Laying the Foundation: Information Gathering and Organisation

Introduction

In our previous articles, we set out our plan to produce a Building Safety Case and Report that meets the requirements of the Building Safety Regulator - without imposing unnecessary cost or complexity on residents.

Now, let’s turn our focus to the first step – information gathering and organisation. These tasks might sound basic, but they’re often overlooked or handled inefficiently. At ALLRES, we see the “golden thread” of information as the backbone of both day-to-day management and long-term compliance. Below, we dive into how we collect this critical data and store it, ensuring it

Step 1: Gather the information we already have

A big misconception among some property managers is that preparing a Building Safety Case requires commissioning a barrage of new surveys. In reality, a lot of the necessary documentation should already be in your possession if the development has been properly managed.

Over time, you accumulate a “golden thread” of information through day-to-day operations such as maintenance visits, repair requests, service records, and resident enquiries. The key is knowing exactly what you have and how to use it.

The basics of what to collect

• Operations and maintenance manuals: Received at the handover stage from the developer. These outline how the building’s systems and components should be operated and maintained.
• Maintenance reports and service sheets: Every time a contractor or engineer attends site, they should produce a record of what was done, why, and how.
• Repair job sheets and resident enquiries: These capture on-the-ground issues and can offer insights into recurring defects or safety concerns.
• Surveys and certificates: If you’ve previously commissioned a fire-risk assessment, structural survey, or other specialist reports, these are critical.

In many cases, these documents exist but remain buried in emails or hard-copy archives. Worse still, some property managers don’t realise they have them. Pulling everything together in a structured and organised way is essential.

Getting value from property management

One key differentiator at ALLRES is that our routine site inspections are carried out by qualified building surveyors, not just generalist property managers. These surveyors check more than just cleanliness, aesthetics or superficial items, for example:

• They can sample-check compartmentation and fire safety features, progressively building a complete picture of potential issues over time.
• They log their findings in our system, making sure every observation and issue—no matter how small—feeds into the bigger picture of building safety.

This proactive approach often eliminates the need for expensive, one-off surveys purely for the Building Safety Case, because you’re already collecting the information on a rolling basis.

Step 2: Store and organising information effectively

Why a share folder isn’t enough
Let’s face it: dumping everything into a shared folder, no matter how well-intentioned, isn’t a “system.” Without a clear hierarchy and logical indexing, even the best documents can be as good as lost.

At ALLRES, we’re determined to ensure the Building Safety Case is a living document—something you don’t just create once and file away. It needs to be updated over time, which means all supporting documentation needs to be just as dynamic.

The ALLRES document hierarchy

At ALLRES, we’ve developed a hierarchical document structure that classifies documents by both type and location. For example:

• Technical Documents – Fire risk assessments, structural reports, compartmentation surveys.
• Operational Documents – Maintenance contracts, service sheets, remedial works records.
• Managerial and Financial Documents – Service charge accounts, budgets for lifecycle works, and planned maintenance schedules.

By tagging each document with the specific area or system of the building it refers to, we ensure that finding it later is quick and painless. The Building Safety Case might reference the same document multiple times, but that file only exists once in our system. Any updates then flow through all references automatically - keeping everyone on the same page.

One integrated document management system

Instead of storing a static snapshot of documents in a folder, we’ll ensure our Building Safety Case and Report references documents stored in our purpose-built property management platform that is updated automatically whenever:

• A new repair job is logged
• A surveyor completes an inspection
• A piece of equipment is serviced or replaced

That means if a smoke-control system is repaired or upgraded, we don’t need to re-issue an entirely new set of documents for the Building Safety Case; the update is automatically referenced.

This approach means the Building Safety Case is never “finished” and locked away; it evolves with every inspection, every contractor visit, and every discussion with resident directors.

Key lessons learnt

1. Leverage what you already have - O&M manuals, maintenance logs, and resident complaints are critical data sources that can save you money and effort later. Make sure your property manager is actively reviewing these documents.
2. Use qualified surveyors for routine inspections - Monthly inspections by experienced professionals gather real-world data in bite-sized chunks, often negating the need for separate, expensive surveys.
3. Structure document storage intelligently - A clear hierarchy based on document type and building location saves time - and headaches - when you need to find information fast.
4. Keep it live - Tie your documents into daily operations so updates happen organically. This ensures your Building Safety Case stays accurate without costly refreshes

With these foundations in place, we’re well on the way to developing a robust, evidence-based Building Safety Case. In our next article, we’ll showcase how we coordinate specialised surveys and technical expertise to address any gaps identified in this first step - always with a focus on transparency and cost-effectiveness.