Independence policy

Independence of Registered Building Control Approvers and Registered Building Inspectors

This guidance sets out briefly what the legislation permits employees of Approved Inspectors Ltd (AI Ltd) to do on a project in addition to the Registered Building Control Approver (RBCA) function.

The required independence of an RBCA, or someone employed by an RBCA, is set out in three separate documents as detailed below:

Anyone working for an RBCA needs to know and understand Regulation 3 and its interaction with the code of conduct and professional conduct rules.

Regulation 3 of the Building (Registered Building Control Approvers etc) (England) Regulations 2024

The pertinent part for the purposes of this guidance is Regulation 3 (1):

“Approvers shall have no professional or financial interest in the work they supervise”

Regulation 3 (2) states that a professional or financial interest (PFI) will be triggered if a person is directly responsible for the “design or construction of the work in any capacity”. The regulation then begins to widen out this trigger from those directly responsible to those with connections to the person(s) responsible for the design and construction or other persons with a PFI in the work:

where the person is employed by a company that is responsible for design or construction of the work,
where the person is a partner or employed by someone who has a PFI,
where the person is a trustee for somebody who has a PFI,
if the person is married to or in a civil partnership with some who has a PFI.

In all of the above it is expected that ownership of a building or a piece of land upon which a building is to be erected would constitute a financial interest.

Therefore the “person” described in any of the above scenarios cannot accept an appointment on a project as an RBCA.

Note that for clarity in Regulation 3 (4) the legislation specifically excludes a person’s appointment as an RBCA, and the fee received for that appointment as triggering a professional or financial interest.

Professional Conduct Rules for Registered Building Control Approvers

The Professional Conduct Rules set out the standards of professional conduct and practices expected of RBCA’s. The rules emphasise that RBCA’s must maintain professional independence and impartiality in the conduct of work activities. Sections 2.15 – 2.18 outlines expectations in terms of approaching Conflicts of Interest:

RBCA’s must have processes in place to identify and record actual and potential conflicts of interest, both prior to the commencement of and during work activity.
RBCA’s must not agree to undertake work, or continue to undertake work, where a conflict of interest is identified and unresolved.
Where a conflict of interests is identified, RBCA’s must notify the applicant or agent and resolve or remove the conflict. If the conflict is unresolvable the RBCA must cease to act.

Code of Conduct for Registered Building Inspectors

The Code of Conduct for Registered Building Inspectors sets out the standards of professional conduct and expected of RBI’s including the core ethical and professional requirements. The code emphasises that RBI’s should maintain professional independence and impartiality in the conduct of work activities. Sections 2.8 – 2.10 outlines expectations in terms of approaching Conflicts of Interest:

RBI’s must take steps to identify and record conflicts of interest and potential conflicts of interest, both prior to the commencement of and during work activity.
RBI’s must not undertake work, or continue to undertake work, where a conflict of interest is identified.
Where a conflict of interest is identified RBI’s must notify AI Ltd, the applicant or agent and cease to act to enable the necessary action to be taken to resolve and remove the conflict.

Approved Inspectors Ltd Expectations

Below are the company expectations that the RBCA, RBI’s and other RBCA Employees must adhere to:

It is not permitted for an employee of AI Ltd to design or construct any works for which we have been engaged in the role of an RBCA.
Any conflicts of interest should be documented and notified to the Directors. Work on the project should cease whilst the conflict of interest is investigated.

DESCRIPTION OF WORK
Please provide a description of the work to be undertaken. If applicable please provide dimensions, elevation/location, cost of work and copies of plans. Advise what the work is to create e.g., a new kitchen. If internal works please advise where it is located under the current plans. When uploading documents acceptable formats are .jpg .jpeg .png .pdf (maximum upload size 16MB each).

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DESIGN STAGE ASSESSMENT
Please advise if you require a Design Stage Assessment as part of your application. Although Building Regulations Plans are not required for small, incomplex domestic works, we strongly advise detailed Building Regulation drawings are produced for all projects as they help reduce ambiguity between the Client and Principal Contractor, whilst allowing AI Ltd to accurately assess proposals for Building Regulations compliance. If you do not have building regulations plans for assessment we will offer general guidance that will be relevant to your proposal of works but may not be specific to your project. Please be aware that failure to appoint a Principal Designer will result in the role of the Principal Designer being automatically assumed by the Principal Contractor. For further details of dutyholder responsibilities please refer to Part 2A of The Building Regulations etc. (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2023 (https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2023/911/regulation/6/made).

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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Please include any additional information we need to be aware of in the box below.

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DESCRIPTION OF WORK
Please provide a description of the work to be undertaken. If applicable please provide number of plots, dimensions, elevation/location and cost of work.

OPTIONAL REQUIREMENTS
It is the responsibility of the person carrying out the work to inform ourselves of any optional requirements that have been imposed on the development once planning permission has been granted. Therefore, please confirm if any optional requirements apply to the development. Details of any optional requirements can be found in your planning conditions from your Local Authority. Any amendments to these details after submission of the Initial Notice may incur an additional charge.

CONNECTIVITY PLAN
We are required to submit a Connectivity Plan with the Initial Notice. Please complete the Connectivity Plan template (available in the Resources section of our website) and upload below along with a written confirmation from your network provider.

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PLANS & OTHER DOCUMENTATION
Please upload any plans (building regulation plans if possible) and other relevant documentation here. When uploading documents acceptable formats are .jpg .jpeg .png .pdf (maximum upload size 16MB each).