Dutyholders and competence

Duty Holders and Competence

As from the 1^st October 2023 new legislation comes in to force affecting the Building Regulations process. These changes ensure that at each stage in a building project duty holders are identified and their roles, responsibilities and expectations are clear. Please click on this link to find out a full list of these changes - Changes to the Building Regulations 1st October 2023

This will ensure clients can consider and demonstrate how their project will meet the procedural and technical requirements of the Building Regulations. These changes align with the principles of the Building Safety Act 2022, which has brought about the changes within the Building Regulations.

This legislation therefore introduces new duty holder roles for those designing and undertaking building projects of all types that fall under the requirements of the Building Regulations.

Duty to ensure compliance with Building Regulation requirements etc

This duty applies to whoever initiates the building work and can include the building owner, developer, designer or Architect.

Duty to be competent

Duty holders should have all the necessary skills, knowledge, experience, and behaviours for the design and work they undertake.

Duty to cooperate, coordinate and communicate between all involved parties

These new requirements place duties on the duty holders to work together in collaboration, maintaining effective clear lines of communication and share relevant information with all relevant parties in the process. This includes communication and information being passed either to Building Control or, in some instance, The Building Safety Regulator.

The Building Regulations etc. (Amendment)(England) Regulations 2023 -

Notices in relation to Building Work

Section (16)

(4) Subject to paragraph (8), a person carrying out building work shall, not more than five days after that work has been completed, give the relevant authority a notice which complies with paragraph (4A).

(4A) The notice under paragraph (4) must include—

(a) the name, address, telephone number and (if available) email address of the client;
(b) the name, address, telephone number and (if available) email address of the principal contractor (or sole contractor) and the principal designer (or sole or lead designer);
(c) a statement that the building work is complete;
(d) a statement, signed by the client, confirming that to the best of the client's knowledge the work complies with all applicable requirements of the building regulations;
(e) a statement given by each principal contractor (or sole contractor) for the work and each principal designer (or sole or lead designer) for the work, signed by the person to which the declaration relates, which includes—
(i) the name, address, telephone number and (if available) email address of that person;
(ii) the dates of their appointment, and
(iii) confirmation—
(aa)
in the case of a principal contractor (or sole contractor), that they fulfilled their duties as a principal contractor under Part 2A (dutyholders and competence) of these Regulations;
(bb)
in the case of a principal designer (or sole or lead designer), that they fulfilled their duties as a principal designer under Part 2A (dutyholders and competence) of these Regulations.

Please click this link to access the template for a Compliance Declaration Notice (Completion Notice)