Important update for Clients, Designers and Builders
CHANGES TO THE BUILDING REGULATIONS OCTOBER 2023
INFORMATION FOR DUTYHOLDERS
BACKGROUND AND WHAT HAS CHANGED
The Government has published amendments to the Building Regulations, which will apply to all applications for building control consent from 1 October 2023.
In addition, the Government has formed a new regulatory body within the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) called the Building Safety Regulator (BSR). The BSR will oversee many aspects of building safety, including Building Regulations and Building Control.
If you, or someone on your behalf, have submitted a building control application, you have new legal responsibilities from 1 October 2023 as a Client, Designer or Contractor. You must follow these legal procedures so that your building control application can be considered.
If you do not follow the procedures prescribed for your role, it will result in your application being rejected or reverted to local council control, which will require the same information.
NOTIFICATION OF DUTYHOLDERS
The Client must give notification to the Approved Inspector when they appoint a Principal Contractor (or Sole Contractor) or a Principal Designer (or Sole Designer)
The notice must be given to the Approved Inspector and include,
- The name, address, telephone number and email address of the Dutyholder (PC or PD or both).
- If the appointment is a change of Dutyholder (PC or PD or both), the name, address, telephone number and email address of the previous Dutyholder (PC or PD or both) and the date their appointment ended.
- If the notice is given on behalf of the client, a signed statement from the client that they agree to the notice being given and that the information in the notice is correct.
Where the client is a Domestic Client, the relevant notices must be given to the Approved Inspector by the PC or PD and include a statement that the notice is given on behalf of a Domestic Client.
WHAT IS DEEMED THE COMMENCEMENT OF WORK?
Notice before starting work and notice when work is deemed “commenced.”
To serve the Initial Notice, the client must advise the Approved Inspector of the date when it is proposed that sufficient work will have been carried out to deem the work as “commenced”.
Where work does not involve foundation or substructure works, the client must state what they consider will amount to 15% of the work described in the Initial Notice.
Work being deemed as commenced is,
- For the construction of a complex building,
- work is to be regarded as commenced concerning that building or the first stage of building work when the foundations supporting the building and the structure of the lowest floor level of that building (but not the other buildings or structures to be supported by those foundations) are completed.
- Where the work consists of (a) the construction of a building that is not complex or (b) the horizontal extension of a building,
- work is to be regarded as commenced when the sub-surface structure of the building or the extension, including all foundations, basement levels (if any) and the structure of the ground floor level, is completed.
- Where the work consists of any other building work, then work is to be regarded as commenced when the initial work is completed (“initial work” means the work set out in the initial notice, which the client considers amounts to 15% of all the work described in the initial notice)
After three years, the Initial Notice will automatically cease to have effect unless sufficient work (as above) has been carried out to deem the project commenced AND the client has given written notice to the Approved Inspector.
FINAL CERTIFICATE REQUIREMENTS
Compliance Declarations
Where work described in an Initial Notice is complete, the Client must give to the Approved Inspector notice to this effect. The notice must include,
- The name, address, telephone number and email address of the Client.
- The name, address, telephone number and email address of the Principal Contractor and the Principal Designer.
- A statement that the building work is complete.
- A statement signed by the client that, to the best of the Client’s knowledge, the building work complies with the Building Regulations.
- A statement given by each Principal Contractor for the work and each Principal Designer for the work signed by the person to which the declaration relates and includes,
- The name, address, telephone number and email address of that person
- The dates of their appointment
- Confirmation that they fulfilled their duties under the Building Regulations (see details of duties above).
You should note that the Approved Inspector cannot issue its Final Certificate without receiving the signed declarations detailed in the last two (black) bullet points above, as the Final Certificate requires the Approved Inspector to declare that they have received these signed statements.
Please look out for further information here at Assure Building Control
