Building consent authority (BCA)update - December 2008
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This edition of the building consent authority accreditation and registration scheme update provides further guidance to territorial and regional authorities including:
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BCA progress with accreditation
Further BCA registrations
As at 22 December 2008, 64 territorial authorities and 2 regional authorities had been accredited and registered as BCAs. All territorial and regional authorities are required to be accredited and registered as BCAs by 31 March 2009 or to have made alternative arrangements for their statutory building control functions, such as transferring them to an accredited and registered BCA.
Congratulations to the following organisations who have successfully achieved accreditation against the first set of standards:
Territorial authorities
- Ashburton District Council
- Auckland City Council
- Buller District Council
- Carterton District Council
- Central Otago District Council
- Christchurch City Council
- Clutha District Council
- Dunedin City Council
- Far North District Council
- Franklin District Council
- Gisborne District Council
- Grey District Council
- Hamilton City Council
- Hastings District Council
- Hauraki District Council
- Horowhenua District Council
- Hurunui District Council
- Hutt City Council
- Kaikoura District Council
- Kaipara District Council
- Kapiti Coast District Council
- Kawerau District Council
- Mackenzie District Council
- Manawatu District Council
- Manukau City Council
- Marlborough District Council
- Masterton District Council
- Matamata-Piako District Council
- Nelson City Council
- New Plymouth District Council
- North Shore City Council
- Opotiki District Council
- Otorohanga District Council
- Palmerston North City Council
- Papakura District Council
- Rangitikei District Council
- Rodney District Council
- Rotorua District Council
- Ruapehu District Council
- Selwyn District Council
- South Taranaki District Council
- South Waikato District Council
- South Wairarapa District Council
- Southland District Council
- Stratford District Council
- Tararua District Council
- Tasman District Council
- Taupo District Council
- Tauranga City Council
- Thames-Coromandel District Council
- Timaru City Council
- Upper Hutt City Council
- Waikato District Council
- Waimakariri District Council
- Waimate District Council
- Waipa District Council
- Waitakere City Council
- Waitaki District Council
- Wanganui District Council
- Wellington City Council
- Western Bay of Plenty District Council
- Westland District Council
- Whakatane District Council
- Whangarei District Council
Regional authorities
- Environment Waikato
- Otago Regional Council
Private applicants
- CGAF Limited T/a Bay Inspections
- City Certifying Consultants Limited
- Compass Building Consultants Limited
- Manukau Building Consultants Limited
- Professional Building Consultants Limited
Support is still being provided to those few councils who have yet to meet the first accreditation standards. It is important for those councils to maintain momentum with responding to corrective actions and proactively arranging for follow-up assessment visits with IANZ. Case advisors are working closely with those councils not yet accredited to clear remaining corrective actions or to make alternative arrangements such as the temporary or permanent transfer of building control functions to an accredited and registered BCA or contracting out their BCA functions to another accredited and registered BCA.
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Key themes from phase 1 of the BCA accreditation scheme
Phase 1 of the building consent authority (BCA) scheme is nearing completion. Sixty-nine councils are now accredited, or have cleared their outstanding corrective actions and are about to be accredited. The remaining councils are continuing to work through their outstanding corrective actions to achieve accreditation as soon as possible. A full and up-to-date list of accredited and registered councils is available on the public register at: http://www.dbh.govt.nz/bca-register
Report released
As part of the work to inform phase 2 and review phase 1 of the BCA scheme, the Department recently released a report on the key themes and issues that have emerged from phase 1. The purpose of the report was to get a national picture of:
- the main improvements that councils had to implement in order to comply with the standards for accreditation and get successfully accredited as BCAs; and
- the key issues that councils will have to continue to work on over the next two years as phase 2 of the BCA scheme is implemented - either to improve their existing quality assurance systems or develop new ones where these are yet absent.
The report was developed from an analysis of the initial assessment reports1 from the 72 territorial authorities and 3 regional councils that applied for accreditation as a BCA and were assessed during 2007/08. Each of these reports had been previously prepared by IANZ in its role as the building consent accreditation body, responsible for assessing each council under the BCA scheme.
