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Northern councils to merge building control departments
Two northern councils are set to merge their building control departments after they lost employees to private sector competitors.
Knowsley Council and Halton Council in North West England have collaborated on building control since 2015 and are now preparing to formally merge their departments.
Knowsley’s cabinet has already voted in favour of the proposals, with Halton’s expected to vote in favour at a meeting on 13 December.
Building control was part-privatised in 1985 by Margaret Thatcher, who allowed private players known as ‘approved inspectors’ to compete with councils.
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In Dame Judith Hackitt’s review of building regulations, she criticised the system, saying it provided “incentives for building control competitors to attract business by offering minimal interventions”.
As Inside Housing revealed earlier this year, one approved inspector promised clients in a presentation: “Plans are never rejected.”
In papers submitted to Knowsley’s cabinet, the council said: “In Halton and Knowsley, the presence of competing approved inspector companies has not only impacted upon the volume of work submitted to the authorities’ in-house services but has also affected the councils’ ability to retain and attract qualified staff.
“Several private sector competitor companies offer more competitive financial remuneration packages to their employees alongside other inducements which can also make positions in these companies even more attractive.”
According to the papers, the two councils’ departments together comprise 12 posts, half of which are currently vacant. Of these, four were vacated when employees left to work for approved inspectors.
According to Local Authority Building Control (LABC), which represents councils’ building control departments, there is a national shortage of surveyors thanks to a “virtual full stop in recruitment” after the 2008 financial crisis.
Paul Everall, chief executive of LABC, told Inside Housing: “Shared service working is common in local authorities and is a formal arrangement for ‘sharing’ technical functions between neighbouring local authorities.
“In the big picture, Halton and Knowsley are just an example of two merging teams that are going through a local change process to be stronger, but they are not special and LABC is very confident they are on the right path and will succeed.”
