Building a Safer Future announces McLaren Construction as latest BSF champion
Key points
McLaren Construction has been awarded Champion Status by Building a Safer Future (BSF) following a rigorous two‑stage assessment process. The accreditation recognises organisations that demonstrate strong leadership, cultural maturity and a clear, sustained commitment to raising building safety standards across the industry.
McLaren has expanded in recent years in both scale and the range of sectors it serves. During this period of growth, the senior leadership team chose to use the BSF framework and assessment elements as a core input into the organisational redesign. This included strengthening management systems and governance processes to support a more consistent and transparent approach to building safety.
As part of the BSF Champion assessment the Leadership and Culture surveys identified above average scores for Leadership Commitment and Organisational Culture. Respondents described a healthy and open culture with positive views across the organisation, particularly regarding senior leaders’ intent and the company’s strategy to embed building safety at every level.
The BSF Champion assessment framework, established in response to the recommendations following the Grenfell Tower tragedy, sets demanding expectations across 39 areas including fire safety management, product specification controls, supply chain, assurance of competence, information management and risk governance.
Paul Heather, Group Chief Executive at McLaren Construction, said: “Becoming a BSF Champion has given us clear, independent confirmation that the systems we have established are effective. The BSF process has helped us to design business and project management systems that embed building safety in all our projects, not just residential.
For our customers and partners this recognition provides welcome reassurance that we have both the systems and the culture to deliver safer projects across the board.”
Steve Elliott, Chair of Building a Safer Future, commented “McLaren’s achievement reflects a clear commitment to rigorous external scrutiny. Throughout the assessment, their proactive approach stood out, demonstrating assurance in their strengths and a constructive openness to further development.
This commitment to engaging with independent feedback supports sector‑wide progress and offers a strong example for organisations focused on advancing building safety.”
McLaren operates across five UK divisions with over 1,100 employees. The company’s growth and continued development have been supported by a strong internal commitment to learning, collaboration and continuous improvement, all of which were evident throughout the assessment.
The BSF Champion programme enables organisations to benchmark themselves against sector leading expectations, develop meaningful improvement plans and support the cultural change necessary to deliver safer buildings.
Building a Safer Future (BSF) is a non-profit organisation dedicated to raising standards in building safety and supporting culture change across the UK built environment.
