Higher-risk buildings (HRBs) face additional duties under the Building Safety Act 2022 beyond standard construction projects. This guide summarises the extra obligations that apply once a building meets the HRB definition in England.
What counts as an HRB
An HRB is typically a building at least 18 metres in height or with at least seven storeys, containing at least two residential units. The precise definition is in the Higher-Risk Buildings (Descriptions and Supplementary Provisions) Regulations 2023 — confirm status for each project.
Gateway regime
HRBs must pass through BSR gateways at planning, pre-construction, and completion. Building work must not proceed past Gateway 2 without BSR approval. Completion and occupation require Gateway 3 evidence and safety case material.
- Gateway 1: fire statement and BSR consultation at planning
- Gateway 2: design intent review before construction
- Gateway 3: completion evidence and handover to occupation duties
Occupied-phase duty holders
In occupation, the Accountable Person and Principal Accountable Person must manage building safety risk, maintain the safety case, and engage with residents. Mandatory occurrence reporting to the BSR applies to structural and fire safety issues. Organisations with several HRBs need building-scoped records so each duty-holder view stays tied to the correct building.
SI 2023/907 reg.12 requires a complaints system with acknowledgement as soon as reasonably practicable, timely handling, published timeframes, and reconsideration — it does not fix a national 10 working-day response clock. Threadsovereign implements a platform policy SLA of 10 UK working days (weekends and England & Wales bank holidays excluded) and tracks reconsideration windows in the occupied portal.
Ongoing occupied-phase duties also include Building Assessment Certificate applications when BSR directs the PAP — see threadsovereign.co.uk/blog/bac-application-guide.
- Safety case development and maintenance
- Building Assessment Certificate application
- Resident engagement strategy and complaints handling (platform 10 working-day SLA)
- Mandatory occurrence reporting and record-keeping
- Multi-HRB portfolio scoping for Accountable Persons and BSMs
Golden thread through the lifecycle
HRB golden thread requirements span design, construction, and occupation. Information must remain accurate and accessible to duty holders — not archived at handover. The BSR can request evidence that supports gateway decisions and ongoing safety case assertions.
How non-HRB projects differ
Non-HRB projects do not follow the three-gateway BSR regime, but duty holders still have Building Safety Act obligations and should maintain good information practice. Threadsovereign supports both HRB and non-HRB workflows on all subscription tiers.
Conclusion
HRB obligations extend well beyond design and build. Teams that plan for occupation — safety case, resident engagement, complaint SLAs, and occurrence reporting — from Gateway 2 onwards avoid the costliest compliance gaps. For product walkthroughs, see the user manual at threadsovereign.co.uk/help/manual or the FAQ at threadsovereign.co.uk/faq.
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Cochise Derrick
Founder & Director
Cochise Derrick is the founder and director of Threadsovereign Ltd and the sole architect and developer of the Threadsovereign platform. With a background as a lead developer on central government digital services and current SC clearance, he brings the technical depth and regulatory understanding required to build compliance infrastructure that duty-holders can genuinely rely on. Threadsovereign is the result of over a year of focused development against the Building Safety Act 2022 and its statutory instruments.
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Product pages and FAQ for duty-holders implementing these workflows.