PAS 79-2 withdrawn: Is your FRA now outdated?
If you manage a block of flats, sheltered housing, extra care housing, or supported housing, you have probably seen the headline PAS 79-2 withdrawn and wondered what it means for your fire risk assessment. You might also worry that an enforcing authority will treat your current FRA as non-compliant, or that you now need to commission a full new assessment immediately.
You do not need to panic. You do need to act deliberately.
PAS 79-2:2020 provided a structured way to complete and document housing fire risk assessments. BSI withdrew it while a British Standard developed, and BSI made a redacted version available for download with sections on disabled people removed. That change matters because it affects what many dutyholders relied on for person-centred evacuation planning.
At the same time, your legal duty never depended on PAS 79-2. The law requires you to carry out a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment. In England and Wales, Article 9 of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 sets that duty.
The practical question is not “is my FRA based on a withdrawn PAS?” The practical question is “does my FRA still match my building, my occupancy, and the current legal and guidance environment?”
This article explains what PAS 79-2 withdrawn means in practice, how to decide if your FRA now counts as outdated, and the steps you can take to modernise your approach using current benchmarks, including BS 9792:2025.
Why PAS 79-2 withdrawn happened and what it actually means
PAS 79-2 did not fail because it stopped being useful. BSI paused and then withdrew it due to rapid change in expectations around the evacuation of disabled and vulnerable residents following the Grenfell Tower Inquiry evidence and the Government response at the time.
BSI’s public statement explains that BSI suspended PAS 79-2 in March 2021, the steering group reviewed it, and they agreed to fully revise it as a British Standard. BSI then withdrew the PAS while the new British Standard developed.
That history leads to three practical implications.
1. PAS 79-2 being Withdrawn does not automatically invalidate your FRA
Your FRA remains valid if it remains suitable and sufficient for your premises. The legal duty sits in legislation, not in a PAS. PAS 79-2 aimed to provide a benchmark and consistent documentation method, but your compliance depends on the quality and relevance of your assessment, not the label on the methodology.
2. PAS 79-2 Withdrawn creates a competence and documentation risk
Some dutyholders and assessors treated PAS 79-2 as “the” method for housing. When BSI withdrew and redacted it, it removed content relating to vulnerable persons. If your FRA relied heavily on PAS 79-2 templates to demonstrate you considered disabled residents, your documentation might now look thin against today’s expectations.
3. PAS 79-2 Withdrawn coincided with new and tightening duties for residential buildings
In England, the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 came into force on 23 January 2023 and added duties for certain residential buildings, including high-rise requirements such as secure information boxes, building plans, lift and firefighting equipment checks, wayfinding signage, and resident information. A newer set of regulations, the Fire Safety (Residential Evacuation Plans) (England) Regulations 2025, come into force on 6 April 2026 and introduce person-centred assessments and building emergency evacuation plans for specified residential buildings.
So, when you ask “PAS 79-2 withdrawn, is my FRA outdated?”, you should evaluate your FRA against three things: Your building now, your legal duties now, and your residents now.
PAS 79-2 withdrawn: what changed in the benchmark landscape
In August 2025, BSI published BS 9792:2025, a British Standard for fire risk assessment in housing premises. BSI’s product listing shows publication on 1 August 2025. The standard itself records that it came into effect on 31 August 2025.
The change from PAS to British Standard matters because: A British Standard carries more weight as an industry benchmark. It usually tightens expectations around structure, evidence, and consistency. It gives you a clearer reference point when you commission, review, or audit a housing FRA. See our recent article on BS 9792 vs PAS 79: Fire Risk Assessment Changes in 2025
You do not need to rebuild everything from scratch to align. You need to close common gaps.
BS 9792 places strong emphasis on practical, auditable evidence. For example, it expects the FRA to include details of systems and facilities available for fire and rescue service use, such as fire mains, hydrants, access, firefighters’ lifts, secure information boxes, evacuation alert systems, smoke control systems, and wayfinding signage. It also expects you to verify testing and maintenance arrangements and document them in a way that stands up to scrutiny.
That focus aligns closely with duties and expectations now embedded in England’s residential fire safety regime.
How to tell if your FRA is outdated after PAS 79-2 withdrawn
Use this practical checklist. If you answer “yes” to any of these triggers, treat your FRA as likely outdated and plan a review or replacement.
Trigger 1: Your FRA predates major building or occupancy change
Examples include: Changes to the evacuation strategy, even temporarily. Changes to compartmentation integrity, doors, or service risers. Significant changes to resident profile, including increased vulnerability or mobility impairment. Major works to external walls, roofs, windows, or balconies.
If your FRA does not reflect current construction and current use, it cannot remain suitable and sufficient in practice. Article 9 requires an assessment of risks to relevant persons for the purpose of identifying the general fire precautions you need.
Trigger 2: Your FRA fails to reference current duties for your building type
If you manage higher-risk or high-rise residential buildings in England, you should see evidence in your FRA file and fire safety management system that you considered and implemented key Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 duties, such as: Secure information box requirements for certain buildings. Floor plans and building plans held and kept updated. Monthly routine checks of firefighters’ lifts, evacuation lifts, and essential firefighting equipment, plus fault reporting where relevant.