The report is based upon the standards and criteria that each organisation was assessed against, which are contained in the Building (Accreditation of Building Consent Authorities) Regulations 2006. The key themes under each regulation are summarised below.
Requirements for policies, procedures and systems (regulation 5)
- Nearly half of all councils needed to improve how they were documenting their building control policies, procedures and systems.
- Over two thirds of all councils needed to improve one or more of their policies, procedures and systems so they were appropriate for their purposes.
Observance of policies, procedures and systems (regulation 6)
- Most organisations needed to strengthen how they were ensuring that:
Building control policies and procedures (regulation 7)
- Nearly every council needed to make some improvement to the policies and procedures they had for performing their building control functions. Most organisations received a number of corrective action requests and recommendations about regulation 7.
- Around three quarters of all councils needed to enhance the consumer information they were providing about the building consenting, inspection, and approval process (reg. 7(2)(a)).
- Around a third of all councils needed to improve how they were receiving and/or initially vetting building consent applications to ensure they complied with the Building Act and regulations (reg. 7(2)(b) and (c)).
- Around half of all councils needed to strengthen their policies and procedures for assessing the content of consent applications and/or allocating them to an appropriate processor (reg. 7(2)(d)(ii) and (iii)).
- Around two thirds of all councils needed to strengthen their policies and procedures for assessing building consent applications they had accepted for compliance with the requirements of the Building Act and Building Code (reg. 7(2)(d)(iv)).
- Around 40 percent of organisations needed to strengthen their policies and procedures for deciding whether to grant a building consent application (or refuse it) and then issuing the building consent (reg. 7(2)(d)(v)).
- Around three quarters of all councils needed to strengthen how they were planning, performing and managing their building inspections (reg. 7(2)(e)).
- Around three quarters of all councils needed to improve their policies and procedures for issuing (or refusing to issue) code compliance certificates, compliance schedules, and notices to fix (reg. 7(2)(f)).
- Around half of all councils needed to strengthen their policies and procedures for receiving and managing enquiries (reg. 7(2)(g)).
- Around a third of all councils needed to strengthen their policies and procedures for receiving and managing complaints (reg. 7(2)(h)).
Ensuring enough capacity (regulation 8)
- Unsurprisingly most councils had capacity limitations (either in-house staff or contractors) to meet the volume of work they were faced with.
- Around half of all councils needed to strengthen their systems for assessing and managing their capacity needs (from internal and/or external sources).
Allocating work to technically competent people (regulation 9)
Around one in three councils needed to either improve the basis by which they were allocating building control work to competent people (eg, using building categories), the linkages with their competency assessment system (under regulation 10), or their employees' understanding and use of their system.
Establishing and assessing competency (regulation 10)
- Many councils had to strengthen their system for assessing the competence of their staff. Common issues included the following.
Training employees (regulation 11)
- Councils had to strengthen their training systems as most did not completely meet all of the requirements of this regulation. The main areas where improvement was needed included the following.
- Around two thirds of councils needed to strengthen how they were ensuring training was actually being applied in practice by those who had undergone the training (eg, monitoring and reviewing application of training).
- Around one in four councils needed to bring greater rigour to how they were assessing the training needs of personnel in their building control units.
- Around 40 percent of all councils needed to improve how they prepared their training plans and/or the content of their plans (including specifying training outcomes in their plans).
- Around one in four councils were asked to enhance their system for supervising employees under training.
Choosing and using contractors (regulation 12)
- Around half of all councils needed to strengthen how they were accepting and applying producer statements from external experts in their compliance decision-making.
- Around one in three councils had to improve their overall systems for choosing or using contactors or bring greater rigour to how they assessed the initial or ongoing competence of contractors.
- Around one in three councils had to improve how they were monitoring the ongoing performance of contractors they were using.
- Around one in three councils needed to establish more formalised arrangements with other parts of the council they relied on for services (eg, MoUs, agreements, service level agreements, etc).
Technical leadership (regulation 13)
- Around a half of all councils had to strengthen how they were identifying and/or enabling their building control technical leaders.
- Around one in three councils needed to improve how they were ensuring technical leaders were appointed based on their actual building control technical competence.
