Mastering Building Safety Duties at  Project Handover

By

Nicholas Dunbar

Reviewed by 

Zoe Mullan

Last Updated Jul 1, 2026

By

Nicholas Dunbar

Reviewed By

Zoe Mullan

Passing through BSA Gateway 3 is one of the most demanding phases of a modern construction project. For a Main Contractor, the transition from construction to occupation carries a lot of commercial risks. Mismanaged safety data can stall practical completion, triggering liquidated and ascertained damages (LADs) under JCT contracts or delay damages under NEC contracts. 

When the government removed the statutory requirement for a dedicated Building Safety Manager from the Building Safety Bill, many teams assumed the administrative burden had decreased. In reality, the legal obligations remained unchanged. The client holds ultimate responsibility for creating and maintaining the golden thread, but day-to-day management is often delegated to the Principal Contractor (PC) and Principal Designer. In practice, this places significant demands on site delivery teams to capture and manage compliant data throughout the build.

Adapting to the Building Safety Management Function

Managing fire and structural safety risks in buildings over 18 metres or seven storeys requires a systematic approach. The Building Safety Act places strict obligations on the Principal Accountable Person (PAP) to demonstrate that a building is safe throughout its life cycle. Without a dedicated professional to manage this information, site teams must embed compliance into daily routines. Securing a Completion Certificate from the Building Safety Regulator (BSR) at Gateway 3 depends partially on the quality of data captured during construction. To meet these standards, project managers must establish clear operational parameters before work begins:

• Define Clear Accountability

  Assign specific compliance tracking tasks to named packages of work, rather than treating safety documentation as an end-of-project exercise.

• Establish Standardised Records

  Implement uniform quality criteria across all subcontractor tiers to prevent fragmented data submission.

• Align with Regulatory Milestones

  Map data collection directly to BSR requirements to ensure straightforward inspections.

Maintaining the Golden Thread Through Site Workflows

Securing practical completion requires a transparent, time-stamped audit trail of every structural element and fire safety measure. Traditional folder structures and disconnected data silos increase the risk of missing information, which can jeopardise the Gateway 3 submission. Site teams therefore need a practical method to capture information during construction. Pinning QA checklists, inspection records, and time-stamped photos directly to 2D drawings or 3D models during daily site walks provides a reliable solution, connecting physical work to digital records in real time.

When a variation occurs on site, teams must update the central record immediately. This practice keeps information accurate for future asset management and ensures that emergency services can access accurate as-built drawings and fire safety strategies if an incident occurs.

Structuring the Safety Case & Resident Engagement

Building safety extends well beyond the construction phase into occupation. The PAP must maintain an up-to-date Safety Case Report  that identifies building safety risks and sets out the measures in place to manage them. This is a living risk management document, distinct from the golden thread, which holds the detailed as-built record of the asset. 

Managing these ongoing obligations also requires clear communication channels. Under the Building Safety Act, the PAP has a statutory duty to produce a residents' engagement strategy and to provide residents with fire safety instructions, evacuation plans, and other prescribed safety information. A secure digital portal provides a practical means of meeting this obligation and of maintaining the communication log needed to demonstrate compliance to the regulator. 

Running Structured Safety Inspections On Site

Regular structural and fire safety checks reduce the risk of latent defects and non-compliance penalties. Informal notes or generic spreadsheets frequently lead to overlooked hazards, so site teams need structured workflows to maintain quality standards across the entire asset portfolio: 

• Standardise Snag Lists

  Deploy consistent inspection templates specifically for fire doors, penetration sealing, and compartmentation boundaries.

• Automate Action Assignment

  Issue remedial actions to subcontractors directly from site layout drawings to accelerate resolution times.

• Capture Photographic Evidence

  Record clear visual proof of hidden safety equipment and fire stopping before walls are closed up.

The complexities of the Building Safety Act require a decisive shift away from isolated spreadsheets and disjointed communication. Failing to capture compliant data during construction creates severe commercial liabilities, delayed handovers, and long-term regulatory exposure. By adopting a unified collaboration platform, site teams can capture asset data in real time, protect profit margins, and provide the PAP with an unassailable golden thread of information. Discover how a centralised digital solution can help simplify compliance workflows and secure a smooth transition through Gateway 3.

Written by

Nicholas Dunbar

Content Manager | Procore

74 articles

Nick Dunbar oversees the creation and management of UK and Ireland educational content at Procore. Previously, he worked as a sustainability writer at the Building Research Establishment and served as a sustainability consultant within the built environment sector. Nick holds degrees in industrial sustainability and environmental sciences and lives in Camden, London.

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Reviewed by

Zoe Mullan

27 articles

Zoe Mullan is an experienced content writer and editor with a background in marketing and communications in the e-learning sector. Zoe holds an MA in English Literature and History from the University of Glasgow and a PGDip in Journalism from the University of Strathclyde and lives in Northern Ireland.

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