Legislation, regulation and standards

Question 1

What is the primary enabling piece of legislation for the building regulations?

Answer 1

The Building Act 1984

Question 2

What is the secondary legislation on which the building regulations are made?

Answer 2

Building Regulations 2010

Question 3

What is the purpose of the building regulations?

Answer 3

The building regulations help ensure that new buildings, conversions, renovations and extensions are going to be safe, healthy and high performing. They offer an establish standard that has to be reached in the construction of buildings.

Question 4

Where would you find information on fire safety?

Answer 4

Part B

Question 5

Where would you find information on structural integrity?

Answer 5

Part A

Question 6

What is the purpose of the approved doucments?

Answer 6

The Approved Documents provide guidance for how the requirements of the building regulations can be satisfied in common building situations.

Question 7

What are the British Standards and how do they differ from the building regulations?

Answer 7

The British Standard provided a good practice guidance document, which goes beyond the minimum mandatory standards set out in the building regulations. They provide a standard for the quality of goods and services within Britain.

Question 8

What is the legislation governing the creations and maintenance of highways?

Answer 8

The Highways Act 1980

Question 9

What does section 278 of the highways act relate to?

Answer 9

Section 278 agreements allow developers to enter into a legal agreement with the Local Council to make permanent alterations or improvements to a public highway, as part of a planning approval.

Question 10

What are examples of works effected by sections 278 agreements?

Answer 10

New or changed access into a development site such as a bell mouth

Question 11

What is the purpose of the Party Wall Act?

Answer 11

The general principal of the Party Wall Act is to enable an owner to undertake certain specific works on, or adjacent to, adjoining properties while giving protections to potentially effected neighbours.

Question 12

What is a party wall?

Answer 12

Two types

• Type A: A wall standing on the land of two owners to a greater extent than simply projecting foundations
• Type B: The part of a wall standing on the land of one owner that separates the buildings of the two owners

Question 13

What is an easement?

Answer 13

A legally enforceable right which a person has over land owned by someone else. Examples include a right of way or a right of light.

Question 14

What is the Community Infrastructure Levy?

Answer 14

It is a charge that local authorities can choose to impose on new developments to fund local infrastructure, based on a tariff that is related to the size or the change in the size of a development.

Question 15

What is a section 106 agreement?

Answer 15

S106 contributions are negotiated between boroughs and developers and can pay for anything from new schools or clinics to roads and affordable housing.

Question 16

What is the difference between CIL and s.106?

Answer 16

S106 is still used for site-specific infrastructure and affordable housing, whereas CIL is used to fund wider infrastructure.

Question 17

What is a section 38 agreement?

Answer 17

Used when a developer proposes to construct a new estate road for residential, industrial or general purpose traffic that may be offered to the Highway Authority for adoption as a public highway along with associated infrastructure such as drains, lighting and supporting structures.

Question 18

What are rights of light?

Answer 18

A “right to light” is an easement that gives a landowner the right to receive light through defined apertures in buildings on his or her land. The owner of land that is burdened by the right cannot substantially interfere with it – for example by erecting a building in a way that blocks the light – without the consent of the benefiting owner.

Question 19

How can you determine if a right of light exists?

Answer 19

Requirement for light to have been enjoyed for a period of 20 years in order for a right to light to be acquired.

Question 20

When is an injury deemed to have been suffered to a right of light?

Answer 20

This involves determining what percentage of a room receives ‘adequate light’ on a working plane 850 mm above the floor. An injury may be considered to have occurred where the percentage is reduced to less than 50%.

Question 21

How do developers typically approach rights of light?

Answer 21

Developers typically adopt a ‘a wait and see’ approach to see if there is any enforcement of a possible breach brought against their development. They typically take out rights of light insurance that provides protection against financial losses that might arise.

Question 22

What is daylight and sunlight?

Answer 22

Daylight and sunlight is the volume of natural light entering a building to provide a satisfactory level of illumination to the building’s users between sunrise and sunset. It is a planning issue and a daylight and sunlight assessment may be required to be submitted.

Question 23

What is the difference between rights of light and daylight verses sunlight?

Answer 23

Rights of Light is a legal issue while Sunlight and Daylight is a planning issue and a means that help Local Planning Authorities determine if a proposed development will cause injury to surrounding properties. Whilst rights of light measure ‘Sky Factor’, sunlight and daylight reports use ‘Vertical Sky Component’

Question 24

What is contained within an Environmental Impact Assessment?

Answer 24

Typically assess the likely impact of the development on:

socio-economics
transport
air quality
noise and vibration
water resources
ecology
daylight, sunlight, overshadowing and solar glare
wind

Question 25

What is the purposed of the Building Safety Bill?

Answer 25

The purpose of the act is to put in place new and enhanced regulatory regimes for building safety and construction products, and to ensure residents have a stronger voice in the system. It will provide a foundations for secondary legislation to take forward the recommendations of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry.

Question 26

What buildings does the Building Safety Bill apply to?

Answer 26

The more stringent regulatory regime will apply to all multi-occupied residential buildings of 18 metres or more in height, or more than six storeys.

Question 27

What changes have been brought about by the Building Safety Bill?

Answer 27

ensuring individual flat entrance doors, where the external walls of the building have unsafe cladding, comply with current standards

It includes for a new role of the Building Safety Regulator, who will work within the HSE and not Building Control.

The regulator will have 3 main functions: to oversee the safety and standard of all buildings, directly assure the safety of higher-risk buildings; and improve the competence of people responsible for managing and overseeing building work.

At the stages of design, construction and occupation, it will be clear who is responsible for managing the potential risks and what is required to move to the next stage enabling a ‘golden thread’ of vital information about the building to be gathered over its lifetime.

Question 28

What changes have been brought about by the Fire Safety Act 2021?

Answer 28

The 2021 Act clarifies that, for any building containing two or more sets of domestic premises, the 2005 Order applies to the structure and external walls and any common parts, including the front doors in residential areas.

The Act places a legal obligation on the designated ‘responsible person’ to commission a fire risk assessment that includes the external walls of a building and fire doors to individual flats.

Once the Act comes into force, owners, landlords and managing agents of multi-occupied residential buildings will have to take steps to identify any dangerous cladding on those buildings (regardless of height) and implement interim measures to ensure that the building can be occupied safely.

Question 29

What u-value is required for a pitched roof?

Answer 29

at ceiling level 0.16

at rafter level 0.18