- Around one in four councils had to address issues relating to the ‘scope' of their technical leadership (eg, gaps, ambiguities, or overlaps in coverage).
Building control resources (regulation 14)
- Around two thirds of councils needed to strengthen their systems for calibrating equipment that they used in building control (such as thermometers and moisture meters).
- Around one in four councils were asked to enhance how they manage the technical information used by their building control units.
Keeping organisational records (regulation 15)
- Around one in three councils needed to better document their organisational structures, key reporting lines, or relationships with key internal or external stakeholders.
- Around one in five councils had to improve how they were defining and documenting the roles, responsibilities, accountabilities or limitations of their staff and contractors.
Filing (regulation 16)
- Around one in four councils needed to strengthen how they were defining what information was regarded as ‘relevant' for filing purposes and/or better ensure such information was consistently being filed on the consent file.
Further information
Hard copies of the report are available by calling the Department on 0800 242 243. Electronic copies are also available on our website at: http://www.dbh.govt.nz/pub-bca-accreditation
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Q and A about recent changes to schedule 1 of the Building Act 2004
Schedule 1 of the Building Act 2004 lists the types of minor, low-risk building work that do not require a building consent. Most of these exemptions have been in place for many years - since 1992 when the former Building Act 1991 came into force.
In October 2008, Schedule 1 was expanded, with the introduction of 12 new exemptions. This article responds to some queries that the Department has recently received about the changes.
What are the main changes?
The main additions to Schedule 1 include:
- changing existing household plumbing, including minor drainage work, as long as the work complies with the Plumbers, Gasfitters, and Drainlayers Act 1976
- building or installing a small cabin near an existing home, as long as the cabin is smaller than 10 square metres and does not have cooking or sanitary facilities, or facilities for storing drinking water
- removing or changing an internal wall in an existing building, as long as the building's structural stability or the means of escape from fire are unaffected, and the wall is not a masonry wall
- building small awnings and pergolas, or small verandas over a deck
- installing, removing or replacing windows or exterior doors, provided there have not been weathertightness problems and there is no change to structural elements
- making a home more accessible
- fitting out shop or office interiors, as long as the work does not affect fire safety, sanitary facilities, structural stability or access for people with disabilities, and no specified system is modified
- erecting tents or marquees, as long as they are smaller than 100 square metres (for private use) and 50 square metres (for public use), and will be used for less than a month.
The above descriptions are high level summaries only and some conditions may also apply. You should consult the Building Act 2004 for the full changes.
Is there clear guidance on the new changes?
Yes. The Department has recently published two guidance documents on the changes:
- Building work that does not require a building consent: a guide to Schedule 1 of the Building Act 2004 (November 2008) - sets out each exemption in Schedule 1 and provides some examples of where each does and does not apply.
- Building Act 2004: Guide to exemptions from building consent requirements (October 2008) - provides a high level overview of the changes and contains information for councils to help them develop consumer information for the public about the changes.
Free copies of these documents can be ordered by calling by calling 0800 242 243. They are also available on the Department's website at: www.dbh.govt.nz/publications-about-the-building-act-2004
Why were the changes made?
The new exemptions were part of a suite of initiatives designed to streamline the building consenting process, while ensuring buildings are built right first time. They are intended to help save building owners and builders time and money, and will allow councils to focus on building consent applications that are more complex and of higher risk.
The Department has recently received clear feedback from the local government sector that the amount of low-risk, minor building control work was impacting on building officials' ability to concentrate their compliance-checking responsibilities on the more substantial or medium to higher risk building work (at both consent processing and on-site inspections).
Given the workforce capacity challenges that many councils across the country are facing, increasing the types of low-risk, minor building work that does not have to be consented should reduce some of the day-to-day work building control units currently have to deal with.
Does expanding Schedule 1 increase potential liability for councils?
One query received by the Department asked whether the new changes could in some way increase the potential liability of BCAs - for example, if building owners are tempted to try and ‘stretch' an exemption in Schedule 1 to cover building work beyond its intended scope, in order to try and avoid the building consent process.
The Department does not consider that the changes increase the potential liability on territorial authorities. Decisions about whether any proposed building work qualifies for one of the new Schedule 1 exemptions are the building owner's responsibility under the Building Act 2004. In most cases, building owners should make such decisions with appropriate advice from their agents (design and building experts) in the first instance.
