The new security guidance promises clarity, but specifiers must remain alert, cautions Jon Cole.
Domestic burglary costs the nation more than £2.9bn each year. This carries a heavy social cost, with research pointing to a disproportionate effect on the most vulnerable in communities. With the introduction of the new Approved Document Q on security, the industry now has improved guidelines on how it can best protect new developments.
The new document, which will come into effect on 1 October 2015 and applies to projects submitting plans after that date, marks the inclusion of physical security standards in the Building Regulations for the first time, clearly underlining the government’s intent to cut domestic crime by ensuring that every new home is secure.
The arrival of Part Q signals the Department for Communities & Local Government’s (DCLG) intentions, announced earlier this year, to separate building control requirements from the broad planning goals established by initiatives such as the National Policy Planning Framework. Its development been also closely informed by the 2012 Housing Standards Review, which called for closer integration of the various building codes, standards, rules, and guidance as a means of cutting the costs and simplifying housebuilding regulation.
Approved Document Q applies to all new homes, including those resulting from a change in use of existing buildings into homes. Specifically, the new regulations lay down minimum guidelines on attack resistance for doors, windows and rooflights as the most common points for intruder entry.
For entrance doors, the key requirement is a secure doorset proven to resist physical attack, or a bespoke doorset incorporating construction features that are proven to reduce crime.
Part Q leaves much room for uncertainty and confusion when specifying security measures. To ensure effective crime prevention, Secured by Design recommends the use of products that are not just tested but independently certificated by third-party certification bodies.
Letter plates should not exceed a maximum size and the main entry doors must offer a means to see callers. Frames should be mechanically fixed to the structure of the building and lightweight wall systems adjacent to doors should incorporate a resilient surface layer.
Other accessible points of entry, such as accessible windows and rooflights, should also be compliant with proven security standards and be securely fixed to the structure of the building.
Approved Document Q sets the minimum test standards that must be met. Yet it falls short of providing the detailed information needed to ensure the correct products are specified for a particular application, which can require additional elements relating to its use or an understanding of possible conflicting Building Regulations such as Part B.
Approved Document Q calls for products to be manufactured to a sufficiently robust design that has been tested to acceptable security standards, such as PAS 24, STS 202 and LPS 1175. However, this relies on the product being installed under precisely the configurations present during testing. In the case of doors and windows, modifying the specification of any one aspect – the locks, handles or even the fixings – could compromise the product’s security.
The complexities of specifying a doorset for use as a communal entrance in a block of flats, for example, extend beyond the security standards – and there are numerous considerations for security. It is imperative that the doorset has been assessed for fitness for its purpose – for instance the use and abuse that is likely to arise with a communal entrance for multiple dwellings.
Building in certainty
From this point of view Part Q leaves much room for uncertainty and confusion when specifying security measures. To ensure effective crime prevention, Secured by Design (SBD) recommends the use of products that are not just tested but independently certificated by third-party certification bodies.
Certification involves initial and ongoing audit testing of the product, together with audits of the production facility. This ensures products are consistently manufactured to the required standard and will continue to meet this in use. SBD attributes the decreases in burglary rates and other crimes in SBD-approved developments to this requirement.
Approved Document Q is also welcome as a catalyst for further change in simplifying the compliance process. SBD’s National Building Approval (NBA) scheme ensures compliance by agreeing all aspects of physical security within buildings of a given type before any development or refurbishment is planned or built. A tiered awards scheme provides alternative pathways to achieve Part Q compliance.
The NBA certificate is accepted by local authority building officers and approved inspectors – discharging regulatory requirements, as well as obligations placed upon developers by third parties to gain required approvals.
The introduction of Approved Document Q is an important step towards higher standards of product security. But it is important that specifiers are not distracted from the larger picture – providing protection for individuals – and that guidance is sought in not just interpreting but realising the spirit of the new legislation.
Jon Cole is national operations manager of police initiative Secured by Design
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