Starting work and inspections

Building Regulations approval

For projects that require Building Regulations approval, you may start work as soon as you have submitted the required application and made payment to us. You must always contact us when you intend to start the work and in the case of an application for approval with full plans, any work you carry out before formal plans approval will be at your own risk. We will, however, carry out our normal inspections and work with you to minimise any risks but any work found to be non-compliant will need to be altered to meet the building regulations.

Our best advice is to wait until you have received your Full Plans decision notice or your Building Notice acknowledgement before starting work – but we understand that this is not always possible.

Applications for approval with full plans only:

Please note that after an inspection at the start of work has been made by one of our registered building inspectors, you will be invoiced for a one-off inspection charge, as set out in the letter that accompanied your Full Plans decision notice. This charge covers all anticipated inspections throughout the build. (Note – some smaller works are not subject to this charge as the full charge will have been paid at the time the application was submitted).

We reserve the right to apply additional charges if, during the course of the works, changes are made that involve a significant number of additional inspections and/or further plan checking.

Planning Permission

Not all projects need Planning Permission, however, you should always check with your council Planning department before you start any work. They will either confirm you need to make a planning application or that the proposed works do not require an application to be submitted to them. (If it is latter, we would advise you apply for a Certificate of Lawfulness from them stating that the work was exempt from Planning Permission.) You can visit the Planning Portal interactive house for more information about what type of projects are likely to need Planning Permission.

What inspections do we carry out?

Our Building Control Partnership inspectors carry out site inspections to determine that the building work being undertaken complies with the Building Regulations. The frequency and type of site inspections varies according to the works being undertaken. All site inspections requested before 10.00am from Monday to Friday will usually be carried out on the same day of the request. There may be times however, when this is not possible due to workload so we would always advise booking inspections in advance.

Notifying us

You should notify Building Control at least 48 hours before work is due to start. You can do this by:

Emailing us at email:bcpartnership@fareham.gov.uk
Calling our business support team between 8.45am – 5.15pm on 01329 824823 (4.45pm Friday).

Please be aware that, if you have submitted an application for approval with full plans and not yet received an approval notice from us, any works started will continue at your own risk until this is granted. Any works found to be non-compliant when the plans are examined but carried out on site would therefore have to be corrected to meet Building Regulations.

One of our registered building inspectors will visit at the start of work on site to discuss the further inspections that will need to be made. It is the property owner’s responsibility to notify us at each stage of the work to enable an inspection to be carried out. (So agree beforehand with your builder if they are to notify us on your behalf.)

You can use the ‘LABC Book an inspection’ app to do this, or alternatively you can complete our contact us form.

After the start of work inspection has been carried out, you will be invoiced directly for a one-off inspection charge, as set out in the letter that accompanied your Full Plans decision notice. This covers all anticipated inspections we will need to make during the build. (Some applications for smaller works are not subject to a separate inspection charge, as this will have been paid when the application was submitted.)

Every project will be individually assessed in terms of the critical elements of the build that need to be inspected and an inspection framework will be set out. For most domestic extensions the following inspections are normally made.

Inspection stages

Below are the key areas for inspection. However we tailor the inspection framework on a project-by-project basis. Any additional inspections will be shown when you receive your inspection schedule which is sent out with either your Full Plans decision or Building Notice acknowledgment letter.

Start of the work – This first inspection allows you/your builder to meet our building control inspector and discuss the project and subsequent course of action. This is particularly important for Building Notice applications where no plans have been submitted for approval beforehand.

Excavations – Allows ground conditions to be checked to ensure that the foundations are sufficient to carry the load/weight of your extension. This inspection must take place before foundation concrete is poured. Matters such as proximity of influencing trees and existing drains (public and private) and adjacent buildings are considered.

Oversite – An inspection will be made before floor areas are concreted or covered to ensure materials and insulation over the site are suitable.

Damp-proof courses and membranes – Wall damp-proof courses, floor damp-proof membranes, methane barriers and radon/methane barriers (if required after initial investigation), must be inspected prior to covering with brickwork or concrete.

Drainage (foul and surface water) – All new drainage is inspected for its bedding, gradient, alignment and the provision of adequate access, prior to covering over.

Insulation – Inspection of thermal insulation to ground floors, external walls and roofs is made prior to covering.

Floor joists and roof structure – The floor and roof structures are inspected to ensure correct timber sizes have been used for the spans adopted and adequate lateral restraint has been provided between the floor/roof structures and the external walls.

Pre-plasterboard – Allows for the inspection of work which will be covered up. This will generally include any structural steelwork and the roof construction. This will also include electrical cabling/routing, mechanical ductwork, provision of any necessary fire dampers etc.

Drains test – Wherever possible, the new drainage systems should have a water or air test carried out on them, to check for performance and water tightness.

Occupation – If you intend to occupy the building prior to completion of the full works, we need to carry out an inspection before occupation to ensure it is safe to do so.

Completion – Notification is required within five days of work being completed to allow this inspection to be carried out. If everything is found to be satisfactory, a Completion Certificate will be issued. Ideally, this inspection should be carried out before the builder leaves the site.

Please be aware that the inspections we carry out are to ensure compliance with the minimum requirements of the Building Regulations, particularly with regard to health and safety and energy performance. This should not be confused with a full supervision service, which would normally be carried out by your own architect, building surveyor or clerk of works.

Commercial projects and new housing

For commercial projects and new housing, a tailored site inspection plan will be agreed with you and also include the above inspections, where appropriate. Additional inspections such as fire stopping checks and general construction inspections, depending on the size and scale of the project will also be undertaken.

In all cases, please remember to arrange for a final inspection within five days of the project completing. This will ensure that, subject to the works being satisfactory, a Completion Certificate is issued. The Completion Certificate is your evidence of Building Regulations compliance and is required when you sell the property.

Completion Certificates

Provided that each inspection stage has been notified to us and our registered building inspector has carried out inspections confirming that the work complies with the minimum requirements of the Building Regulations, a Completion Certificate can be issued.