Starting Work and During Construction
Every Building Warrant that is issued includes a Construction Compliance Notification Plan. This Plan indicates the stages of construction at which the Building Standards Team requires to be notified so that inspections may be undertaken. In addition a Start of Work Notice is supplied; this must be returned to the Council when work starts. All of this is to ensure that the Council is notified at the correct stages. If it is not, then on completion the Construction Compliance Notification Plan that is issued will be noted as a failure and it may be necessary for disruptive inspections to be carried out to check hidden works.
The purpose of the inspections is to assess the progress of the building works in compliance with the Building Standards only. It is not the role of Building Standards Officers to monitor the quality of workmanship and the Council cannot act as a Clerk of Works. It is strongly recommended that you employ a suitably qualified advisor to inspect the works and a contractor experienced in the work required. Under the Certification Scheme you may also opt to employ an Approved Certifier of Construction to both assure the quality of work and, to receive a fee discount this should be notified to the Council in advance.
For a variety of reasons, building projects may change as work progresses. It is important to make sure that any changes comply with the Building Standards, so before implementing them you should contact the Building Standards Officer handling your warrant.
Formal written consent is required for all changes, and this must be applied for using the Amendment to Warrant forms provided in the downloadable links on this page.
A Building Warrant will normally expire 3 years after the approval date. If the works are not completed prior to the expiry date, you should submit an application to extend the period of validity. This will normally be granted for a maximum period of 9 months from the date of application, although depending on construction progress, upgrades to current building standards may be requested at this time.