Grenfell Tower Phase 2 Report – Recommended changes to Building Control

4 September 2024 marked the publication of the Phase 2 Report (‘the Report’) from the Grenfell Tower Inquiry. The Report concludes that there is a great deal to be done to raise the overall level of competence of those in the construction industry. It states that the knowledge and understanding of construction companies of the regulatory regime and how it applies to the work they are carrying out needs to improve. As a result, the Report calls for a greater degree of scrutiny, along with a better understanding of the function of building control.

It outlines that this needs to go hand-in-hand with a change in the way in which building control bodies understand their function, which is to police the regulatory regime. The report notes that their role is not to advise the applicant, or building professionals, how to comply with the regulatory regime and building control should not be regarded by building professionals as a “safety net”.

The Report makes the following recommendations in order to reform the identified deficiencies in relation to building control:

1. The first recommendation is that the government appoint an independent panel to consider whether it is in the public interest for building control functions to be performed by those who have a commercial interest in the process; and
2. The second recommendation is that the same panel should consider whether all building control functions should be performed by a national authority.

The Independent Panel 

The Report considers that one of the causes of the inappropriate relationship and understanding between the building professionals and building control was the introduction of commercial interests into the system. It identifies how approved inspectors had a commercial interest in acquiring and retaining customers that conflicted with the performance of their role as guardians of the public interest. Competition for work between approved inspectors and local authority building control departments also introduced a similar conflict of interest affecting them.

If there is no change in how the position of building control is viewed, the Report considers that the underlying conflict of interest will continue to exist and will continue to threaten the integrity of the current system. As a result, it recommends that the government should appointment an independent panel to consider whether it is in the public interest for building control functions to be performed by commercial third parties.

This would create a huge issue as there has been a reduction in the number of local authority building control professionals since they were required to register as building control inspectors. Both local authorities and the Building Safety Regulator also utilise commercial providers to provide additional resource.

National authority

In light of the shortcomings in local authority building control that the Report identifies, it recommends that in the interests of professionalism and consistency of service all building control functions, including those currently performed by local authorities, should be exercised nationally. The result of this is the recommendation for the independent panel to consider whether all building control functions should be performed by a national authority.

Benefits v potential issues

It seems that the benefits of these recommendations for an independent panel to be introduced within the industry and for the panel to consider whether the functions should be performed by a national authority are likely to be:

·       A more standardised approach to be taken in relation to the appointment of contractors to complete government construction projects.

·       Ensuring that the competence and knowledge of the construction professionals who are selected for these projects are to a high standard, with an overall understanding of the regulatory regime and how it applies to the work they are carrying out.

·       They will ensure that the role of building control is clear in that their role is to ensure the rigorous enforcement of the Building Regulations.

·       Removal of any underlying conflicts of interest between approved inspectors and local authority building control departments, as the competition for work will be removed.

·       Clarity in respect of the nature and scope of the obligations of each of the parties involved in these projects.

·       Increased consistency. At present the views of different building control bodies and professionals differ. As an example, some would expect a building control application if a fire door is replaced, whereas others wouldn’t.

·       Overall, will likely lead to a much greater emphasis on an understanding of the regulatory regime surrounding building control and its purpose.

However, the potential issues that could arise in relation to these recommendations are:

·       The significant amount of time it may take to set up and implement the independent panel and national authority, including decisions surrounding the structure and process once implemented.

·       The significant costs of setting up these entities.

·       Whether there will be enough capacity for projects to be completed if these contracts will no longer be awarded to commercial third parties.

·       May lead to professionals leaving the industry due to these contracts not being award to commercial third parties.

·       May lead to an overall delay, or backlog, in major commercial developments being completed due to a lack of capacity and the time to implement the recommendations.

Does the Building Safety Act 2022 go far enough?

The Building Safety Act 2022 (‘the Act’) was introduced to regulate work on higher-risk buildings, to impose particular duties on those involved in the construction and refurbishment of such buildings, and to establish a Building Safety Regulator responsible for building control and for overseeing standards of competence. The Report acknowledges the presence of the Act and its functions, however considers that the responsibility of the Building Safety Regulator remains dispersed.

It instead recommends that the government draw together all the functions relating to the construction industry and that these should be exercised by a single independent body headed by a proposed “Construction Regulator”. It states that the establishment of such a regulator would be a focal point in driving a much-needed change in the culture of the construction industry and would undertake various functions, which are currently undertaken by a number of bodies.

The Report acknowledges that the government has taken steps to improve the regulation of building control and the competence of those who consider applications for approval. It states the Construction Regulator would continue these new arrangements, which are intended to introduce a wholly new climate in which both applicants for approval and building control officers understand that the function of building control is regulatory in nature.

Conclusion

The future of building control will see significant development and reform following the release of the Phase 2 Report. It seems there will be a focus on the competence of professionals within the industry and their understanding of the importance of the building regulations and the implementation of these on all major projects. Building control is likely to become more centralised and regulated to ensure regulations are being rigorously adhered to and to avoid conflicting duties of building control officers in relation to competition for work.

As considered above, it seems that the recommendations made will help to highlight the role of building control and their function as a regulator along with standardisation of their role across the construction industry. This does come with some potential issues and it will be interesting to see how these recommendations will be implemented going forwards.  

The Report also calls for improvements to be made in respect of the role of the Building Safety Regulator, as established under the Building Safety Act 2022, with the responsibilities and functions of this role being brought under the proposed “Construction Regulator”. The approach taken to the establishment of the role of this new regulator and the affects it will have on the industry will have to be kept under review in the months and year to come.