Opinions on Compliance for a sale or remortgage, design and assigned certification under Building Control (Amendment) Regulations. Statutory certification for new homes, extensions over 45 m² and work needing a fire safety certificate: a design certifier, an assigned certifier, and a Certificate of Compliance on Completion before occupation., and advice before building.
In Ireland nobody approves a building against the Building Regulations before it is built. The owner has to comply, the designers and the builder certify what they did, and the building control authority checks a sample. Compliance is something you show, not something you are given.
Where the work is under Building Control (Amendment) Regulations. Statutory certification for new homes, extensions over 45 m² and work needing a fire safety certificate: a design certifier, an assigned certifier, and a Certificate of Compliance on Completion before occupation. we act as design certifier and as assigned certifier, and sign the ancillary certificates for the structure and the civil works. Where it is not, because the work is older, smaller or exempt, an Opinion on Compliance is what a buyer's solicitor and a lender will ask for, and we give those for the Building Regulations and for planning.
Our opinions cover the structure, the drainage and the civil works we can inspect. On a whole house the rest is for the architect or surveyor, and every opinion says plainly where ours stops.
The regulations run from Part A to Part M, with no Part I, and each Part has a Technical Guidance Document showing one way to comply. Following the guidance is evidence of compliance; another route has to be shown to work as well.
| Part | Covers | In brief |
|---|---|---|
| Part AIn our scope | Structure | Loading, ground movement and disproportionate collapse. |
| Part B | Fire safety | Means of escape, fire spread inside and out, and access for the fire service, with separate guidance for dwellings and other buildings. |
| Part C | Site preparation and resistance to moisture | Preparing the ground, radon, and keeping damp out. |
| Part D | Materials and workmanship | Proper materials, used in a workmanlike way. |
| Part E | Sound | Sound insulation between dwellings and in some other buildings. |
| Part F | Ventilation | Air quality, and condensation in rooms and roofs. |
| Part G | Hygiene | Sanitary facilities, washing and hot water. |
| Part HIn our scope | Drainage and wastewater disposal | Foul and surface water drainage, and wastewater treatment systems. |
| Part J | Heat producing appliances | Air supply, flues and hearths for stoves, boilers and fires. |
| Part K | Stairways, ladders, ramps and guards | Stair geometry, handrails, and guarding wherever there is a drop. |
| Part L | Conservation of fuel and energy | Insulation, airtightness and energy performance, with separate guidance for dwellings and other buildings. |
| Part M | Access and use | Buildings that everyone, including people with disabilities, can reach and use. |
Each one says what it covers and what it does not.
Drawings, a specification, or the site address and the programme dates: whatever you have is enough to start. We come back inside two working days, and a written fee proposal against a defined scope follows within three working days of that.