The Building (Scotland) Regulations 2004

Fitness and durability of materials and workmanship S

8.—(1) Work to every building designed, constructed and provided with services, fittings and equipment to meet a requirement of regulations 9 to 12 must be carried out in a technically proper and workmanlike manner, and the materials used must be durable and fit for their intended purpose.

(2) All materials, services, fittings and equipment used to comply with a requirement of regulations 9 to 12 must, so far as reasonably practicable, be sufficiently accessible to enable any necessary maintenance or repair work to be carried out.

[F1 (3) Subject to paragraph (4), work must be carried out so that materials which form part of an external wall cladding system, or specified attachment, of a relevant building are of European Classification A2-s1, d0 or A1, classified in accordance with [F2 the reaction to fire classification].

(4) Paragraph (3) does not apply to materials which form part of—

(a) cavity trays,

(b) cavity vents,

(c) a roof (other than a roof pitched at an angle 70 degrees or more to the horizontal) if that part is connected to an external wall,

(d) door frames and doors,

(e) insulation and water proofing materials used below the ground and up to 300 mm above the ground,

(f) intumescent and fire stopping materials, fire barriers and cavity barriers where the inclusion of the materials is necessary to meet the requirements in section 2 (fire) of schedule 5 (building standards applicable to design and construction),

(g) membranes,

(h) seals, gaskets, fixings, sealants and backer rods,

(i) thermal break materials,

(j) window frames and glass,

[F3 (k) components associated with a solar shading device excluding components whose primary function is to provide shade or deflect sunlight such as the awning curtain or slats,

(l) materials which form the top horizontal floor layer of a balcony which are of European Classification A1fl or A2fl-s1 (classified in accordance with the reaction to fire classification) provided that the entire layer has an imperforate substrate under it.]

(5) Work must be carried out so that an external wall cladding system or internal lining does not comprise of highly combustible metal composite material.

(6) In this regulation—

“highly combustible metal composite material” means any panel or sheet, having a thickness of no more than 10 mm, which consists of a number of layers, two or more of which are made of metal, alloy, or metal compound and one or more substantial layer of which is made of material having a gross calorific value of more than 35 MJ/kg when tested in accordance with BS EN ISO 1716:2018 entitled “Reaction to fire tests for products – Determination of the gross heat of combustion (calorific value)” published by the British Standards Institution,

[F4 “reaction to fire classification” means BS EN 13501-1:2018 entitled “Fire classification of construction products and building elements. Classification using data from reaction to fire tests.” published by the British Standards Institution in 2019,]

“relevant building” means a building having a storey, or creating a storey (not including roof-top plant areas or any storey consisting exclusively of plant rooms) at a height of 11 metres or more above the ground and which contains—

(a)

a dwelling,

(b)

a building used as a place of assembly, or as a place of entertainment or recreation,

(c)

a hospital,

(d)

a residential care building or sheltered housing complex,

(e)

a shared multi-occupancy residential building,

(f)

[F5 a hotel, guest house, boarding house or hostel,]

[F6 “solar shading” means a device attached to the external surface of an external wall for reducing heat gain within a building by shading or deflecting sunlight,]

“specified attachment” means—

(a)

a balcony,

(b)

solar shading,

(c)

a solar panel,

attached to an external wall,

“substantial layer” means a layer is one which is at least 1 mm thick or has a mass per unit area of at least 1 kg per m².]

Textual Amendments

F1 Reg. 8(3)-(6) inserted (1.6.2022) by The Building (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2022 (S.S.I. 2022/136), regs. 1(2), 3 (with reg. 6)

F2 Words in reg. 8(3) substituted (6.4.2026) by The Building (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2025 (S.S.I. 2025/312), regs. 1, 2(2)(a) (with reg. 3)

F3 Reg. 8(4)(k)(l) inserted (6.4.2026) by The Building (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2025 (S.S.I. 2025/312), regs. 1, 2(2)(b) (with reg. 3)

F4 Words in reg. 8(6) inserted (6.4.2026) by The Building (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2025 (S.S.I. 2025/312), regs. 1, 2(2)(c)(i) (with reg. 3)

F5 Words in reg. 8(6) inserted (6.4.2026) by The Building (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2025 (S.S.I. 2025/312), regs. 1, 2(2)(c)(ii) (with reg. 3)

F6 Words in reg. 8(6) inserted (6.4.2026) by The Building (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2025 (S.S.I. 2025/312), regs. 1, 2(2)(c)(iii) (with reg. 3)