Building Safety Regulator to move from HSE to MHCLG

The move is being presented as an enabling step towards the establishment of a single regulator for the construction industry, as recommended by the Grenfell Tower Inquiry. A Shadow Board has been established to lead the transition, with Alex Roe (Commissioner of the London Fire Brigade ) as non-executive Chair and Charlie Pugsley (Deputy Commissioner and Operational Director for Prevention, Protection & Policy at the London Fire Brigade) as Chief Executive Officer.

Government has also announced that BSR will recruit over 100 new staff, with building inspector and engineer capacity brought in house to “enhance the processing and review of existing newbuild cases and remediation decisions” as part of a new “fast track” process for high-rise residential buildings.

Commenting on the reforms, CIAT President, Eddie Weir PCIAT, said:

CIAT supports the implementation of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry recommendations, but the effective functioning of the BSR is far more important than the form it takes, or where it sits in public sector structures.

Large-scale restructures inevitably impact on organisational capacity to deliver key services, and this could compound existing BSR gateway approval backlogs. Proposals for a fast-track process to help deliver the high-quality new homes England needs are therefore vitally important.

CIAT will continue to work with regulators across the UK to ensure that the built environment sector has effective regulatory oversight which also supports the delivery of the future-ready homes and buildings we need to thrive.