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RICS updates EWS1 form and guidance

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  • 17/03/2022
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RICS updates EWS1 form and guidance
The Royal Institution for Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has updated certain aspects of the EWS1 form and added a boilerplate to its guidance note.

In an update, RICS said the EWS1 form categories remained the same, but the form was now electronic, which the organisation said would make it “easier to access”.

It said the EWS1 form included version control to “increase transparency” around how many times a building has been assessed by the same assessor company. This means it will show who has visited the building, how many times and what their updates are.

RICS added that the version control feature would provide a “clear audit trail” for how many assessments have been done on the building by an assessor or company.

The updated guidance states that those who have completed EWS1 Assessment Training Programme can now complete the form.

It has also added more specific wording on interim measures which explicitly ask the assessor to list any interim measures required.

RICS also urged EWS1 forms to be uploaded to the Fire Industry Association (FIA) portal to reduce duplication, which was launched in 2020.

The trade body said the criteria for its guidance note was still valid but it had added a boilerplate stating that the guidance was drafted with reference to government advice which was “in force at the time”.

The guidance in effect at the time was the Consolidated Advice Note (CAN), which brought together advice on measures building owners could put in place to ensure their buildings were safe.

The government withdrew the CAN in January, saying at the time that it was being “wrongly interpreted” and had driven a “cautious approach to building safety that goes beyond what we consider necessary”.

The PAS 9980 is now in effect and offers a new methodology on how to carry out fire risk appraisals of multi-storey or multi-occupied residential buildings.

RICS also said that as more fire risk assessments are carried out under the PAS9980, alongside EWS appraisals, it expected the need for an EWS1 form to drop away.

It added: “The EWS1 form and guidance remains under constant review to ensure that a proportionate approach is taken to help ease the impacts on leaseholders from combustible cladding, whilst ensuring that lenders and valuers meet their legal requirements to accurately report property values.”

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