The UK Government frequently updates building standards and regulations to ensure public safety, energy efficiency, and environmentally sustainable practices. As a property developer, this means you need to stay at the forefront of new updates and ensure your buildings comply with the latest changes and best practices.
Should any of your previous projects fail to meet the ever-changing landscape of construction regulation, you and your firm could be subject to:
- Voided Structural insurance (mainly for new builds)
- Higher Public indemnity insurance premiums
- Lasting damage to your reputation
Keep reading to discover how to safeguard your future projects and company standards.
Navigating the latest building safety regulations
Properties that don’t conform to the latest safety regulations can pose a significant risk, to both residents and those in the local vicinity. Guidelines are updated and must remain strict to prevent accidents like the Grenfell Tower disaster.
If you’re a property developer, you must stay aware of all new safety regulation changes and ensure compliance. Non-compliance can result in several negative outcomes, including fines, accidents, and worse – so ensuring compliance is in the best interest of everyone, including you, tenants, and local residents.
Adapting to the Future Homes Standard
A new benchmark arriving in 2025, the Future Homes Standard aims to enhance energy efficiency in new residential properties. This is in an effort to reduce carbon emissions produced by individual households.
Predominantly, the plan is to reduce heating waste by implementing better materials and devices. This includes triple-glazing standards, low-carbon heating, and loft insulation. To ensure this is carried out effectively, the Government updated the current Building Regulations, so any new constructions, extensions, or renovations must meet these standards.
Implementing energy-efficient heating systems
With this focus on energy usage, Building Regulations now emphasise the use of more efficient heating systems. Heat pumps, for example, are much more cost-effective compared to traditional heating systems, especially if your heating is frequently in use. Not only are they extremely beneficial to the planet, thanks to their reduced energy requirement, but they also allow for better regulation of internal temperatures. In other words, you can have more consistent heating while still reducing your total energy usage and costs.
Additionally, using energy-efficient central heating systems can significantly reduce your bills in the long term, leading to a greater opportunity for reinvestment.
Understanding the Building Safety Levy
In an effort to protect taxpayers and leaseholders from costly replacements to unsafe building installations (such as cladding), the UK Government has introduced the Building Safety Levy (BSL). This new measure instead puts some responsibility on building developers to contribute towards the required changes.
It’s important to note that while the BSL won’t affect every building, it does specify residential buildings that require building control approval, regardless of height.
Under the BSL, developer responsibilities will now include:
- Informing the local authority when they commence on the first plot
- Full levy amount to be paid on completion of the first plot//bed unit
- Submit a Levy Update Notice if development changes from the planning permission
