Building control panel flags ‘unreasonable circumstances’ under which commercial bodies return work to councils

In April, it was revealed that former Hyde chief executive Elaine Bailey and ex-housing minister Nick Raynsford were appointed to the post-Grenfell building control panel.

The panel hopes to deliver on one of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry recommendations, which was accepted by the government, to carry out a review of building control in England and determine whether changes are required.

The BCIP is chaired by Dame Judith Hackitt, whose 2018 report called for a “new regulatory regime” for tower blocks.

In its first statement, the panel pointed out how local authorities and registered building control approvers are competing on price for building safety work with clients. 

But as local authorities operate under more regulatory restrictions, there does not appear to be a level playing field, as councils have several statutory functions they cannot currently charge for.  

Although commercial interest has now been removed for buildings defined as higher risk, a commercial choice model still exists for all other building control work. 

Therefore, the BCIP will look at whether concerns identified by the inquiry persist in parts of the built environment, including but not limited to the role of building control bodies, where bad practice may be embedded as custom and practice.

This may go beyond fire safety and structural risks and be focused on concerns about compliance against other functional requirements of the building regulations.

The BCIP also raised concern about local authority capacity and workforce. The panel said it is “particularly concerned about evidence suggesting that building control bodies in local authorities and the private sector are struggling to recruit”.

It added: “This is particularly challenging for local authorities who want to train and retain sufficient building inspector capacity to meet current requirements, meaning that little enforcement activity nationally is pursued. We are concerned about the potential impact on this and future government’s ambitions for delivering safe buildings.”

Councils are at a disadvantage in this area as a combination of centrally and locally set rules and regulations prevent them from paying staff comparable salaries with the private sector.

The BCIP also raised a number of issues with inspection and supervision and product testing.

It said: “Developers and clients who wanted to move forward quickly and seamlessly would often choose the lowest quote that gave them the quickest route to sign off for their buildings to be sold. We will test whether this is still happening and the drivers for clients choosing a building control body.

“We are concerned that there is no certainty on inspection and supervision arrangements across the building control sector and that there is an incentive for a minimalist service to be offered to win work. This raises serious concerns about the extent of such inspections as well as the efficiency and effectiveness of them.”

The BCIP plans to publish a call for evidence soon.