What is PAS 9980
What is PAS 9980
PAS 9980 is the publicly available specification that defines the methodology for appraising the fire risk of external wall construction on existing blocks of flats. Its full title is Fire risk appraisal of external wall construction and cladding of existing blocks of flats — Code of practice. It was published by BSI (the British Standards Institution) in January 2022, sponsored by the UK government.
A PAS — Publicly Available Specification — is a standardisation document fast-tracked by BSI in response to an industry or government need. It sits below a full British Standard in formality but carries broad authority in the sectors that adopt it.
Why PAS 9980 exists
The Grenfell Tower fire in 2017 exposed serious deficiencies in the way external wall fire risk was understood, assessed, and managed across the UK building stock. In the years that followed, the EWS1 form was introduced as a rapid industry response — a single-page valuation tool intended to give lenders and insurers a binary signal about external wall safety. EWS1 was never designed as an engineering appraisal, and it became widely criticised for being inconsistent, opaque, and unsuited to the scale and complexity of the problem.
PAS 9980 was commissioned to replace EWS1 with a proper methodology — a codified, repeatable, risk-based appraisal that competent fire engineers can apply consistently across the existing stock of blocks of flats.
Scope
PAS 9980 applies specifically to:
Existing blocks of flats — purpose-built or converted residential blocks containing two or more flats.
It does not apply to:
New-build buildings (which are covered by Building Regulations and Approved Document B (ADB) at design stage).
Buildings of other use classes (commercial, hotels, student accommodation outside flats, and so on).
Individual dwellings, low-rise houses, or single-family homes.
Where a building falls outside scope, the principles in PAS 9980 may still inform an appraisal, but the standard itself does not apply.
The methodology
PAS 9980 sets out a risk-based appraisal that can be applied at varying levels of depth depending on the available evidence and the nature of the building:
A baseline appraisal of the external wall construction — materials, insulation, cavity barriers, attachments, and elevation-by-elevation variations.
An evaluation of risk factors that may increase or mitigate the fire risk presented by the external walls — including combustibility of cladding and insulation, the presence and adequacy of cavity barriers, the integrity of compartmentation, attachments such as balconies and signage, and the interaction with means of escape and firefighting access.
A risk rating drawn from the standard's tolerability framework.
Recommendations — remediation, interim mitigation, ongoing monitoring, or confirmation that no action is required.
Where evidence is limited or the risk is uncertain, further investigation (intrusive surveys, fire testing, fire engineering analysis) may be required to support a robust conclusion.
Who can produce a PAS 9980 appraisal
PAS 9980 is intended to be applied by competent fire engineers — practitioners with the relevant qualifications, experience, and judgement to interpret the methodology and apply it to the specific building. Competency is judged by reference to professional registration (for example CEng or IFE membership), the engineer's experience with comparable buildings, and the wider quality processes of the firm carrying out the appraisal.
Status and currency
PAS 9980 was first published in January 2022 as PAS 9980:2022. As a PAS, it is reviewed periodically by BSI in light of industry experience, regulatory change, and emerging evidence. The edition referenced in any appraisal should reflect the current published version.
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