If your FRA never references these duties, it might still identify risk correctly, but it might not drive the management actions that your building now requires.
Trigger 3: Your FRA leans on PAS 79-2 pro formas without person-centred coverage
BSI redacted parts of PAS 79-2 and withdrew it pending a British Standard. If your FRA uses the withdrawn PAS as a base and does not independently evidence how you considered residents who struggle to self-evacuate, then your FRA will look weak against today’s direction of travel.
This matters even more because the Fire Safety (Residential Evacuation Plans) (England) Regulations 2025 create a defined process for person-centred fire risk assessments and building emergency evacuation plans for specified residential buildings from 6 April 2026.
Trigger 4: Your FRA lacks evidence on firefighter facilities and information
Modern expectations extend beyond resident evacuation to firefighter effectiveness. BS 9792 expects your FRA to capture facilities and systems for fire and rescue service use, including secure information boxes and evacuation alert systems where present.
If your FRA simply states “present” or “not present” without verifying testing, maintenance, and information quality, you likely need an upgrade.
Trigger 5: Your FRA does not drive an auditable maintenance and inspection regime
In practice, enforcing authorities and auditors will ask: What do you check? How often do you check it? Who checks it? What records do you keep? What do you do when you find faults?
BS 9792 includes detailed expectations for documenting testing and maintenance arrangements by competent persons across alarms, emergency lighting, suppression, smoke control, lifts, fire mains, and more. If your FRA does not connect risk to a living maintenance regime, treat it as outdated.
PAS 79-2 withdrawn: what you should do next
Step 1: Decide whether you need a review or a full new FRA
Use a simple rule: If the building and management system remain broadly the same and your FRA remains accurate, commission a structured review that updates it to current benchmarks. If the building changed materially, if the evacuation strategy changed, if you have significant resident vulnerability issues, or if documentation quality is poor, commission a new FRA.
Many dutyholders choose a staged approach:
- Stage A: Desktop gap analysis against BS 9792 and current residential duties.
- Stage B: Targeted on-site review to verify high-risk assumptions.
- Stage C: Updated action plan with prioritised, time-bound actions.
Step 2: Align your housing FRA documentation to BS 9792
You do not need to copy templates. You do need to match the intent. BS 9792 expects structured documentation that explains what you saw, what it means, and what you will do about it.
Focus your update on these areas, which commonly fall short after PAS 79-2 withdrawn.
1. Resident risk and engagement
Record how you communicate fire safety information to residents and how you engage with them, including where arrangements exist for resident engagement. If you manage a building that will fall within the 2025 evacuation plan regulations from April 2026, start preparing your data and processes now. The regulations introduce person-centred fire risk assessments and emergency evacuation statements for relevant residents, plus a building emergency evacuation plan that you must review annually.
2. Information to third parties
BS 9792 expects you to record what information you provided to residents, the fire and rescue service, and statutory bodies, and to indicate compliance with government guidance where information satisfies legislation.
In practical terms, build a simple information register: What you provide. To whom you provide it. When you provide it. Where you store the evidence.
3. Firefighter facilities and building intelligence
BS 9792 expects your FRA to include, as a minimum, details of systems and facilities for fire and rescue service use.
If your building requires a secure information box, verify that it exists, sits in the right location, remains accessible, and contains the right documents, with a clear review cycle.
4. Testing and maintenance competence
Document your maintenance regime and the competence of service providers. BS 9792 prompts you to record frequency, last service dates, maintainers’ remarks, and record quality, and it points you toward evidence of competence such as third-party certification or recognised trade body membership.
Step 3: Strengthen your building information handover and golden thread inputs
Many residential buildings struggle because historic fire safety information never reached the responsible person in usable form.
Approved Document B highlights that Regulation 38 aims to ensure the responsible person holds enough fire safety information to understand the fire strategy, maintain fire safety systems, and carry out an effective fire risk assessment.
Practical actions you can take now: Ask for the Regulation 38 pack if you do not hold it. Create an “as-managed fire strategy summary” for your building. Ensure your FRA references the actual fire strategy assumptions, not generic ones.
Step 4: Put PAS 79-2 withdrawn into your procurement process
If you outsource FRAs, update your scope and tender documents so you stop buying “a report” and start buying evidence-led risk management.
Include requirements such as: The assessor benchmarks against BS 9792:2025 for housing. The assessor explicitly addresses current England residential duties where applicable. The assessor provides a prioritised action plan with clear risk rationale. The assessor uses photographic evidence and clearly states limitations where access constraints exist. The assessor identifies where you need specialist surveys, such as fire door surveys, compartmentation surveys, intrusive checks, or external wall assessments.
This approach reduces the risk that you pay for a report that looks professional but fails to protect residents or satisfy scrutiny.
