The Future of Building Control
In March, the government published a consultation paper on the future of building control, proposing changes to the way Building Regulations are enforced. This conference, chaired by Ashley Lane, director of Westbury Partnerships, considered the changes and why Building Regulations do not work effectively in their present state.
The morning session opened with an overview of the consultation by CLG’s Paula Higgins, who said the review was not an excuse to criticise Building Regulations but to “get them right for the future.” HBF’s technical director Dave Mitchell then detailed what housebuilders would like to see from the review, asserting the need for simple, straightforward and simple regulations. Paul Everall, chief executive of LABC ended the first session with a look at the role of public sector building control.
Mid-morning speakers included Neil Cooper, NHBC’s building control manager, who examined the role of the private sector in housebuilding, Dave Baker, chief executive of Robust Details who advised on improving compliance, and CPA’s John Tebbit whose speech considered the wider use of product certification in building control.
The afternoon saw delegates contributing to the debate by voting electronically on what options they would prefer for building control’s future. Results were shown instantly and delegates were free to put their opinions to the expert panel. The majority of respondents seemed pleased with the changes proposed in the review.
“Buildings are becoming more complicated,” said Paula Higgins in explaining the need for consultation. “Just having one person overseeing a dwelling is challenging. We’re also facing changing public demographics with more people living alone, and there are more immigrants working in construction. These changes should be reflected in building control.”
Where
Austin Court, BirminghamSpeakers
