Building Regulations Approval is the responsibility of the local authority building control department which deals with the Building Regulations. Detailed drawings including itemised notes and specifications on how the building is to be built are required. These drawings must identify the materials to be used and detail the construction’s compliance with all relevant Building Regulations and any other statutory requirements (health and safety, disabled access etc.). Therefore, Building Regulations drawings are generally far more detailed than the drawings and design information required for planning approval. The Building Control Officer (BCO) will visit the site at key stages in the construction for inspections to ensure compliance with the Building Regulations. If the Building Control Officer has not been present to witness the constructions of, for instance, the foundations, he or she has the power to order anything constructed over them to be opened up so that the inspection can be carried out.
Every project for which permission is required will need approvals from both Planning & Building Control departments, and application fees must be paid to the local authority for both planning and Building Regulations.
Miriam Layton will prepare the architectural drawings, specifications and other documents needed for the submission of the application for approval under the Building Regulations. It is usually necessary to engage a structural engineer to design the structural elements of the building and Miriam Layton can help you with this and work with the structural engineer to co-ordinate the design.
These drawings and documents will become the Working Drawings & Specifications used by the Building Contractor.
This service includes Professional Indemnity Insurance cover to £250,000.00
Anyone wanting to carry out building work which is subject to the Building Regulations is required by law to make sure it complies with the regulations and to use one of the two types of Building Control Service available:
- the Building Control Service provided by your local authority or
- the Building Control Service provided by approved inspectors
You will be charged for either service.
If you choose to use a Local Authority building control service, we can advise on the type of application you should make:
Full Plans or
Further Guidance:
The primary responsibility for achieving compliance with the regulations rests with the person carrying out the building work, so if you are carrying out the work personally the responsibility will be yours. If you are employing a builder the responsibility will usually be their’s – but you should confirm this position at the very beginning. You should also bear in mind that if you are the owner of the building, it is ultimately you who may be served with an enforcement notice if the work does not comply with the regulations, so it is important that you have all the necessary design information and choose your builder carefully.
I would recommend that you ask at least 3 builders to quote for the work and make sure that you obtain references before they are contracted, ask around for personal recommendations from previous clients. Make sure both the designer, (Miriam Layton), and the contractor have adequate insurance cover.
Practical guidance on ways to comply with the requirements in the Building Regulations is contained in a series of Approved Documents. Each document contains:
- general guidance on the performance expected of materials and building work in order to comply with each of the requirements of the Building Regulations; and
- practical examples and solutions on how to achieve compliance for some of the more common building situations.
South Thames Gateway Produce a number of Technical Guidance Sheets
Find out more about Building Control on the Planning Portal
Miriam Layton Architectural Design 