Hea 06 – Safety and Security - BREEAM Knowledge Base

Areas in the public domain - KBCN0587

Where areas within the site boundary will be public domain after construction, and the design/specification has been determined by the local authority/statutory body/planning permission etc, they can be excluded from the assessment of the 'Safe Access' criteria. Evidence would be required to demonstrate that this was the case. Where the client/design team do not have control of the design of these areas, the development should not be prevented from achieving the credit.

Cyclist safe access - KBCN0188

Safe access for cyclists must be via a compliant cycle lane, unless it is demonstrated that it would be impractical to cycle for a short distance between the site entrance and cycle storage. For example, where a gate, door or barrier forces the cyclist to dismount and walk for a short distance to access the cycle storage and it would be impractical for cyclists to re-mount¹. Where it is not practical to provide compliant cycle lane from the entrance to the cycle storage, the safety of cyclists and pedestrians must be maintained. 1. The intent is that this be a short distance, over which cyclists would typically not choose to re-mount and is anticipated to be no greater than 10m. In order to be considered compliant for greater distances, evidence must be provided of effective additional physical measures to deter cyclists from re-mounting.

29/09/2021 - Additional note (1) added to provide further clarification of the intent
21/02/2020 Re-worded to clarify the intent
02 Jul 2021 - Applicability to UK NC2018 confirmed

Dedicated cycle lanes/paths - KBCN1384

The term 'dedicated' is not intended to preclude cycle routes which are shared with pedestrians or vehicles. The assessor may deem such arrangements compliant, provided that they meet the requirements of the approved external guidance referred to in the criteria.

Dedicated cycle paths in the absence of cycle facilities - KBCN00039

Safe cycle access needs to be provided even if there are no dedicated cycle facilities. The dedicated cycle paths will generally need to be provided to the main entrance(s) of the building along routes likely to be used by cyclists through the site. The design team are required to determine what is required to satisfy the intent of the criteria. Cycle access and cyclists' facilities are assessed independently of each other. Building users may cycle even if the building does not have cycle storage facilities and so safe and secure access to and from the building must be provided.

Designing out crime officer (DOCO) - KBCN000005

As stated in the ‘Secured by Design (SBD) New Homes 2014 Application and Checklist’ form, the Crime Prevention Design Adviser (CPDA) or Architectural Liaison Officer (ALO) has been renamed to Designing Out Crime Officer (DOCO) therefore correspondence or a copy of the report/feedback from the DOCO is acceptable as evidence for this issue.

Late appointment of SQSC/SQSS - KBCN0339

Provided the appropriate security specialist confirms that the implementation of security measures has not been restricted due to the later stage at which their involvement was sought, i.e. everything that would have been recommended can be still be implemented, then the credits can still be awarded (provided all other compliance requirements met). Considering the security requirements at an early stage of a project should ensure that the full range of security options is still available to the project, leading to the best solution. If advice is sought later but this does not restrict the options available, then the intent of the issue can still be met.

Restricted movement within a secure perimeter - KBCN000009

Where the movement of pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles is tightly controlled within a secure perimeter due to security considerations, these areas may be excluded from the safe access criteria. Where the whole assessment is within such a zone, the credit may be awarded by default.

08 Jun 2022 Applicability to UK NC2018 confirmed

Safe access – vehicle delivery routes - KBCN1046

Vehicle delivery routes which cross cycle or pedestrian routes may be acceptable provided there are adequate physical control measures in place to ensure safe access and thus minimise the possibility of delivery vehicles coming into conflict with cyclists and pedestrians. Examples of such measures could be vehicle barriers or retractable vehicle bollards, which only allow access to delivery vehicles when required and whose operation and controls account for cycle and pedestrian movements.

18 Mar 2021 wording clarified

07.06.2018 Intent and wording clarified.

Safe access criteria requirements for small infill developments and extensions - KBCN0810

For smaller infill developments (typically those with a total gross floor area of less than 1,000m²) where there is no opportunity to make changes to the surrounding site or access to the building itself (other than those directly related to connecting building access points to existing pathways etc.), it is recognised that full compliance with the BREEAM criteria for safe access may not be achievable. This applies to developments where either:

the assessed building lies within an existing site or campus under single ownership or
the assessed building is an extension to existing buildings within an existing site or campus

In such instances the existing site layout should undergo a risk assessment against the BREEAM 'Safe Access' criteria to identify areas where there is potential for enhancement across the site. The findings should be reported to the client and design team and any non-compliant aspects should be resolved as far as practically possible within the scope of the project, however there is no express requirement to achieve full compliance in every respect. Where the assessor is satisfied that the above requirements have been met, the credit for 'Safe access' can be awarded.