Step 5: Build a clear, repeatable FRA review cycle
PAS 79-2 withdrawn pushes many dutyholders to ask “how often do I need a new FRA?” The answer depends on change. Build a formal review cycle anyway.
At minimum: Review after any significant change. Review after a fire event or near miss. Review after major works. Review after material change in residents or vulnerability profile. Review on a fixed interval appropriate to risk, then document why you chose it.
If you fall under building emergency evacuation plan duties from April 2026, you will need annual reviews of that plan, plus additional reviews where you have reason to believe it needs amending.
Common misconceptions about PAS 79-2 withdrawn
Misconception 1: PAS 79-2 withdrawn means my current FRA is automatically non-compliant
Wrong. Your FRA must remain suitable and sufficient under Article 9. The withdrawal mainly affects your benchmark and your ability to rely on PAS 79-2 content, especially where it has been redacted.
Misconception 2: I must replace every FRA immediately
Wrong. Replace only where triggers exist, or where the assessment does not match today’s duties and risks. Do not spend budget on churn. Spend it on risk reduction and evidence.
Misconception 3: A British Standard creates new legal duties
Wrong. The standard does not create law. It provides a strong benchmark for how you might demonstrate a systematic, competent approach. Regulators and courts often look to recognised benchmarks when judging what “reasonable” looks like.
Conclusion: PAS 79-2 withdrawn does not doom your FRA, but it does raise the bar
PAS 79-2 withdrawn should prompt a disciplined review, not a knee-jerk rewrite. Your duty stays the same: you must maintain a suitable and sufficient fire risk assessment that reflects your building and your residents. PAS 79-2 withdrawn removed a familiar benchmark and highlighted gaps around vulnerable residents. At the same time, England’s residential fire safety framework tightened through the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 and the new Residential Evacuation Plans regulations coming into force on 6 April 2026.
If you want a practical way forward, use BS 9792:2025 as your benchmark for housing FRAs and run a targeted gap analysis against your current documents and building management system. Then commission either a structured review or a new FRA based on the risk triggers in this article.
If you manage multiple buildings, standardise your approach. You will reduce cost, improve audit readiness, and most importantly, improve resident safety.
How we can help
If you want to sense-check whether PAS 79-2 being withdrawn affects your current housing FRA, we can help with a fast desktop gap review against BS 9792:2025 and current residential duties. We will quickly identify whether you need a light-touch review, targeted surveys, or a full new FRA. When you take action early, you reduce enforcement risk and you stop issues from compounding into expensive remediation later.
FAQs - PAS 79-2 Withdrawn
1. PAS 79-2 withdrawn. Does it mean PAS 79-2 is illegal to use?
No. PAS 79-2 withdrawn means BSI withdrew the PAS as a current publication while a British Standard developed. BSI also released a redacted version for download. Your legal duty comes from legislation, not from the PAS.
2. PAS 79-2 withdrawn. Will fire and rescue authorities reject my FRA if it references PAS 79-2?
They will focus on whether your FRA remains suitable and sufficient and whether it reflects current risks and duties. If your FRA leans heavily on PAS 79-2 templates but lacks evidence, clear action planning, or coverage of vulnerable residents, it increases your risk.
3. What replaced PAS 79-2 after PAS 79-2 withdrawn?
BSI published BS 9792:2025 as a British Standard providing recommendations and example documentation for housing fire risk assessments.
4. Should you update your FRA to BS 9792:2025 immediately?
You should benchmark your current FRA against BS 9792:2025 and update where you find gaps. If your building changed materially or your documentation quality is weak, commission a new FRA.
5. My housing FRA is recent. Can it still be outdated after PAS 79-2 withdrawn?
Yes. Recency does not guarantee adequacy. Your FRA becomes outdated when it no longer reflects the building, residents, or current duties, or when it fails to drive auditable management actions.
6. What is the single biggest risk created by PAS 79-2 withdrawn?
Gaps around residents who cannot self-evacuate and weak documentation of how you identified and mitigated those risks, especially given the direction of travel toward person-centred assessments and evacuation planning.
7. Do the Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022 change what your housing FRA should cover?
They can. For relevant buildings, they introduce additional duties around building information, equipment checks, wayfinding signage, and resident information. Your FRA should identify those duties as part of the risk management system where they apply.
8. When do the Residential Evacuation Plans regulations start, and what should you do now?
They come into force on 6 April 2026. You should start preparing your resident identification process, your person-centred assessment workflow, consent handling, and your building emergency evacuation plan review cycle now.
9. If you use managing agents and contractors, how should PAS 79-2 withdrawn affect your coordination?
Record who holds which responsibilities, and ensure you coordinate information flow, access, and maintenance records. BS 9792 expects you to document cooperation and coordination where multiple dutyholders share responsibility.
10. What short term actions should you take now PAS 79-2 has been withdrawn?
1. Run a desktop gap analysis against BS 9792. 2. Verify you hold current plans and key fire safety information. 3. Audit fire door inspection records and maintenance logs. 4. Confirm secure information box status if applicable. 5. Update your FRA action plan with clear priorities and deadlines.
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