While the number of exemptions in Schedule 1 has increased with the changes, none of the new exemptions have changed the fact that the building owner is responsible for ensuring that a building consent is obtained for all building work on their building that needs a consent.
This has historically been the case for all of the exemptions in Schedule 1 - except clause (k) of the Schedule, which contains discretionary powers for territorial authorities to permit building work to be undertaken without a consent if the work is likely to be performed in accordance with the Building Code or, failing that, if it is unlikely to endanger people or any building. Clause (k) is the only item in Schedule 1 that actually requires a council assessment and decision. Such decision-making will be based on a risk assessment of the building work proposed. None of the new exemptions introduced in October 2008 affect clause (k).
Importantly, even if proposed building work does not require a building consent, all building work must comply with the Building Code (refer to section 17 of the Building Act).
What are the implications for councils fielding queries from the public?
The Department recognises that, in practice, many people will contact their local council for clarification about whether an exemption might apply to their proposed building project. However, this has been the case with most of the other exemptions since 1992 when the former Building Act 1991 came into force. All councils should have sound systems and processes for handling queries about exemptions, just as they do for queries about other Building Act requirements. These existing processes will have to be adjusted to factor in the handful of new exemptions. However, having to make such adjustments will be offset by potential efficiencies gained from not having to process building consent applications for such minor building work and doing the usual site inspections of the work. This will help free up building officials to focus their time and efforts on more significant building work.
Should councils accept information from building owners about building work undertaken under an exemption?
Yes. As noted above, the primary responsibility for decisions about whether any given building work qualifies for an exemption rests with the building owner in most cases (clause (k) is the only exception in Schedule 1). In many cases, the building work will be legitimately undertaken without anyone ever contacting the local council. However, some building owners may provide the council with copies of information relating to the building work covered by an exemption to go on the council's property files. One of the questions raised with the Department was whether councils accepting such information could be regarded as having in some way given approval for the work to be done without a building consent.
The Department considers that it is good practice for councils to put all relevant information they receive from building owners on property files they hold, including information provided for the council's information by owners undertaking building work under an exemption. If councils are not being asked to make a compliance assessment, the Department does not consider there is a problem as long as councils have sound administrative processes to communicate and document that they are merely putting the information on file and not doing any type of assessment or decision-making as part of any consent application process. Many councils put information they receive outside the building consenting process on their files now as a matter of course (eg, adding property reports to files that are provided by owners). In such cases, there is usually never any question of the information being assessed by the council as part of its regulatory decision-making.
Could the changes result in more unlawful un-consented building work?
The Department does not consider that the 12 new exemptions will result in a surge in unlawful building work (ie, building working being carried out without a building consent when it should have one).
As noted above, until the new changes are fully bedded in, councils may receive some queries from the public on the interpretation of the new exemptions. There may also be an initial temptation for people to want to ‘stretch' the exemptions beyond their intended scope to avoid the building consent process. However, such implementation issues are not new to BCAs. The same tensions have existed since the early 1990s when Schedule 1 first came into law under the former Building Act 1991.
The guidance documents that the Department has published about Schedule 1 also provide valuable resources for councils to use and refer people to.
What process was undertaken to make the changes?
The Department undertook a targeted consultation with a sector reference group on the new exemptions. This group consisted of senior building controls officials (from a mix of small, medium, and large councils) and representatives from the Registered Master Builders Federation and the Certified Builders Association of New Zealand. Local Government New Zealand was also consulted and supported the proposals. Other government departments were also consulted as required.
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Improving the quality of the building consent documentation
This article emphasises the importance of building consent authorities having sound systems and procedures at the front counter when receiving and vetting building consent applications. It also emphasises to designers, builders and other consent applicants the need for good quality consent documentation, with adequate detail and information to establish Building Code compliance.
The quality of building consent documentation directly affects the timeliness of consent processing and the quality and rigour of the compliance checking that then has to be done. Incomplete or substandard documentation that is accepted into a building consent authority's system usually results in delays and complications for processing staff, which can result in time-consuming requests for further information having to be made. While timelines are an important factor, the greatest risk to a building consent authority, and ultimately the building owner, is if the building consent authority accepts substandard or incomplete building consent application. The BCA needs clear and concise information to make an informed decision about whether to grant and issue a building consent.
