Building standards - building warrant fees: consultation

Introduction

This consultation seeks to obtain the views on proposed increases to the building warrant fees required to deliver change to strengthen the building standards system and the development of a new building warrant fees model in Scotland.

This consultation forms part of the work undertaken by the Verification Delivery Model work stream which is one of the seven work streams being directed by the Building Standards Futures Board. The consultation will gather views and opinions from a range of stakeholders, construction sector organisations and businesses, and the general public on increases to the building warrant fees in Scotland. The increase in fees will be used to facilitate the strengthening and improvement of service delivery within the building standards system in Scotland brought through by the changes developed and shaped by the Futures Board's 7 work streams.

The consultation covers five main areas, as follows:

• Overview of building warrant fees
• Building warrants fees for High Risk Buildings (HRBs)
• Local authority building standards enforcement
• Devolved building warrant fees
• Impact assessments

The proposed changes outlined in the consultation aim to:

• Increase the building warrant fee income for building standards verifiers to sustain, strengthen and improve the system in Scotland. This will include raising additional income to support the proposed changes to the building standards system, brought through the work of the Futures Board work streams. Changes will put an additional resource requirement on verifiers, certifiers and the Scottish Government (Building Standards Division).
• Put in place an annual uplift across all fees, initially for a 3 year period.
• Introduce a building warrant fees model that can be used flexibly in the future.