The changes announced by the construction security minister Alex Norris include new leadership, a fast-track application process and a significant expansion of employee capacity. The reforms are designed in such a way that they support the delivery of 1.5 million secure, high -quality houses and mark a critical step to set up a single construction regulator – a recommendation of the Grenfell examination.
Katherine Metcalfe of Pinsent Masons, which specializes in building security, said: “The extent of these reforms is a real demonstration of the effects that cause delays on the BSR for the new development throughout England.”
At the center of the reforms is the appointment of Andy Roe, the former commissioner of the London fire brigade, as the not managing chairman of a new shadow committee within the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG). ROE will lead the transition of the operations of the BSR from the health and security manager (HSE) and pave the way for his facility as an independent executive agency. Charlie Pugsley, also from the London fire brigade, will act as Chief Executive Officer of the BSR. The government is confident that the couple's experience in fire security and the emergency reaction will help to restore trust in the skills of the regulatory authority.
In order to remedy the deficit of new building applications and remedial decisions, the BSR starts a new fast track process. This initiative will bring additional building inspectors and engineers directly to the regulatory authority in order to significantly strengthen the ability to process cases more efficiently. The government also works with the industry to publish new guidelines in order to improve the quality of the BSR applications. It hopes that by reducing errors and incomplete submissions, the guidelines help to shorten the processing times and reduce the friction between developers and supervisory authorities. In order to support the extended operations, the BSR plans to hire over 100 new employees by the end of the year.
Metcalfe said: “The significant additional resource is particularly welcome if you receive applications from the process. However, it is unlikely that it is a quick solution. The lack of adequate qualified specialists for building control to support the Gateway process should continue to create a bottleneck in a short to medium -term process.”
The BSR will publish quarterly performance data in the coming weeks so that developers and other interest groups can track progress.
The reforms are part of a wider state strategy to create a uniform regulatory authority that can monitor the entire building life cycle – of design and construction and maintenance. A prospectus that represents the full vision for this individual regulatory authority is expected to be published in autumn.