oPinion: rEgulaTions AcT on sAFeTy beFore An insPecTor cAlls The partial collapse of the main auditorium ceiling at Londons Apollo Theatre in 2013 led to new guidance for venues with similar ceilings. Hywel Davies explores the implications for engineers Hywel Davies, technical director of CIBSE www.cibse.org About 40 minutes into the evening performance of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, at Londons Apollo Theatre on 19 December 2013, the suspended, fibrousplaster ceiling of the main auditorium collapsed, injuring 88 people, seven seriously. The ceiling dated from 1901, when the Grade II-listed theatre was built. It was suspended by wadding ties made of a mix of hessian and plaster which broke, causing a large part of the ceiling to come down in one lump. Just three months previously, the ceiling had been inspected, and no indications of potential collapse had been found. As the local authority responsible for the enforcement of health and safety legislation Westminster City Council investigated the incident.1 It sought to understand the cause of the collapse and whether there had been a breach of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (the Act), particularly with regard to sections two and three, which set out the requirement to maintain safe premises for employees and the public. Section 2 outlines the duties of all employers to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all [their] employees. Section 3 imposes a general duty on employers to non-employees, to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that persons not in [their] employment who may be affected are not thereby exposed to risks to their health and safety. Regulation 5 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 also requires organisations to have appropriate health and safety arrangements, covering effective planning, organisation, control, monitoring and review of the preventative and protective measures. The Association of British Theatre Technicians (ABTT) publishes extensive guidance relating to places of entertainment, while the District Surveyors Association provides information on structural surveys. The Institute of Licensing also issues guidance. In its report, Westminster City Council noted that these standards were relevant to regulators as a guide to best practice under the duties imposed by the Act, but did not have the same standing as an Approved Code of Practice or guidance issued by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). This applies equally to the activities of building services engineers in respect of duties to employees and the public, and sheds light on the status of technical guidance issued by authoritative bodies. Any place licensed for entertainment must be properly maintained. Westminster council grants licences with a rules of management condition, which requires certification of various aspects of the premises, including ceilings, emergency lighting, electrical installations and boilers. The ABTTs Technical Standards for Places of Entertainment (known as the Yellow Book) states that a certificate should be completed by a competent person, such as an appropriately qualified engineer or a member of an accredited body. However, the Apollo investigation established that there was no guidance as to what constituted a competent person or appropriate qualification in the case of suspended fibrous ceilings. As a result, the council found that the theatres management had taken all reasonable measures to ensure the safety of the ceiling. The incident was solely a result of agerelated deterioration of wadding ties. Westminster City Council and the HSE worked with English Heritage, the Society of London Theatres, the Building Research Establishment, The Theatres Trust and the Association of Interior Specialists and structural engineers to develop new guidance on inspection, certification and record keeping for suspended fibrous ceilings.2 All similar ceilings in the UK are now being reassessed, a task that will require about 500 inspections of a range of buildings. Londons Dominion Theatre has already had wire ceiling supports put in, its ceiling void cleaned, and proper access and lighting installed to enable inspections. It also has a new policy of routing cables through trunking, not loose on the ceiling, while drilling holes in the ceiling for cables can only be done after an assessment and by a theatre-appointed contractor. There was no guidance as to what constituted a competent person or appropriate qualification in the case of suspended fibrous ceilings The Apollo Theatre ceiling collapse has provided a timely reminder about the responsibility of competent and suitably qualified people. It has also shown the importance of following appropriate technical guidance to demonstrate reasonable provision for health and safety. cJ RefeRenceS: 1 The Health and Safety (Enforcing Authority) Regulations 1998 2 Advice to Theatre Owners and Managers regarding Suspended Fibrous Plaster Ceilings; Survey, Certification, Record Keeping etc. The Apollo Theatre ceiling collapse injured 88 people