Building Control

If you are intending to carry out building work on a property, it is likely that you will need Building Regulations consent.
The primary function of the Council's Building Control service is to make sure that buildings are properly designed and constructed so as to ensure the health, safety, welfare and convenience of people using them, additionally the Building Regulations set minimum standards of energy efficiency to assist in the Conservation of Fuel and Power.
The system of Building Control has evolved (see History of Building Control) over hundreds of years of experience of buildings that are either dangerous or a health risk to the occupants, or are unacceptably inaccessible for disabled people or are otherwise environmentally unfriendly.
It is the responsibility of the Council's Building Control service therefore to apply the current requirements for the design of buildings through national standards known as Building Regulations.
The Council also offers the service of assessing new and existing dwellings for energy efficiency. This serves to produce the Energy Performance Certificate which is now required by law when a dwelling is either erected, re-sold and re-let.
Generally, the Building Regulations apply to all scales of development, from simple domestic work up to multi-million pound projects. For a broad outline of the types of building work to which the regulations apply, see Work to which the Building Regulations apply. In the case of building work to domestic properties, the link Domestic buildings will also be useful.
It should be noted that you may also need Planning Permission (see Planning) for the work, but even if you have been granted this, this does not mean that you have obtained Building Regulations consent as well. The two are separate processes and need to be applied for independently.
Launched in 2007, LABC Warranty works in partnership with Local Authority Building Control (LABC) to provide you with a complete range of developer services to support construction from start to finish: from residential and non-residential warranties, right through to assessments and testing.
The synergies of providing these services under one roof allow us to pass significant cost savings on to you.
We work alongside Building Control Surveyors, and will additionally review developments in accordance with our technical standards (click here for technical manual).
We also work on providing joint system type pre-approval, acceptable by any local authority in England and Wales (click here for details).
All warranty schemes are underwritten by AmTrust Europe Limited, authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority and has an A.M. Best financial strength rating of 'A'. See http://www.labcwarranty.co.uk/warranty/ for further details
LABC Consult is a multi-disciplinary service that enables you to easily access all aspects of the development management process under one roof.
Our unique association with some of the country’s leading construction industry experts and local authority expertise allows us to provide you with a bespoke service that you simply cannot get from other building control providers.
You don’t need to do everything in-house or pay expensive consultants to ensure a successful project. LABC Consult provides you with a team of industry experts and independent specialists to make the whole development process easier than ever for all our clients.
Established to bring you the very best expertise, we can help with any size project in England and Wales. See http://www.labc.uk.com/consult for further details
For further information please look at our other pages, a sample is below or use the links to the left of this webpage .
- What do I need to do? -This page gives guidance on when an application may be required, provides links to information about your legal responsibilities and also links to the planning portal interactive house and terrace. (these show example projects and the applicable requirements)
- What if I have not followed the rules? - Provides information on types and contraventions and also our policies regarding these.
- Building Control Guidance Sheets -This provide numerous documents for you to view or download on subjects that we commonly find people make mistakes on whilst carrying out projects.
- Other services and functions- Details of other services that Building Control provides of behalf of the Council.
- Contact us in Building Control - Contact details for all Building Control staff.
- Building Regulations and related legislation - Links and details of The Building Regulations and The Building Act, also a link to the Approved Documents.
- Advice for householders - 10 Rules on choosing a builder, links to Domestic Contracts for building project and also a link to the Party Wall Act
- Application forms, fees and service information -Application forms, fees etc.
- Level of service- What level of service you can expect to receive from us.
Last updated: Tue 19th February, 2013 @ 14:56