More compliance focus at the consent processing stage
The Building Act 2004 introduced a change to the building consenting and inspection process from the former Building Act 1991. The Building Act 2004 places a greater focus on ensuring Building Code compliance is achieved at the design and building consent processing stages, before building work is approved and begins. This means building consent authorities need to pay more attention to the detailed content and quality of the plans, specifications, and documentation submitted with a building consent application than in the past. In light of past performance issues in the sector, this improvement was necessary.
Section 45 of the Building Act 2004 sets out in broad terms what an application for a building consent must contain. However, the Act does not define the form, content or quality of the plans and specifications or other information needed to support an application. The bottom line is that building consent authorities need the right amount of information with the right level of detail to help them make informed compliance decisions. Under the Building Act, building consent authorities can only grant a building consent if they are satisfied on reasonable grounds that the provisions of the Building Code would be met if the work is properly completed according to the plans and specifications that came with the consent application (section 49 of the Act refers).
The Act allows each building consent authority to determine what plans, specifications and other information it reasonably requires, which allows for differences between jurisdictions to be managed locally.
There are both pros and cons to this situation. Although local environmental differences (eg, ground conditions, sea spray or geothermal corrosion, high earthquake or wind zones, or different effluent and storm water disposal requirements) can require different compliance requirements, the disadvantages are that we risk losing some of the consistency and standardisation that a national Building Code and Act aims to achieve.
In recent years, many building consent authorities have strengthened their consent processing systems. They are now more conscious of ensuring that the consent documentation is thorough. The building consent authority accreditation scheme has been a catalyst for some of this work in recent years, as have recent weathertightness failings and the lessons learnt there. The accreditation scheme under the Building Act requires building consent authorities to have effective systems and processes, as well as comprehensive guidance and consumer information about how they receive and vet consent applications to ensure they comply with the Building Act and Building Regulations (including the Building Code).
Room for further improvement
While most building consent authorities have strengthened their consenting systems, the focus now has to be on ensuring such systems are focused on the right issues and risks and are being effectively implemented. While carrying out its performance monitoring responsibilities, the Department of Building and Housing sees many examples of building consent files across the country. Some contain clear and comprehensive building consent documentation, which enable sound and very efficient consent processing and approval. However, many of the building consent files still contain incomplete or substandard information or applications that are overly reliant on generic information that is not project specific. Such applications clearly do not fully demonstrate how compliance with the Building Code will be achieved. As such, they make the building consent authorities' compliance-checking role harder to fulfil and more inefficient. We have consistently advised that these applications should be rejected at lodgement stage, and the applicant requested to obtain the required information and re-submit their application again when it is complete. This process is often the most efficient overall.
Some care needs to be taken to ensure that valid applications are not rejected and that building officials clearly communicate what they believe is deficient with the application, why the information is needed, and how it relates to their Building Code compliance decision-making. Building consent authorities also need to make sure they only ask for information it is reasonable to ask for to enable them to make informed compliance decisions. It is also not a building consent authority's role to design building work or to assess aesthetics. Rather, a building consent authority's role is to verify/assess that all aspects of a building's design complies with the Building Code.
Additional guidance
As guidance the Department published the following documents: Guide to applying for a building consent (simple residential buildings) - which sets out the minimum expectations for building consent documentation requirements, and the Beginner's guide to resource and building consent processes.
Both of these guides and others are available online at: http://www.dbh.govt.nz/publications-about-the-building-act-2004
For more detailed and locally specific guidance and advice about consent documentation requirements talk to your local building consent authority or check out their website for their consent documentation and lodgement requirements.
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New guidance to help with building consent amendments
Changes or variations to consented building work are commonly proposed during a building project. Some changes are relatively minor (eg, replacing a brand of tap), but others can be quite major changes (eg, using a different cladding system to that which was approved when the initial building consent was granted).
Making changes to consented building work without obtaining the right approvals first can have potentially serious consequences. An obvious risk is that building work may not comply with the Building Code. This could mean that a building is constructed in a way that is unsafe or insanitary.
