The Building Safety Regulator, described in November as “one of the most incompetent organisations in the country” by Labour MP Chris Curtis, was previously a part of the Health and Safety Executive but will now be its own standalone body under the MHCLG.
The Regulator, set up in the face of the Grenfell Tower fire and chaired by Lord Andy Roe (lead firefighter at Grenfell), has, since its inception, faced repeated criticism over the lengthy delays it has placed on signing off buildings. Many have raised concerns that lengthy delays were playing a key part in stifling high-rise projects in the Capital, where approximately half of the Regulator’s applications are located.
Despite receiving almost 100 new applications in the last 3 months, significant progress has already been made in speeding up decisions, with typical approval times now much closer to their 12-week target, down from a high of almost a year. Lord Roe and Charlie Pugsley (Acting CEO of the BSR) stated their hope that last week’s reforms will allow the BSR to develop its own systems and processes and strengthen its engagement with both residents and the industry, ensuring that it remains an effective and proportional regulator.
The hope has to be that the new BSR will enable safer buildings to be commissioned and delivered faster. The construction sector needs to know a building will be reviewed and able to be occupied in a timely fashion if tall buildings are to be viable.
