Building Regulations cause more anxiety than they should. They exist to make sure buildings are safe, healthy, accessible and energy efficient, and on most home projects a competent builder will manage the process as a routine part of the job. Knowing the basics helps you ask the right questions and spot when something is being skipped.

Building Regulations and planning permission are different

These two systems are often confused.

  • Planning permission decides whether you can build something at all: its size, appearance, use and effect on neighbours and the area. In Oxfordshire it is handled by the district council, such as Oxford City, Cherwell or West Oxfordshire.
  • Building Regulations govern how the work is done: structure, fire safety, insulation, ventilation, drainage, electrics and more.

A project can need one, both or neither. A loft conversion under permitted development needs no planning application but does need Building Regulations approval. Listed building consent is a third, separate system.

What the regulations cover

The technical requirements are explained in a series of Approved Documents published by the government:

  • A Structure
  • B Fire safety
  • C Site preparation and resistance to contaminants and moisture
  • D Toxic substances
  • E Resistance to sound
  • F Ventilation
  • G Sanitation, hot water safety and water efficiency
  • H Drainage and waste disposal
  • J Combustion appliances and fuel storage
  • K Protection from falling, collision and impact
  • L Conservation of fuel and power
  • M Access to and use of buildings
  • O Overheating (new homes)
  • P Electrical safety in dwellings
  • Q Security in new dwellings
  • R Infrastructure for electronic communications
  • S Infrastructure for charging electric vehicles
  • T Toilet accommodation (non-domestic buildings)

Not all of these apply to every project, and some apply mainly to new buildings. For a typical extension, the most relevant are A, B, C, F, H, K, L and P.

What work needs approval?

Most structural and services work does. Common examples:

  • extensions and loft conversions
  • removing or altering load-bearing walls
  • converting a garage or changing a building’s use
  • new or replacement windows and doors
  • installing or replacing a boiler or heating system
  • new electrical circuits, a new consumer unit, or electrical work in a room with a bath or shower
  • new drainage, bathrooms and some roof replacements

Like-for-like repairs, redecorating and most small garden sheds generally do not need approval. Replacing kitchen units on their own is not usually controlled, but new circuits, drainage or ventilation fitted at the same time can be.

Who checks the work?

For homes, you have two choices of building control body:

  • your local authority building control team
  • a registered building control approver, a private company (the role formerly called an approved inspector)

Since April 2024, private approvers and individual building inspectors have had to be registered with the Building Safety Regulator.

How the process works

Full plans

Detailed drawings and specifications are submitted and checked before work starts. The council or approver decides within five weeks, or two months if you agree to an extension. This gives the most certainty and is usually the right choice for extensions, loft conversions and structural alterations.

Building notice

For smaller projects with a local authority, you can give a building notice and start work two days later, with no formal approval of plans. It is quicker to start but carries more risk, because issues are found on site rather than on paper.

Initial notice

If you use a registered building control approver, they send an initial notice to the local authority instead.

Inspections

The building control surveyor visits at key stages, typically foundations, damp-proof course, drainage, structural steel and insulation, and completion. Your builder should know when to book these and have the work ready and open for inspection.

Competent person schemes

Some work can be self-certified by tradespeople registered with a government-authorised competent person scheme, without a separate application. Examples include Gas Safe registered engineers for gas appliances, NAPIT and similar schemes for electrical work, FENSA or CERTASS for replacement windows, and HETAS for solid fuel stoves. You should receive a certificate for the work, and the building control body is notified.

Completion certificates

When the work is finished and passes final inspection, you receive a completion certificate, usually within eight weeks of completion under the full plans route. Keep it safe. When you sell, the buyer’s solicitor will ask for completion certificates and competent person certificates for any regulated work. Missing paperwork can delay or derail a sale.

If work was done without approval, a local authority can sometimes issue a regularisation certificate for work carried out after 11 November 1985, though you may have to open up or alter the work first.

Your responsibilities as a client

Since 1 October 2023, the Building Regulations have set out duties for everyone involved in building work, including domestic clients. Where more than one contractor or designer is involved, the client should appoint a principal designer and a principal contractor. On most home projects, your architect and builder take on these roles, but it is worth confirming who is doing what at the start.

What is changing

New Future Homes Standard regulations, amending Parts L and F and adding on-site renewable electricity for new homes, come into force in England on 24 March 2027. They are aimed mainly at new homes, and projects notified to building control before that date generally follow the current rules if work starts within a year. If you are planning an extension around then, ask your designer which version applies.

What your builder should handle

A good builder will help you choose the right route, coordinate the structural engineer and designer, book inspections, use registered trades for gas and electrics, and make sure you receive every certificate at the end. If anyone suggests skipping Building Regulations to save time or money, treat it as a warning sign. The person carrying out the work can be prosecuted, and you could be made to pay to put things right.

At North Oxford Developments we manage building control as part of our projects, working alongside architects and engineers and using our own Gas Safe registered heating engineers and NAPIT-accredited electricians. At handover we make sure you have the paperwork you need. If you have questions about the approvals for a project, we are happy to talk them through.