Cultivating Safety and Competence under the Building Safety Act 2022
The BSA makes competence a statutory requirement for all duty holders involved in building work. This is a move to professionalise the industry by ensuring that all individuals and organisations have the necessary skills, knowledge, experience and behaviours (SKEB) to perform their roles competently. The new regime moves away from a self-regulated model to one of legal enforcement.
The Act introduces new statutory roles with specific duties and a heightened level of responsibility:
The Client: The individual or organisation commissioning the project. The client's duty is to appoint competent individuals and organisations and to ensure that systems are in place for regulatory compliance.
Principal Designer: Appointed by the client to be in control of the design work, the Principal Designer must plan, manage and monitor the design phase and coordinate with all other duty holders to ensure the design, if built, will comply with all relevant regulations.
Principal Contractor: The person appointed to control the entire construction project. The Principal Contractor is responsible for planning, managing and monitoring the building work and ensuring that it complies with all relevant regulations.
The industry's response to these new requirements must be comprehensive. Professionals and companies can demonstrate competence through a combination of professional qualifications, accredited training courses, and relevant work experience.
Professional bodies like the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) are launching specific training and certification schemes, such as the Principal Designer course and the Principal Contractor Competency Certification Scheme (PCCCS), to help professionals meet the new standards. This transition will require investment in training and a cultural shift towards continuous professional development, as incompetence can now lead to criminal liability and significant project delays.
Competence Framework: From Roles to Requirements
Client
Responsible for appointing competent duty holders and ensuring systems are in place to guarantee compliance with all building regulations. Must provide information to other duty holders to enable them to carry out their duties.
Principal Designer
Plans, manages, and monitors all design work. Coordinates with other duty holders to ensure the final design, if built, would comply with all relevant requirements. Considers comments from the Principal Contractor.
Principal Contractor
Plans, manages and monitors all construction work. Coordinates with other duty holders to ensure the building work complies with all relevant regulations. Manages the project budget without compromising safety.
All Professionals
Must be able to refuse to carry out work that is beyond their competence or is non-compliant. Must cooperate with all other duty holders on the project.