Building consent authorities (city or district councils) need to assess all proposed changes to previously consented building work. They will then decide the best way to approve the change, depending on how significant the change is. There are a number of ways to do this but, fundamentally, at the end of the project what is actually built needs to be consistent with the approved building consent documentation.
Proposed Building Act changes
In June 2008 the government announced plans to amend the Building Act 2004 to streamline the building consenting system. One initiative was to provide greater clarity on the requirements for considering and approving amendments to building consents, including distinguishing between ‘minor' and ‘major' variations to consented building work. The Building Amendment Bill 2008 contains the changes.
New guidance
The Department has developed guidance to help people manage variations in the interim. This guidance sets out our expectations around how proposed variations should be communicated to building consent authorities, be assessed by building officials, and the options available for then making the required amendments to the original building consent issued for the building work.
The roles and responsibilities of each party are outlined and the document also discusses minor and major variations and the options available for handling each.
The Guide to building consent amendments (September 2008) will help the building and construction sector to effectively and efficiently deal with amendments. In particular, the guide encourages builders, designers, homeowners (and their agents), and developers to identify and notify proposed variations at the earliest stage. It also assists building officials to follow a more sound and practical approach to dealing with proposed variations. This should allow for quicker decision-making by building officials.
Hard copies of the guide are available from the Department on 0800 242 243. They are also available on our website.
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Update on work to scope national online building consent processing
Around 113,000 building consent applications were lodged in New Zealand during 2007, representing proposed building work of an estimated value of around $13 billion. Almost all of these building consent applications were manually lodged and paper based.
In March 2008 the government announced a package of initiatives intended to streamline the building design and consenting process. One of these initiatives was to investigate the feasibility of establishing a national online building consent application and lodgement tracking system, which could be used across all TAs and BCAs.
Soon after the announcement, the Department completed an initial feasibility study, which concluded that a national online building consent application, tracking, processing and approval system appeared technically feasible. Such a system could realise a number of benefits and efficiencies for both consent applicants and consenting authorities - such as reducing time in lodging and tracking applications and reducing paper use and paper storage demands. It was also concluded that any system should also include both the consenting phase as well as the inspection process as building work progresses to provide an ‘end-to-end' solution.
The feasibility study also identified a number of issues to work through further before a final decision on the proposed initiative could be made. These issues included:
- specific design options for any web-based system
- how any national system could be integrated with councils' existing systems
- ownership and governance issues
- potential funding models
- timing and implementation issues
- design and implementation costs.
The government then asked the Department to develop a more detailed business case for establishing an online building consents facility to cover off such issues. This work has been progressing on a number of fronts over recent months.
Potential models from other countries have been researched and considered, including Australia and the United Kingdom. In October, a study group was formed and representatives from the Department, two building consent authorities, and the Certified Builders Association of New Zealand visited these countries to investigate their models. The group worked closely with the people in local councils who had recently developed and implemented successful online consenting systems and met with other stakeholders such as regular consent applicants and central government agencies.
The Department has also recently issued a request for information to technology providers to generate further technical information to properly inform the business case to government. The process to fully develop the business case is likely to play out over the rest of the calendar year, with the Department due to report back to the government this month with a finalised business case.
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National qualifications for building officials
By November 2013 all building consent authorities must have a system in place for ensuring that their employees or contractors who are undertaking technical building control work (eg, processing consents, undertaking inspections, issuing code compliance certificates) either:
- have an appropriate New Zealand qualification; or
- are working towards having an appropriate New Zealand qualification within a reasonable time; or
- have an appropriate foreign qualification recognised in New Zealand.
This requirement was introduced by regulation 18 of the Building (Accreditation of Building Consent Authorities) Regulations 2006 back in February 2007. The purpose of this regulation is to help ensure that all people undertaking technical building control functions within BCAs have a specified and acknowledged level of skill, knowledge and understanding to undertake building control work.
However, because there is not yet a standard national qualification(s) for the core day-to-day roles of building officials available in New Zealand (such as a national diploma), some BCAs have sought further guidance on what will be needed to comply with regulation 18.
