Policy & Regulations

In November 2022, the Irish Minister of State with responsibility for Planning and Local Government signed Building Regulations (Part M Amendment) Regulations 2022 (S.I. No. 608 of 2022). These make provisions for a changing places toilet in certain buildings. The regulations came into action in January 2023.

Builders, contractors, specialist sub-contractors and tradespeople in Ireland will all need to begin registering with CIRI this year. Will it fulfil its aim of creating more competent builders? Peter Crush investigates

The UK government has extended the deadline for the implementation of the UKCA (UK Conformity Assessed) mark and will continue to recognise the CE marking until June 2025. It had been due to be implemented on 1 January 2022 with a 31 December 2022 deadline.

The New Homes Quality Board, code of conduct and ombudsman service is a milestone in improving the building industry’s relationship with consumers, reports Huw Morris

The Construction Industry Council (CIC) has elected Paul Bussey and Philip Baker as the new Chair and Deputy Chair of the CIC Health & Safety Committee.

Tens of thousands of new homes face being delayed or scrapped because phosphate, found in animal and human waste, is getting into rivers and affecting water quality.

The Statutory Instrument amending the building regulations to implement the new homes connectivity policy has been published.

We speak to NASC’s technical adviser Dennis Braithwaite about why every CABE member needs to watch his recent webinar: Is My Scaffolding Safe?

The review following the Grenfell Tower fire highlighted a lack of consistency in the competence of those working on buildings.

The Future Homes Standard will be in place in the UK by 2025, mandating the transition to low-carbon heating and future-proofing homes so they can become zero carbon.

The UK government’s Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) has opened two consultations relating to proposed changes to the Building Safety Act 2022 in England.
The first consultation concerns the new safety regime for occupied higher-risk buildings – defined as those buildings which contain at least two residential units and are at least 18m in height or at least seven storeys – and covers proposed changes to building regulations under part 4 of the Building Safety Act.

Working Group 7 invites the industry to take part in a consultation on the new Competence Framework for designers in the Built Environment industries.

DLUCH has published two new consultations, which form part of a series of consultations that will provide further detail on how the Building Safety Act 2022 (England) will work in practice.

The Chartered Association of Building Engineers (CABE) has launched new industry update courses focusing on the changes to Approved Documents F, L, O, and S in England.

The Great Mosque of Algiers, the world’s third-largest mosque, wins an International Architecture Award 2021

In addition to the updated Building Regulations technical guidance, to improve the energy and emissions performance standards for new buildings that came into effect on 30 June 2022, Northern Ireland has introduced a new register for Regulation of Providers of Building Works and Building Control (Amendment) Bill 2022.

Amendments to the Building Regulations (amendment) (Wales) Regulations 2022 (WGC 003/2022) and Approved Documents L1, F1 and O for Wales have been released.

Polymer supplier REHAU’s new Designing Healthy Healthcare guide explores the challenges and opportunities for contractors and specifiers involved in building healthcare environments, including hospitals, doctors’ surgeries and care homes.

Improvements to fire safety guidance in England were announced in June, and form part of a wider update to tighten building regulations and provide clearer fire safety rules for the design or construction of residential developments.

The Welsh Government has released the new version of the Building Regulations and Approved Documents following a lengthy consultation period.