Car Park Safety Review Ordered After Joshua Perry Fall: Liverpool 2026

Key Points

• Ministerial Intervention: Matthew Pennycook, the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, has promised an official review into conflicting construction regulations following the fatal fall of 21-year-old Joshua Perry.
• The Incident: In March 2025, Joshua Perry, an individual from Bootle, Merseyside (originally from Warrington), fell from the 19th floor of a multi-storey car park located on Heathfield Street in Liverpool city centre. He was later pronounced dead by paramedics due to multiple injuries.
• Inquest Verdict: Formally concluded in April 2026 by Area Coroner Helen Rimmer, the inquest established that Perry had consumed ketamine prior to his fall, which impaired his cognitive functioning. The narrative conclusion found that horizontal railings facilitated his fall, though intention of suicide could not be proven.
• Regulatory Conflict Exposed: Coroner Helen Rimmer issued a Prevention of Future Deaths (PFD) report highlighting a dangerous regulatory discrepancy between the Building Regulations 2010 (Approved Document K) and the British Standards Institution (BSI) Code of Practice regarding how barrier heights on low parapet walls are measured.
• Gabe’s Law Campaign: The case has significantly bolstered the national campaign for “Gabe’s Law”—led by bereaved parents Natasha Perry and Johnny Santer—which seeks to raise the legal minimum height of safety barriers in multi-storey car parks from 1.1 metres to 2.7 metres.

Liverpool (Liverpool Standard) June 17, 2026 – A senior government minister has formally launched a ministerial review into UK construction and building safety guidelines following an urgent legal intervention by a Merseyside coroner. The statutory review comes in response to the death of 21-year-old Joshua Perry, a Warrington native who fell from the nineteenth floor of a city centre multi-storey car park. The investigation has exposed critical contradictions between statutory civil building codes and national design standards, prompting warnings from the judiciary that existing structural frameworks present an immediate threat to human life.

Why is the Government Reviewing Car Park Safety Regulations?

The legislative intervention follows a statutory Prevention of Future Deaths (PFD) report submitted by Helen Rimmer, the Area Coroner for Liverpool and Wirral. As documented in judicial archives by legal correspondent Phil McCann of BBC News, the coroner formally alerted Matthew Pennycook, the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), after identifying a significant regulatory conflict regarding how safety barriers are measured in multi-storey environments.

According to the official PFD report published by the Courts and Tribunals Judiciary, Mrs Rimmer established that the current legal framework contains severe structural discrepancies:

“During the course of the inquest it came to my attention that there is a conflict between The Building Regulations 2010, Guidance: Approved Document K and BSI Standards, barriers in and about buildings, Code of Practice, which requires resolution and may prevent future deaths.”

The legal conflict centres on where structural safety measurements begin. Under Approved Document K of the Building Regulations 2010, safety guarding must meet minimum height thresholds, but the code allows any standard wall, parapet, or balustrade to serve as that guarding. Conversely, the British Standards Institution (BSI) Code of Practice (BS 6180:2011) mandates that barriers installed on top of low parapet walls must be measured directly from the top of the concrete parapet itself, rather than from the pedestrian walk level. This distinction is critical because a low wall can inadvertently act as a step, thereby reducing the effective height of any metal railing fixed above it.

What Happened to Joshua Perry on Heathfield Street?

The judicial inquiry originated from an incident on 14 March 2025 at a multi-storey car park situated on Heathfield Street in Liverpool city centre. Joshua Christopher Edward Perry, 21, fell from the 19th floor of the structure. Police officers and paramedics attended the scene, locating Perry on the ground between two vehicles at a nearby junction. Despite cardiopulmonary resuscitation efforts, his death was verified at 18:31 hours due to catastrophic multiple injuries.

A formal toxicological analysis submitted during the April 2026 inquest revealed that Perry had consumed ketamine prior to his death at a concentration consistent with moderate excessive use. Clinical evidence noted that the effects of the substance include intense hallucinations, physical unsteadiness, and severely compromised cognitive functioning.

