With Construction Safety Week this week (Monday 2nd May 2022 to Friday 6th May 2022), our Managing Director, Parm Bhangal, has provided his thoughts on current key safety concerns as this year’s theme is centred around ‘Connected. Supported. Safe.’
When it comes to enforcing current safety legislation and regulations, Parm considers that there is not enough education and training being offered by construction companies and contractors working on-site, which can make for unsafe working conditions. Parm said: “We need to ensure that we comply with health and safety on every project. However, we do see a lot of construction companies and contractors that unfortunately do not apply all of the rules in the way that they should. It does require training and education; however, in our opinion, there is currently not enough being offered. To really improve health and safety on site, from small projects to large projects, it requires better compliance with the regulations and for more time to be allocated for this.”
Additionally, The Building Safety Act 2022, which was recently passed on 28th April 2022, also introduces new safety compliance regulations, in respect of the relationship between developers/builders and leasehold tenants. So what implications will this Act ultimately have on the construction sector?
What Is The Building Safety Act 2022?
The Building Safety Act 2022 updates and amends a host of outdated legislation, including the Build Act 1984, the Defective Premises 1972 and the Landlord & Tenant Act 1985. One main aspect of the Building Safety Act is that leaseholders are now better protected, specifically that leaseholders will now have the right to bring claims against builders for any historic defects within their homes, whereas previously, they would have had to foot large repair bills themselves. It is likely that new laws will be implemented in the coming years through secondary regulations and legislation in years to come, specifically around who will be responsible for paying for these defects.
What Does This Mean For Developers?
The new The Building Safety Act 2022 will create a demand for builders and developers to be more safety-conscious during the construction phase. There will be a greater emphasis on safety standards for the entire lifespan of a building, which will ultimately change the way builders and developers choose to construct buildings in the future. The Building Safety Regulator will be responsible for assessing and reporting any costs of the improved safety measures and their benefits within two years of the law. This will hopefully help ensure the safety of people living in higher-risk accommodation but will likely place a more significant strain on construction company resources and create increased costs.
If you have any concerns about the upcoming legislation changes, our team is here to help you manage your projects. Check out our Project Management Services page on our website, or get in touch with a member of our expert team today.