FRAEW Birmingham
If you manage, own, or finance a residential building in Birmingham, you have probably run into external wall fire risk questions that slow decisions down. A lender asks for reassurance before they release funds. An insurer wants clarity before renewal. Residents want to know what risk exists and what you will do next. You might hear the same phrase repeatedly: FRAEW Birmingham.
People often use “FRAEW” as if it means one standard report that every building needs. In reality, a FRAEW is a risk-based appraisal that should answer a single practical question in a way stakeholders accept.
Do the external walls present an unacceptable risk to life from fire spread, and what proportionate steps should you take next?
This blog post explains what a FRAEW Birmingham assessment involves, when you need one, how PAS 9980 influences the appraisal, and how Anstey Horne delivers clear, plain-English outcomes across Birmingham and the wider West Midlands.
What is a FRAEW Birmingham assessment
FRAEW stands for Fire Risk Appraisal of External Walls. In Birmingham, you commission a FRAEW when you need a structured appraisal of the risk to life arising from fire spread involving the external wall construction of an existing multi-occupied residential building.
PAS 9980 provides the method that competent professionals use to conduct and record these appraisals. Importantly, PAS 9980 scales. It does not assume every building needs a specialist appraisal. It also does not assume that every appraisal needs intrusive opening-up.
That matters because the best outcome for most clients is not a bigger report. It is the right level of evidence to support the decision you need to make.
Why external wall questions matter so much in Birmingham
Birmingham has a diverse mix of residential stock and an active transaction market. You see modern city-centre developments with complex façades. You see mid-rise blocks where lenders still request evidence even when buildings fall below higher-risk thresholds. You see conversions and refurbishments where drawings and O&M manuals do not match what sits behind the façade.
In each case, the question stays the same. You need to understand whether the external wall construction could contribute to rapid fire spread, and if it could, what action will reduce the risk to life most effectively.
A FRAEW Birmingham appraisal gives you a defensible position you can use with lenders, residents, insurers, and funders.
When you need a FRAEW Birmingham appraisal and when you do not
This is the point that saves time and cost.
Some buildings clearly do not need a specialist PAS 9980 appraisal. Traditional brick or masonry construction often presents low external fire spread risk. In those cases, a competent fire risk assessor can usually address external wall considerations through the routine Fire Risk Assessment process, supported by records and inspection.
Other buildings do need a specialist appraisal because the risk picture depends on what sits within the wall build-up and how the system behaves in a fire.
You will usually benefit from a FRAEW Birmingham assessment when one or more of these applies:
- You know or suspect combustible materials within the external wall system
- Your Fire Risk Assessment flags external wall uncertainty and recommends a PAS 9980 appraisal
- You cannot verify the wall build-up from reliable records
- Your building has rainscreen cladding, external insulation, timber balconies, or complex cavities
- You need evidence to support EWS1 completion, refinancing, sales progression, or insurer queries
- You need a proportionate remediation scope that avoids unnecessary strip-out
You often do not need a specialist FRAEW when:
- You can confirm traditional masonry construction and other low-risk forms of external wall build-up through records and inspection
- Your competent fire risk assessor can address external wall considerations within the routine Fire Risk Assessment in a suitable and sufficient way
The key is proportionality. We aim to avoid two expensive mistakes.
The first is under-scoping the work and ending up with a report that stakeholders reject.
The second is over-scoping the work and commissioning intrusive inspections or remediation without a risk-based justification.
What PAS 9980 changes in practice
Before PAS 9980, external wall reviews often drifted into a binary “combustible equals replace” approach. PAS 9980 pushes the process back toward risk. It requires you to consider likelihood and consequence in context and then decide what proportionate mitigation will reduce risk to life.
In practice, that means a good FRAEW Birmingham appraisal does not simply list materials. It explains:
- How a fire could realistically impinge on the façade
- How the façade could contribute to vertical or horizontal fire spread
- How quickly spread could threaten escape routes and compartmentation
- How building height, occupancy profile, and evacuation strategy change consequence
- What measures will reduce risk most effectively, in the right order
It also means you do not treat intrusive opening-up as automatic. You use it where uncertainty controls the risk decision.
How Anstey Horne delivers FRAEW Birmingham assessments
We deliver FRAEW Birmingham appraisals across Birmingham and the West Midlands. We write in plain English, we focus on practical outcomes, and we scope the work to match the evidence your building actually needs.
Our typical delivery targets are:
- Desktop appraisal: about one week
- Appraisal with intrusive inspection: about three weeks
These timeframes depend on access and documentation, but they give you a realistic planning framework for board approvals, lender deadlines, and resident communications.
Step 1: Define the decision you need to make
Every instruction has a decision behind it. You might need to refinance. You might need to progress sales. You might need to prepare for insurer renewal. You might need to define a remediation scope and budget.
We start by defining that decision and mapping which stakeholders will scrutinise the output. That step tells us how much evidence you need, and what format will make the report usable.
Step 2: Desktop review of the evidence you already have
A strong FRAEW Birmingham appraisal starts with information. We review the documents that matter most, such as:
- As-built drawings and façade details
- O&M manuals and product information
- Fire strategy information and evacuation approach
- Fire Risk Assessments and historic findings
- Any previous façade surveys, EWS1 forms, or intrusive results
- Maintenance logs relevant to balconies, cavities, and fire stopping
When documentation is weak, we make that explicit. We do not hide uncertainty. We plan how to close the evidence gap.