31/03/17 Reference to achieving 'Security' credit removed

Secure Government sites – Security criteria (2011-2014 schemes) - KBCN0785

Government security procedures, such as those for MoD sites, may take precedence in dealing with security risk. Therefore, the Secured by Design criteria under which this issue is assessed may not be appropriate. However, BREEAM requires that a Suitably Qualified Security Specialist/Consultant (SQSS/C), such as the MoD security consultant, should be consulted during or prior to the Concept Design stage or equivalent, and the final design must embody the recommendations / solutions of the MoD security consultant, in line with the security criteria. Evidence requirements Where it is confirmed that, due to security issues, the assessor cannot provide complete evidence of the security assessment and implementation of the recommended measures, the following can be accepted: A written statement or report from the SQSS confirming:

Justification of why the evidence requirements cannot be met
Details confirming their status as SQSS for the project
Dates of their consultations and inspections
Confirmation that all the recommended security measures have been implemented

06/07 Mar 2024 - Title updated and minor clarifications to wording. Additional paragraph on 'Evidence requirements' added

Secured by Design certificate - KBCN0772

The Secured by Design (SBD) consultation process, when undertaken in-line with the BREEAM criteria, may provide an appropriate framework for demonstrating compliance, however achieving SBD certification is not a specific requirement of BREEAM.

27/02/17 Amended to clarify that SBD framework may comply but BREEAM criteria must be met

Security – Change of SQSS and recommendations - KBCN1044

If the SQSS working on the project changes during the assessment, the recommendations of the original SQSS can be modified if the new SQSS can provide justification for this.

Security needs assessment (SNA) – Formal consultation with relevant stakeholders - KBCN1470

Providing the SQSS can provide evidence of reasonable attempts to obtain feedback from relevant stakeholders, this aspect of the SNA requirements will be satisfied. In the event that a relevant stakeholder does not provide a response when consulted (e.g. if they do not respond following a reasonable period, or they confirm that are unable to deal with the enquiry), it would be expected that SQSS consider alternative sources of information. For example, the SQSS may decide to refer to freely-available crime data on the Police UK website, and include a summary or analysis of this in their SNA.

13 Sep 2021 Applicability to HQM confirmed

Security Needs Assessment for ‘Shell only’ /Part1 and ‘Shell and core’ projects - KBCN0109

The Suitably Qualified Security Specialist (SQSS) must confirm that they have addressed all parts of the project where it is feasible to do so. Where security recommendations cannot be made for certain aspects of the project, this should be explained / justified in the Security Needs Assessment by the SQSS.

Third party licensing or registration scheme - KBCN0902

A specialist registered with a BREEAM recognised third party licensing or registration scheme for security specialists can be considered a Suitably Qualified Security Specialist for the purposes of compliance with BREEAM Hea 06. The following are currently recognised as a third party licensing or registration scheme for an SQSS; • SABRE Registered Professional Only SABRE Registered Professionals holding the designation ‘SQSS’ are recognised. A live list of SABRE Registered Professionals and their designations can be found on www.redbooklive.com. Further information regarding the SABRE Registered Professional can be found on the SABRE website (www.bregroup.com/sabre).

(21/03/2018) Updated to include applicability to BREEAM UK NC 2011
(19/07/2018) Updated to clarify recognition of SABRE
(03/11/2021) Issue 2.0 of the UK RFO technical manual has be amended to include this information. The information is still relevant to previous versions of the manual.

Visual audit of site and surroundings - KBCN0685

The method of conducting the visual audit of the site and its surroundings required for a Security Needs Assessment (SNA) is at the discretion of the Suitably Qualified Security Specialist (SQSS). It can be carried out as a site visit, or through the review of relevant project information and drawings, provided the SQSS is satisfied that these are sufficient to inform their SNA & associated security recommendations. The approach should be justifiable in terms of the scale, complexity, location and any other specific aspects of the assessed development.

24/06/22 - Applicability to UK NC2018 confirmed

New Construction / UK / 2014 / 02-Health and Wellbeing /

Hea 06 – Safety and Security