After more than 30 years in building control, I feel a little unappreciated by recent views on whether the regulations work. I believe, and have told government departments, that we should have a simpler set of regulations and approved documents for domestic work.
One wonders if the government thinks every project has big name contractors and a wealth of experts at its disposal. I have heard that civil servants think every builder has a set of approved documents tucked away in his vans, ready to refer to should he have a problem on site. Actually, they are more likely to ring building control and request a site visit.
As for Part L, how do they know we are failing to enforce it? Just because we are not in court every day prosecuting builders does not mean we are failing to enforce it. My council endorses the government enforcement concordant, which means going to court is the last thing we want to do. We achieve compliance in most cases by negotiation.
Peter Finney, head of building control, Chiltern council
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