Step 3: Site inspection and façade mapping
We inspect the external wall construction and the interfaces that commonly control risk:
- Around windows and spandrel panels
- Balconies, soffits, and façade attachments
- Changes in materials across elevations and storeys
- Signs of later refurbishment or partial replacement
- Evidence of cavity barrier or fire stopping discontinuity
This step often identifies the real issue in Birmingham buildings. Many sites contain mixed systems across phases, and stakeholders need an appraisal that reflects that complexity.
Step 4: Decide whether intrusive inspection is necessary
If the risk decision depends on hidden build-ups, we recommend targeted opening-up. We do not treat intrusive inspection as a default, but we do not avoid it when it is the only credible route to a defensible conclusion.
When we recommend opening-up, we define each opening location by the specific question it must answer. That keeps the scope tight and cost-effective.
Step 5: Manage intrusive inspections end-to-end
When you need intrusive inspections, we manage the process end-to-end. That includes access planning, coordination, evidence recording, and reinstatement management. This approach reduces disruption for residents and reduces programme risk for managing agents.
Step 6: Provide a practical, stakeholder-ready report
We deliver a report that decision-makers can use, supported by evidence. It typically includes:
- A clear building summary and external wall map
- An evidence log and limitations statement
- A risk narrative focused on life safety
- Recommendations with priorities and practical options
- A plain-English executive summary for boards and residents
FRAEW Birmingham and EWS1: how they fit together
Many clients face external wall questions because of sales and refinancing. That often brings EWS1 into the conversation.
EWS1 supports valuation and mortgage processes. FRAEW provides the deeper technical appraisal of external wall risk and often forms part of the evidence base that supports EWS1 completion.
Anstey Horne delivers both services. That reduces delays and avoids the common handoff where one consultant gathers evidence and another consultant or fire engineer signs the form. We have our own in-house fire engineers who can sign off the most complex high risk buildings.
What to prepare before you commission a FRAEW Birmingham appraisal
You can speed up delivery and improve quality if you prepare five items.
- Gather what you have, even if it is incomplete Drawings, O&M manuals, historic contractor packs, and past surveys all help target site work.
- Nominate one access lead A single point of contact reduces access friction and keeps the programme moving.
- Plan resident communications early Simple, calm messaging improves access and reduces anxiety.
- Tell us your stakeholder deadlines Lender deadlines and insurer renewal dates should shape the programme from day one.
- Be clear about your output needs Some clients need a board-level summary. Others need a lender pack. We can tailor the output if we know the audience.
FAQs : FRAEW Birmingham
Do all Birmingham blocks need a FRAEW Birmingham assessment
No. Many buildings will not need a specialist appraisal, particularly where traditional masonry construction presents low external fire spread risk and records support that conclusion.
When should I commission a FRAEW Birmingham appraisal to PAS 9980
Commission one when you know or suspect combustible materials within the external wall system, when records remain uncertain, or when stakeholder decisions depend on a structured PAS 9980-based position.
How fast can you deliver a FRAEW Birmingham report
We typically deliver a desktop-based appraisal in about one week. If you need intrusive inspection, we typically deliver in around three weeks because site coordination and evidence collection drive the programme.
Do you manage intrusive inspections
Yes. We manage intrusive inspections end-to-end, including access planning, coordination, evidence recording, and reinstatement management.
Does a FRAEW replace an EWS1 form
No. EWS1 and FRAEW serve different purposes. EWS1 supports valuation and lending. FRAEW appraises external wall risk and helps define proportionate mitigation.
Talk to us about FRAEW Birmingham
If you need a FRAEW Birmingham assessment, you will move faster when you start with a short scoping discussion and a document pack. We will tell you whether a desktop-only appraisal can answer your stakeholder question within one week, or whether you need targeted opening-up to reach a defensible PAS 9980 conclusion within around three weeks. We will then deliver a clear report and a practical action plan you can use with residents, lenders, and insurers.
Contact
If you’re responsible for a residential building and unsure about the safety of its external walls, speak to a competent FRAEW provider. At Anstey Horne, our expert team of fire engineers and surveyors deliver independent, proportionate, and fully compliant FRAEW Surveys.
Commission a PAS 9980-aligned FRAEW first to set your safety strategy, and let that evidence support any EWS1 a lender requests. You’ll cut duplication, reduce resident disruption, and make faster, better-defended decisions.
Get in touch with us today to arrange a no-obligation consultation - please call 020 4534 3130.
If you'd rather we called you, or for further information on FRAEW Surveys please fill in our contact form and we will be in touch.
For further information on all aspects of this service see the collection of articles in our blog.
To commission an FRAEW please call 020 4534 3130.
For further information on Fire Risk Assessment, Retrospective Fire Strategies, FRAEWs or advice in respect of your obligations as a building owner, developer or manager, please contact :
Thomas Mead-Herbert
BSc (Hons) MRICS C.BuildE MCABE
Director
Building Surveying
London
Sarah Taylor
Business Support Manager
Building Surveying
London