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2024 – A year of transformative step change 

Last year was a ‘coming of age’ for BSR as we achieved significant milestones and established the groundwork and foundations for a trusted world-leading building safety regime which places the safety of residents front and centre.

Now, as we embark on a New Year, fresh responsibilities and new milestones await.

In 2024, a pivotal phase lies ahead for everyone in the built environment.

We are a committed and focussed regulator – flexible, adaptive, and responsive. Our unwavering commitment for 2024 continues to centre on progressing our critical agenda to raise safety, standards, and performance across the built environment.

Our guidance and insights will support stakeholders to develop a deeper collective understanding of what exactly the new building safety regime means for them. This includes what they will need to do to comply with the law and to achieve a much-needed cultural shift. 

Building control profession

April will be a key month for the building control profession as the registration requirements for building control inspectors and approvers becomes mandatory. Operational standards rules will be enforceable. Applying the new requirements and standards across both public and private sector providers will ensure the whole profession operates consistently to the same high standards, levelling the playing field for the first time.

BSR believes that increasing the competence and capability of the building control profession will improve the regulation of building work. This, in turn, will help restore trust in the built environment.

We want the building control profession to grow. Improved status attracts and retains talent. Building control should be seen as a positive career choice for those entering the workforce

Higher-risk buildings

Starting last October, our role as the Building Control Authority for all higher-risk buildings (HRBs) in England will ensure buildings are designed and constructed safely and to high-standards.

For the thousands of existing HRBs in England, we will also continue to oversee and drive the new stringent regulatory regime for HRBs. Therefore, bringing about the systematic lasting change we know is needed for residents to be safe and to feel safe where they live. 

Following registration of residential HRBs becoming mandatory in October 2023, principal accountable persons (PAPs) will have a duty to apply for a building assessment certificate for their buildings when directed to by BSR. PAPs must submit a safety case report. This is a demonstration of how they are managing building safety risks of spread of fire and structural failure.

They also need to submit their Residents’ Engagement Strategy. In addition, ensure there is a system in place to report Mandatory Occurrences (MORs) to BSR. 

As the year progresses, we will continue to work in partnership with stakeholders, sharing knowledge, expertise, and data. We are steadfast in our remit to oversee and uphold a stringent building safety regulatory regime and promote competence across industry. This in turn will help to transform the built environment and the culture of those who shape and nurture it.