Building regulations move to a new home

The Grenfell Tower tragedy has brought a renewed focus on building standards and safety. One of the outcomes of the Dame Judith Hackett review was the introduction of the Building Safety Act and the formation of a stronger and independent regulator under the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) called the Building Safety Regulator. The remit of the new Building Safety Act is to set out an ambitious set of reforms for the built environment, business and society (including for residents).

To compliment changes established by the Act, the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) and HSE have reached agreement on the transition of technical policy from DLUHC to HSE and this includes the Building Regulations and Competent Person Schemes (CPS) like OFTEC’s registration scheme.

In a statement from Peter Baker (chief inspector of buildings, HSE): “The new BSR is committed to taking over the governance of CPS ‘as is’ and sees self-certification of controlled service work having an important role in its new regime.”

OFTEC is committed to working with the new BSR and helping shape the future of building services work via our training and registration schemes. You can read more about how the Building Safety Act is likely to impact on technicians on page 10.

BSR will only have governance in English jurisdictions, and the change will take effect from April this year. The Welsh Government will retain direct control of Building Regulation and CPS in Wales.

This article originally appeared in the 2023 summer issue of Oil Installer magazine. View the magazine