HELP & ADVICE
What are Building Regulations?
The UK Current Building Regulations process is a set of strict minimum standards in which all new building and construction work must adhere to, during and post completion. Developed by the UK Government, they form protection for homeowners who are looking to improve their property, as well as any neighbouring structures.
Building Regulations look to ensure that your project is 100% compliant with the expected standard of construction for the modern day, which includes aspects such as fire safety, insulation, correct drainage and structural integrity.
Obtaining Building Regulation Approval from your Local Authority is a legal requirement when carrying out certain types of building work. If you chose to carry out applicable work without Building Regulations Approval it can lead to enforcement action being taken by the local authority, and may also create problems with mortgage borrowing or obtaining building insurance.
There are 2 main phases with a Full Plans Building Regulations application; these are the ‘Plan Check’ phase and the ‘Site Inspection’ phase.
As part of our Building Regulations service, we will illustrate all of the necessary technical details in our Building Regulations drawings and once these are ready for submission, they are then passed over to a Building Control body. These plans are then vetted in the ‘Plan Check’ phase by a competent team who will be able to identify whether or not the drawings are compliant, and then granted an approval upon satisfaction of compliance.
Once the Plan Check has been completed, you can then approach some builders and start discussing the construction side of things with them. We always recommend discussing the element of Building Regulations with your nominated builder(s) - if they are competent at their trade, they shouldn’t have any trouble understanding Building Control's involvement as a part of their services to you.
Once works are underway, you then enter the ‘Site Inspection’ phase, which shall take place before, during and after the construction of the development. Site Inspections are critical, and will ensure that the project construction is also compliant to the current Building Regulations – this is achieved via the inspection of various important milestones whilst the project is being constructed.
The person overseeing the project will have a strict duty to ensure that all of these inspections are facilitated, as if the work cannot be inspected at the relevant stages it can prove very difficult to obtain a full sign off of the construction at a later date.
Certification of the Plan Checking phase will typically last for 3, and once you've made a start on the build there doesn't tend to be a specific time limit on the completion date. Please note however that it is vital to document a site commencement and communicate with Building Control at the relevant milestones, to ensure they are involved when they will need to be.
Should you have any questions about this part of our service, then please feel free to get in touch with us as we'll be happy to help you.
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