Building Regulations Explained

London District Surveyors Association, John Stephenson

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2013
• ISBN:
  9781134393787
• Edition: 7
• Topic: Architecture
• Subtopic: Architecture General

Almost all buildings erected or altered in England and Wales must satisfy the requirements of the building regulations. This essential reference has been revised in line with new legislation up to January 2004, including important revisions to Parts B, E, H, J, L1, L2, and M and an outline of the proposed Part P.Each chapter explains in clear terms the appropriate regulation and any other legislation, before explaining the approved document. The Appeals and Determinations have been repositioned at the end of each chapter. Publications lists and relevant sources of information are also included, together with annexes devoted to legislation relevant to the construction industry, determinations made by the Secretary of State, and sample check lists.This highly illustrated and practical approach to the subject makes this the indispensable, one-stop reference guide for professionals and students.

CHAPTER 1
The development of building control

Building control, in some form or another, is of great antiquity. The most extensive changes in the extent and methods of control have, however, happened since 1961.

In ancient Greece there was a crude form of constraint largely exercised by the amount of building which could be contained within a city wall. A certain Roman emperor is thought to have burned down a city so that it could be rebuilt in accordance with his new building regulations.

Building control in this country began in London as long ago as 1189 when regulations relating to party walls, rights of light, drainage and related matters were made. Fire-resistant construction and rudimentary means of escape in case of fire were also subject to regulation about the same time.

After the fire of London the first comprehensive building Act came onto the statute book. This included provisions for the appointment of surveyors who were charged with the duty of ensuring that the regulations were observed.

There was a consolidating act in 1774 which gave rise to the appointment of district surveyors in London, and a scale of fees was laid down for their services. This piece of legislation operated for a further 70 years until 1845 when a London Building Act came into force.

PUBLIC HEALTH ACT 1875

Towns in the provinces were at this time also becoming interested in building control and the Liverpool Building Act came about in 1842. But it was not until the Public Health Act 1875 that general powers to control construction by means of byelaws came into effect. Local authorities were empowered to make byelaws aimed at securing the interests of health. This included the sufficiency of air space about buildings, ventilation, drainage, water closets, earth closets, cesspools, etc.

This power was extended by an amending Act in 1890 to include the provision for the flushing of water closets, the height of rooms intended for human habitation, the paving of yards and open spaces around dwellings and the provision of backyards intended to facilitate the removal of refuse from a dwelling. Model byelaws were issued by the then Ministry of Health, and byelaws made by councils were normally based upon this model. They were not operative until confirmed by the Ministry of Health. The model byelaws were offered as a guide only, and they were considerably varied in many towns, leading to a lack of uniformity.

PUBLIC HEALTH ACT 1936

The most major piece of legislation was the Public Health Act 1936 which repealed the greater part of earlier legislation, and provided for byelaws with respect to buildings and sanitation. But local authorities were not obliged to make byelaws. The position was that ‘every local authority may, and if required by the Minister, shall make byelaws for regulating all or any of the following matters’:

• the construction of buildings and the materials to be used; space about buildings, the lighting and ventilation of buildings, and the dimensions of, rooms intended for human habitation;
• the height of buildings, the height of chimneys above roofs;
• sanitary conveniences, drainage, including the conveyance of water from roofs andyards; cesspools and other means for the reception or disposal of foul matter;
• ashpits;
• wells, tanks and cisterns for the supply of water for human consumption;
• stoves and other fittings in so far as required for the purposes of health and the prevention of fire;
• private sewers; junctions between drains and sewers and between sewers.

Byelaws made under the 1936 Act could also make provisions requiring:

• the deposit of plans and giving notices;
• the inspection of work; testing of drains and sewers and the taking of samples of materials.

The byelaws also related to structural alterations or extensions of buildings and instances where any material change of use had taken place.

In many areas there have also been Acts promoted by counties or large cities dealing with a specific local requirement. The many local Acts, some of which dated from the beginning of the century, or even earlier, gave rise to yet further variations or inflexibility.

PUBLIC HEALTH ACT 1961

In an effort to achieve uniformity, and to enable the requirements to be more readily amended to take account of advances in knowledge together with changes in techniques and materials, powers were taken in the 1961 Act to make building regulations.

This was a drastic change in the law relating to building control because it removed from local authorities the powers they had possessed, for so many years, to make building byelaws. The new procedure was for the Ministry to make building regulations by way of the statutory instrument having a universal application throughout England and Wales. The regulations were to be made to cover the list of objectives set out in the 1936 Act and mentioned earlier. Local authorities remained responsible for the enforcement of building regulations (Section 4).

There was a new provision in the 1961 Act enabling a local authority to dispense with or relax any requirement of the building regulations, where the authority (or the Minister) considered that the operation of the regulation would be unreasonable (Section 6). When a local authority refused an application to relax or dispense with a requirement the applicant could, within a month, appeal to the Minister.