In her final narrative conclusion, Area Coroner Helen Rimmer explicitly linked the physical architecture of the building to the fatality, noting that “horizontal railings at the car park facilitated Josh’s fall from height.” Due to Perry’s altered mental state, the court ruled that it could not be established on the balance of probabilities that he intended to end his own life, completely ruling out a definitive verdict of suicide.

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How Has the Ministry Responded to the Coroner’s Warnings?

In an official ministerial response released by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Secretary of State Matthew Pennycook expressed his condolences to the Perry family while confirming an immediate administrative review of the overlapping safety protocols.

The ministerial statement confirmed that civil servants are evaluating the alignment between Approved Document K (ADK) and BS 6180:2011. The department acknowledged that the BSI standards explicitly go further to account for the physical risk of low walls acting as footings, stating:

“The minimum heights in both ADK and the British Standards are measured from the floor level to the top of either parapet, barrier or guarding in most cases. The British Standards go further to state that the height of barriers installed on top of low parapet walls should be measured from the top of the parapet and not at walk level. This is because a low parapet wall could constitute a step, therefore reducing the effectiveness of the barrier.”

Furthermore, the coroner’s report highlighted that while Document K restricts the use of horizontal railings to prevent children under five from climbing them, it remains entirely silent on the risk these ladder-like configurations pose to adults or older children—particularly those experiencing intoxication, disorientation, or mental health crises. The ministry has committed to reviewing whether horizontal bars should be restricted more broadly across high-rise public structures.

What is ‘Gabe’s Law’ and How Does This Case Impact It?

The legal proceedings have directly re-energised a national grassroots political campaign for comprehensive car park safety reform known as “Gabe’s Law”. As reported by legal affairs journalists at Garden Court North Chambers, Joshua Perry’s mother, Natasha Perry, has joined forces with Johnny Santer, a bereaved father whose 15-year-old son, Gabriel Santer, tragically died in 2020 after falling from a different multi-storey car park in Liverpool.

The two parents are campaigning to fundamentally overhaul the existing UK structural codes. The proposed legislation seeks to raise the legal minimum height of safety barriers on the upper decks of multi-storey car parks from the current standard of 1.1 metres up to a mandatory 2.7 metres.

According to public statements captured by regional news reporters covering the inquest, the legal representation secured by the family played a pivotal role in exposing the systemic regulatory risks. Elaine McDonald, the instructing solicitor from Broudie Jackson Canter, stated:

“Josh’s sudden death left my clients desperately seeking answers about how he could have been allowed to fall from the 19th floor of a multi-storey car park. The railing protection is insufficient and the fact that there was a further fall from the same building after Josh’s death further highlights the concern. Action needs to be taken to prevent further deaths or serious injury.”

The legal team was led by human rights barrister Christian Weaver of Garden Court North Chambers. Following the conclusion of the April 2026 hearings, Weaver publicly advised legal practitioners handling high-fall fatalities to rigorously scrutinise the paywalled provisions of BS 6180:2011 prior to attending inquests, noting that local government bodies and private operators frequently overlook the stringent measuring requirements outlined by the British Standards Institution.

Will Parliament Introduce Stricter Multi-Storey Infrastructure Laws?

The future of car park safety legislation remains a matter of active debate within Westminster. The original bill for Gabe’s Law had faced procedural delays following the 2024 general election. However, the momentum shifted when Peter Dowd, the Member of Parliament for Bootle, formally reintroduced the private member’s bill to the House of Commons in June 2025.

During parliamentary debates, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer confirmed that the Labour administration would review the contents of the proposed bill and issue an official call for evidence to examine structural heights across the country.

Despite these assurances, families of the victims have expressed ongoing frustration over the pace of legislative change. Speaking to senior journalists at regional press outlets, Natasha Perry voiced her profound disappointment regarding governmental delays, stating that she felt as though her son “means nothing” to the executive branch due to the lack of tangible legislative progress since the reintroduction of the bill.

The pressure on the Department for Building Safety, Fire and Construction Regulations continues to mount. With Area Coroner Helen Rimmer’s explicit warning that “future deaths could occur unless action is taken,” the Perry case has transitioned from a localized tragedy into a central piece of evidence within a broader national campaign to ensure that commercial multi-storey parking facilities are legally required to prevent accidental falls.