Building safety in high-rise blocks

At Watford Community Housing, residents’ safety is our top priority. This page sets out our commitment to managing building safety, in line with the guidance set by the Building Safety Regulator and wider government.

As part of our commitment to managing building safety, we ensure that we have an active resident engagement strategy in place for all of our high-rise buildings.

The strategy ensures that all residents:

feel safe in the building they live in
feel empowered to play a role in ensuring their building continues to be safe
know how to easily report any problems about their home or any part of the building which may impact their safety
know what to do in the event of an incident in their block
have a clear understanding of our responsibilities as a landlord, and their responsibilities to ensure their home remains safe
are aware of the ways in which they can get involved and influence building safety, as well the services we provide
know what we are doing in response to their feedback
are effectively communicated with in a way that is accessible and easy to understand
know how to make a complaint if they feel that their concerns are not being listened to

Keeping your building safe

Our high-rise buildings are kept safe through a planned regime of maintenance, servicing, repairs, and replacement of assets and components within them.

Some of the key fire safety-related assets include sprinklers, fire doors, smoke detection systems, firefighting equipment, emergency lighting and smoke ventilation windows.

Other parts of the buildings that have routine checks and inspections are lifts, communal door entry systems, electrical systems and various plant, storage, and communal areas.

How our buildings are designed

If you live in a purpose-built block of flats, there will be a fire action notice in the communal areas with the recommended fire safety approach for your building.

Walls, floors, ceilings, and doors are passive fire measures. Together they form compartments that limit the spread of fire and smoke. They are designed to contain fire and smoke at their source for a long enough period to allow the fire service to extinguish the fire.

It is this design that means residents are safe to remain in their home so long as it is not affected by fire, smoke, or heat, or unless otherwise instructed by the fire service.

Read the full strategy here Our Fire Safety Policy Our Building Safety Policy

Safety improvements

Here are some of the safety features installed in our high-rise buildings, designed to keep our residents safe.

Emergency lights

Emergency lighting is in place to ensure access ways are lit in the event of a loss of power in your building. The lights are tested monthly and are serviced annually.

Dry riser

A dry riser helps the fire service to get water up to your floor quickly in an emergency. Dry risers are checked and maintained every six months.

Sprinkler system

Your flat contains a sprinkler system which will be tested monthly. No access is needed for this test. It will also have an overall service annually. The system will activate in two stages. When a temperature of 57°C is detected the cover plate will remove itself and, if the temperature increases further to 65°C, the system will activate.

Secure information box

This is the red box stored on the ground floor of your building and contains information to assist Herts Fire and Rescue Service should they need to attend in an emergency.

Fire doors

Fire doors are in place at the entrance to your property and in communal areas throughout the building. Each door provides 30 minutes of protection against fire and smoke whilst closed. The doors have an automatic closer installed which should not be tampered with.

Compartmentation

Your building has been designed so that each flat is its own fire resistant 'compartment', which delays the spread of fire throughout the building. Compartmentation in communal areas is inspected annually.

Vents

Vents are located in the stairwell of each block and help to clear smoke in the event of an emergency.

Keeping you up to date

We regularly engage with customers on building safety matters, using various different means. We will tailor our communication methods to customers’ needs and make sure they are accessible.

A variety of methods will be used to communicate important building safety messages when necessary and we will provide residents an annual fire safety advice leaflet, which will also be shared with any new tenants at the start of their tenancy.

How you can have your say

We will provide opportunities for you to have your say on decisions relating to building safety.

This may include:

checking if you have a preferred time for appointments about safety checks or works
asking how we can reduce disruption when carrying out safety works
getting your opinion on improving fire or building safety - for example, upgrading fire doors
involving you in the design of any major upgrade works in the building

It might not always be possible or appropriate to consult on changes to the way we manage or maintain the building, for example if there is a new legal requirement to carry out work. In this case we will always provide written notice in a timely manner.

We also understand that not all decisions about the building will affect all customers, therefore, we will only consult with you if you will be directly affected by the proposed works or changes.

Building safety complaints

You have the right to raise a complaint if you feel a report or work carried out has not been handled satisfactorily.

Any building safety complaints should be reported to us directly by calling us on 0800 218 2247, completing the feedback form here or by emailing us at feedback@wcht.org.uk.

We will then investigate as appropriate and aim to resolve the complaint within 10 days, in line with our complaints procedure.

Following a complaint, we will provide a written response including details of the investigation which has taken place, the outcomes and any follow-up actions.