Video transcript: Building Control for higher-risk buildings – Important changes
Hello, everyone!
I’m Neil Hope-Collins. I’m the Operational Policy Lead for the building control function at BSR. What are known as the Gateways.
Today, I’m going to talk to you about the role of the BSR as the new Building Control Authority for building work to or in higher-risk buildings in England – and what that means for industry. I will also summarise the steps developers need to take to navigate through Gateway Two and Three.
As of October 1st, 2023, the Building Safety Regulator took on the role as the building control regulator for all building work to higher-risk buildings,known as HRBs.
Our authority comes from the Building Safety Act 2022, ensuring that every higher-risk building project in England meets rigorous safety standards from start to finish. From design through to occupancy.
But what does that mean for developers and construction stakeholders? I’ll see if I can simplify it into easy-to-follow steps
First, and crucially, developers can no longer select their building control body for higher-risk building projects. For the construction industry, this signifies a fundamental change in how building control processes are handled for HRBs.
And yes, we know it’s a significant cultural shift. It places responsibility squarely on those who create the risk to own and manage those risks.
A higher-risk building is one that is over 18 meters or 7 storeys, with a minimum of 2 residential units. And for building work, hospitals and care homes that meet the same height criteria.
Whether you’re building a new higher-risk building, converting one, or modifying an existing building, you must follow the new building control regime.
That regime is set out in the Building (HRB procedures)(England) Regulations 2023. A snappy title, I know.
This means you cannot commence any building work on a higher-risk building project until we approve the building control approval application that you submit for your project.
As the client, you are responsible for submitting a comprehensive building control application to the BSR for a higher-risk building project. You can authorise someone to make the application on your behalf, provided they have written proof of your authorisation.
If you plan to build a new higher-risk building, create one through change of use or alteration or extension, or plan to undertake building work to an existing HRB – you will need to follow the new building control regime’s regulations.
This means:
as a client you will need to appoint a competent Principal Designer and Principal Contractor for building regulations purposes.
- You will need to submit a building control approval application to BSR to obtain approval before you start any building work. This is known as Gateway Two. The application must show that when completed the building will meet all the applicable functional requirements of the building regulations and the work will be managed so that the approved design is what actually gets built.
- You will need to make sure that your team who are carrying out the work in accordance with that approval, both what is built and how the building work is managed and monitored
- If you plan to make changes, you need to understand why those changes are required, and their impact. All changes will need to be recorded and you may need to obtain approval for some of the changes before you make them.
- Submitting information at the end of a project to demonstrate how you have complied with the functional requirements is called Gateway Three. Essentially, you have to demonstrate you have built what you said you would, and you have to be able to provide the evidence to demonstrate that.
Now, let’s talk about Multi-disciplinary Teams, or MDTs.
Each higher-risk building project has its own dedicated MDT, led by the BSR. This ensures effective regulatory decision-making and structured inspection schedules.
The MDTs have people with distinct expertise and roles. There’ll be a registered building inspector to give us advice, but there’ll are also be structural engineers, acoustic engineers, environmental experts, fire engineers, the people that we need with the expertise to help us evaluate your submissions and applications as a team.
Throughout the construction process, the MDT remains actively involved through onsite inspections, interventions and assessments of additional information, and how you’re following the change control procedures. They establish an inspection schedule and serve as the primary contact for you as an applicant.
It’s important to remember that this isn’t new in terms of assessment of plans and site inspections – it’s just a new way of delivery. Think of it like this: we’re just reorganising and clarifying those elements and presenting them in a different way.
For those of you who are old enough to remember the Morecambe and Wise quote: “All the right notes, not necessarily in the right order”. We think that our new building control approval regime is about getting things in the right order to get the right outcomes!
Let’s look at what the gateways mean for the design and construction responsibilities for developers.
The HRB design phase is known as Gateway Two. The completion phase is known as Gateway Three
They are crucial checkpoints in your HRB project journey. Ultimately, the goal is for these two important gateways is to ensure the overall safety and compliance of your higher-risk project.
Gateway Two focuses on the design phase of the higher-risk building projects. This is crucial the stage where developers are required to submit their comprehensive design plans and documentation to the BSR, before moving forward with construction.
Building control application and supporting documentation is needed to demonstrate, not just declare, compliance with building regulations:
- That the proposed design meets all of the applicable requirements.
- That the work will be managed and monitored, so that design is actually realised in the finished building and
- That the right evidence will be collected through the construction phase so that when finished you can demonstrate that your building does comply with those applicable requirements in building regulations.
We must be satisfied that the design meets those functional requirements of the building regulations.
Preparing the necessary documents to support your application is absolutely crucial.
This supporting documentation will include:
- detailed drawings and plans
- a competence declaration
- a construction control plan
- and a building regulations compliance statement
- and some other procedural documents to support your application
Once your application is ready, you can apply for the building control approval online. Remember, there are charges associated with this process, so be sure to check the details of BSR’s website, on the charging scheme.
When Gateway Two is successful, developers then move on to the construction phase.
During construction, BSR closely monitors the implementation of the approved design, ensuring what is being built, and how it is being built are consistent with the approval that was given at Gateway Two.
Throughout the construction phase, developers are expected to maintain open communications with us at the BSR, providing us with regular updates on progress and addressing any concerns that may arise.
All dutyholders have to demonstrate (not just declare) to BSR how (not just ‘that’) their building is designed, built, and managed such that all their legal responsibilities are fulfilled.
After completion of the building work, you’ll need to apply for a completion certificate. This is Gateway Three.
The completion certificate application will demonstrate that what you have built does comply with all the applicable requirements of building regulations. The supporting documents will provide the evidence that you have collected through the construction phase to demonstrate that you built to the design that had been approved at Gateway Two; including any approved changes that were made along the way.
A residential building, or part of a residential building, cannot be registered or occupied until the developer obtains a completion certificate from the BSR. You will be required to register your building with the regulator.
I would urge you to keep the BSR informed throughout the HRB building control application process by submitting notices and notifications, ensuring a smooth and compliant construction journey.
You can check out detailed guidance on the building control processes for both new and existing higher-risk buildings on our ‘Making Buildings Safer’ microsite.