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What if I have not followed the rules?

Contact

Building Control

Tel: 01509 634924 / 634757 / Fax: 01509 260536

Not following the rules in relation to compliance with the requirements of the Building Regulations can either be classed as Procedural or Substantive.

In general terms, non-compliance with the regulations is a criminal offence for which the Council can, under the provisions of Section 35 of the Building Act 1984, pursue prosecution proceedings against the perpetrator and/or, under Section 36 of the Act, enforcement action against the owner requiring that the work be corrected or removed .

In practice however, the Council does not tend to take this course of action unless the contravention is either very serious, or has been committed wilfully or all attempts to resolve the matter have failed. Instead, we try to communicate the issues to the relevant builder or owner of the work with a view to negotiating a solution.

Types of contravention and policies

The following are the commonest types of contravention scenario encountered together with the Council's general policy for each type. This is for guidance only and is without prejudice to any actual actions the Council may take in any particular case.

Description

Type

Council policy

No application for Building Regulations consent submitted for building work carried out

Procedural

Policy

Work carried out does not comply with technical requirements of the Building Regulations

Substantive

Policy

Work carried out not in accordance with layout that shown on approved plans

Procedural

Policy

Work has been carried out without the statutory notification being given to the Council

Procedural

Policy

Terms of Conditional Approval of Full Plans application not complied with for work carried out

Procedural

Policy

Full Plans application submitted for work being carried out but is either invalid, still being processed or rejected by the Council

Procedural

Policy

Last updated: Tue 6th October, 2009 @ 14:30