The first building regulations were made in 1965 coming into force on 1 February 1966; there were many amendments before the regulations were metricated in 1972, and there have been numerous alterations and additions.

HEALTH AND SAFETY AT WORK, ETC., ACT 1974

In August 1972, the Government published and circulated to many organizations a consultative document called Proposals for a Building Bill. Building organizations, manufacturing and professional interests all had the opportunity of sending their views to the Department of the Environment. Many people naturally expected that after all the representations had been sifted, analysed and collated there would ultimately appear on the statute book a Building Act devoted entirely to those matters referred to in the consultative booklet. But this was not to be; at least not in 1974.

Instead Parliament passed the Health and Safety at Work, etc., Act 1974. It was a long Act of which more than one-third related to building regulations. The legislation concerned with building regulations commenced at section 61. This was a remarkable coincidence as it was section 61 of the 1936 Act which gave the power enabling building byelaws to be made.

The scope, purpose and coverage of building regulations could be increased to an unexpected degree. There were also a number of alterations to procedures claimed to give greater flexibility to building control.

The powers made possible some rationalization of the then system of controls affecting new buildings and the preparation of a more comprehensive code of building regulations covering England and Wales. Scottish regulations were already more extensive than those applied in England and Wales, and there still remains an opportunity for one code of regulations embracing the Scots, Welsh and English.

There was provision for extending the scope of building regulations enabling a much wider range of subjects to be covered. These included electrical and other building services, water fittings, together with access for firemen and disabled people. All types of building services and equipment could be included.

It was possible by a strict interpretation of the 1974 Act for all types of structures and erections—for example, radio and floodlighting masts—to be subjected to building regulation requirements.

Provision was included to enable local authorities for the first time to approve plans in stages. Also for the first time power was given enabling building regulations to impose continuing requirements on owners and occupiers—for example, to ensure that lifts were maintained in good operating condition.

Additional powers were given to local authorities regarding the testing of materials and the Act provided for the introduction of a system of fees in connection with building control.

Not all of the new requirements in the Act ever came into operation, the provisions consisted of ‘enabling powers’ which means that they did not come into force on the day it received Royal Assent. The coming into force of the new provisions depended upon the Secretary of State making ‘Commencement Orders’ bringing various parts of the 1974 Act into operation at different times.

BUILDING (PRESCRIBED FEES) REGULATIONS 1980

One of the sections of the 1974 Act which was the subject of ‘a commencement order’ related to the charging of prescribed fees for and in connection with a council’s duties relating to building regulations.

The first regulations became operative on 1 April 1980 and set down scales of fees to be charged by local authorities for the perform- ance of their functions, comprising

• the passing or rejection of plans;
• the first inspection of any building.

LOCAL GOVERNMENT (MISCELLANEOUS PROV1S1ONS) ACT 1982

This odd piece of legislation deals with such exciting premises as sex and take-away food shops; acupuncture and ear piercing. However, it is of interest, for there is one section which related to building regulations.

It introduced a measure of flexibility in the arrangements a local authority could make for the passing or rejection of plans. Previously if deposited plans complied with the regulations they had to be passed within a prescribed period. If plans were defective or showed contraventions in any particular way the local authority was obliged to reject, thereby requiring the developer to submit plans a second time.

This Act enabled a local authority upon receipt of defective plans to reje...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Full Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• Forewords
• Acknowledgement
• List of abbreviations
• List of statutes mentioned in text
• Chapter 1 The development of building control
• Chapter 2 Control of building work
• Chapter 3 Application of building regulations to Inner London
• Chapter 4 Relaxation of building regulations
• Chapter 5 Exempt buildings and works
• Chapter 6 Notices and plans
• Chapter 7 Approved inspectors
• Chapter 8 Work undertaken by public bodies
• Chapter 9 Materials and workmanship (Approved document to support Regulation 7)
• Chapter 10 Structure (Approved document A)
• Chapter 11 Fire safety (Approved document B)
• Chapter 12 Site preparation and resistance to moisture (Approved document C)
• Chapter 13 Toxic substances (Approved document D)
• Chapter 14 Resistance to passage of sound (Approved document E)
• Chapter 15 Ventilation and condensation (Approved document F)
• Chapter 16 Hygiene (Approved document G)
• Chapter 17 Drainage and waste disposal (Approved document H)
• Chapter 18 Combustion appliances and fuel storage systems (Approved document J)
• Chapter 19 Protection from falling, collision and impact (Approved document K)
• Chapter 20 Conservation of fuel and power (Approved document L1 and L2)
• Chapter 21 Access to and use of buildings (Approved document M)
• Chapter 22 Glazing: safety in relation to impact, opening and cleaning (Approved document N)
• Chapter 23 Other approved document
• Annexe A Definitions
• Annexe B Sources of information and research
• Annexe C Relevant legislation
• Annexe D Appeals and determinations
• Annexe E Checklists
• Index