BSA and its secondary legislation.

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Design & Construction Phase

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1. Gateway Regime (Higher-Risk Buildings)

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The three Gateway stages introduce mandatory regulatory checkpoints designed to ensure safety is embedded from the very start:

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• Gateway 1: Submit a Fire Statement at the planning stage, demonstrating how fire safety considerations influence design and layout.

• Gateway 2: Submit a full Building Control Application to the Building Safety Regulator (BSR) before any construction work begins. Approval must be granted prior to commencement

• Gateway 3: Apply for a Completion Certificate from the BSR before the building can be occupied. No occupation is permitted without BSR approval.

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These gateways ensure that safety is not a late-stage consideration, but an integral part of every project milestone.

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2. Dutyholder Responsibilities

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The BSA establishes clear roles and responsibilities for those involved in design and construction:

Key Roles:

• Client

• Principal Designer

• Principal Contractor

• Designer

• Contractor

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Core Duties:

• Ensure full compliance with building regulations.

• Maintain and demonstrate competence across all roles and disciplines.

• Coordinate effectively with other dutyholders.

• Contribute to and maintain the Golden Thread of building safety information.

Failure to discharge these duties can result in criminal liability, reflecting the Act’s emphasis on personal and organisational accountability.

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3. The Golden Thread of Information

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A central principle of the BSA, the Golden Thread refers to a digitally stored, continuously updated record of safety-critical information about a building.

• Must be accurate, accessible, and secure throughout the building’s lifecycle.

• Information must be transferred to the Accountable Person upon occupation.

• Enables transparency, informed decision-making, and a strong foundation for ongoing safety management.

Occupation Phase (Higher-Risk Buildings)

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4. Registration with the Building Safety Regulator

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All Higher-Risk Buildings (HRBs) must be registered with the BSR before occupation.

• Registration is a legal requirement—failure to register constitutes a criminal offence.

• No building can be legally occupied until this process is complete.

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5. Accountable Person (AP) and Principal Accountable Person (PAP) Duties

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The Accountable Person (AP) is responsible for managing building safety during occupation, while the Principal Accountable Person (PAP) holds overarching responsibility.

They must:

• Identify and confirm the PAP.

• Prepare and maintain the following key documents and systems:

  • Safety Case Report – demonstrating how building safety risks are identified, assessed, and controlled.

  • Resident Engagement Strategy – setting out how residents are informed and involved in safety decisions.

  • Mandatory Occurrence Reporting System – for logging and responding to serious safety incidents.

• Apply for a Building Assessment Certificate when requested by the BSR.

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6. Safety Management & Reporting - Safety Case Report

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A comprehensive document that demonstrates a clear understanding and management of building safety risks.

• Must include detailed risk assessments, mitigation strategies, and evidence of ongoing monitoring.

• The PAP must submit the report or make it available to the BSR upon request.

• Updated as conditions, risks, or building systems evolve.

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7. Mandatory Occurrence Reporting

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The PAP must establish and maintain effective systems for reporting serious safety risks such as fire incidents or structural failures.

• Reports must be made to the BSR promptly and transparently.

• This promotes a proactive culture of safety and early intervention.

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8. Legal & Financial Duties - Leaseholder Protections

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The BSA introduces robust measures to protect leaseholders from disproportionate remediation costs associated with historical building safety defects.

• Limits the ability of landlords to recover certain costs through service charges.

• Introduces caps on leaseholder contributions.

• Requires landlords to exhaust all alternative funding routes (e.g. government schemes, developer contributions) before seeking payment from leaseholders.

These provisions aim to ensure that responsibility for remediation rests with those who created the risk, not those who live with it.