The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) has met with the Construction Leadership Council to discuss industry concerns relating to Building Control approval applications.
BSR, an offshoot of the Health and Safety Executive responsible for Building Control applications for new and existing higher-risk building work, said that it is receiving a high number of ”incomplete or unclear“ applications that cannot be processed for approval.
The BSR said: “We recognise the challenges and issues that recent delays to Building Control application approvals are causing the industry. We want to assure everyone that the necessary contingency is in place which will allow us to stabilise and improve the service over the coming months and for the future. We are contacting all applicants who have been directly affected.
“While in part the delays have arisen due to an unexpected increase in applications coming into BSR, we are also experiencing a high number of applications which are incomplete or unclear, making them unsuitable for approval. This is particularly the case for smaller refurbishment projects and work on existing buildings.
“As the regulator, we will not:
• tell you how to comply with the requirements of the building regulations
• provide pre-application advice on Building Control applications.”
Advice should be sought from professionals
When acting as a Building Control authority for higher-risk buildings, the BSR can serve a stop notice when building work contravenes a provision of building regulations and the use of the building would present a risk to people.
It can also serve a notice where work is taking place without Building Control approval or a compliance notice has been contravened.
The regulator asked applicants “to play their part” by ensuring that applications are clear and comprehensive and show compliance with building regulations.
“Advice on the buildings regulations, if needed, should be sought from competent professionals,” it said.
“High-quality applications help BSR make informed decisions quickly, reducing the risk of misinterpretation and ensuring all Building Control standards are met. Applications which lack the required detailed information or fail to demonstrate clear compliance will be rejected.”
