The Belfast Group

[edit] What is The Belfast Group?

The Belfast Group is formed of five professional architecture bodies that have come together to ensure that architects in the Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales are equally competent to design buildings that conform to the highest levels of fire safety and life protection. (The Belfast Coat of Arms by Albert Bridge CC BY-SA 2.0).

Launched in July 2025, The Belfast Group is made up of:

• Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA)
• Royal Institute of the Architects in Ireland (RIAI)
• Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS)
• Royal Society of Architects in Wales (RSAW)
• Royal Society of Ulster Architects (RSUA)

It has been called The Belfast Group because it serves a similar UK and Ireland-wide function to the Edinburgh Group, which exists for the discussion of conservation accreditation across national boundaries.

[edit] What will The Belfast Group do?

The Belfast Group has been formed in response to the Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 2 report. It will focus on:

• Developing standards for architects
• Creating standardised fire and life safety guidance for construction professionals
• Lobbying respective governments for architects to have access to national regulations, standards and technical information relating to safety.

[edit] Joint Statement

In a joint statement published on 24 July 2025, the five presidents representing the Belfast Group; Sean Mahon (RIAI), Karen Anderson (RIAS), Dan Benham (RSAW), John Lavery (RSUA) and Muyiwa Oki (RIBA), said:

"The Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 2 report makes clear that more is required to ensure our buildings are as safe as possible.

This is relevant for every architect. While each jurisdiction has its own regulatory framework, there are core competencies on designing for life safety that transcend political boundaries and project typologies.

Therefore, the Belfast Group will share best practice, knowledge and information in design standards for life safety. This coordination will ensure that appropriate training and competency standards are implemented across each nation.

We continue to work with our relevant governments to ensure that our members have access to all the regulations, standards and technical information they need whilst also providing guidance to clients on how to support the procurement and resourcing of projects, so life safety is at the heart of the appointment process.

These steps will help deliver safer buildings for all.”

--HannahCarpenterLMC

[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings

• Addressing building failures: Grenfell Tower and Edinburgh schools.
• Building safety in Northern Ireland.
• Building safety in Scotland.
• Building safety in Wales.
• Building Safety wiki.
• Fire fatalities in Scotland.
• Fire (Scotland) Act 2005.
• Golden thread.
• Grenfell tower articles.
• Hackitt review of the building regulations and fire safety, final report.
• Independent review of the building regulations and fire safety.
• Planning (Wales) Act.
• Scottish planning policy.
• Welsh planning policy.