New building control qualifications
Regulation 18 was introduced in anticipation of work being progressed to develop new national qualifications. The Local Government Industry Training Organisation (LGITO) is currently leading a project to develop two national diploma-level qualifications for building officials.
- A National Diploma in Building Control Surveying (small buildings)
- A National Diploma in Building Control Surveying (medium and large buildings)
Who is involved?
LGITO is leading and working closely with key sector stakeholders on this project. An oversight committee was established for the project and is being chaired by Craig Stevenson from South Taranaki District Council. The committee has representation from the following organisations.
- Society of Local Government Managers (SOLGM)
- Local Government New Zealand (LGNZ)
- Building Officials Institute of New Zealand (BOINZ)
- Building Control Managers Group
- Department of Building and Housing
- New Zealand Institute of Building Surveyors
- Wellington Institute of Technology (WelTec)
- The Institutes of Technology and Polytechnics of New Zealand
What is the status of this work?
National Diploma development for ‘small buildings'
Prior to LGITO's involvement, sector stakeholders including BOINZ, LGNZ, SOLGM, the Department and others all contributed to work to capture the critical skills and knowledge of building officials in national qualifications.
After this developmental phase, two rounds of consultation occurred in 2007, which saw considerable interest from the sector. In July 2007 the detailed components for the qualification (called ‘unit standards') were submitted to the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) to be registered.
After NZQA finished assessing the proposed unit standards, it approved and then registered them on the National Qualifications Framework in January 2008.
The list of units can be found on the website of the company assisting LGITO with this work, Williams Unlimited Limited. 
The unit standard documents can be viewed on the NZQA website
After the unit standards were registered, NZQA has been evaluating the finalised national qualification document itself so it can also be registered on the National Qualifications Framework and complete the qualifications development process. This work has been significantly advanced. In October, NZQA completed its evaluation of the qualification document and provided feedback to LGITO. LGITO has worked through the issues raised and has responded back to NZQA. If NZQA is satisfied with the response, then LGITO expects that the qualification will be registered by late January 2009.
National Diploma package for ‘medium and large buildings'
The starting point for the medium and large buildings qualification was consulted upon with the sector in 2007. LGITO also obtained funding from the Tertiary Education Commission to develop this second qualification in late 2007.
Over the first half of 2008 considerable progress was made to develop the detail of the qualifications package. An overview document for the qualification, along with the component units standards was consulted upon with the sector in July 2008. During this process a series of regional workshops were held. The consultation process closed on 15 August 2008. These qualification documents are available at:
- www.unltd.co.nz/index.cfm/client_projects/building_control_qualifications/mediumand_ large_buildings.html
In late August 2008 the sector oversight committee endorsed the content of the proposed unit standards for the medium and large buildings qualification. The unit standard documents were submitted to NZQA for its assessment during November 2008. The draft qualifications document was finalised and was submitted to NZQA for evaluation following the registration of the unit standards. The qualification is expected to be registered on the NZQA framework by February 2009.
Expected timing and implementation
Although the two qualifications were developed over different timeframes, and are both dependent on the timing of the NZQA assessment and evaluation processes, the current expectation is that they should both be registered on the National Qualifications Framework in early 2009, with possible implementation in mid-2009.
Implementation planning for the two national qualifications is also well under way. Seven polytechnics from around the country have recently been considering whether they will participate in the implementation of the new qualifications. To assist with implementation planning and to enable these providers to finalise their decision-making, a survey of building officials in building consent authorities across New Zealand was undertaken earlier in the year. This survey aimed to get a better feel for numbers of building officials across the country, their general levels of experience in their jobs, and the broad split of officials working across the different types or categories of buildings. LGITO then invited the polytechnics to factor in such information and provide a more detailed implementation proposal, either individually or collectively. The closing dates for proposals was the end of October.
How do the new qualifications relate to regulation 18?
Regulation 18 is focused on building officials involved in technical roles - such as processing building consent applications, inspecting building work for compliance, or issuing legal documents under the Building Act (eg, building consents, notices to fix, code compliance certificates).
It is expected that the new national diploma level qualifications will be the minimum requirement for those BCA personnel who carry out such work for small, medium or large buildings by 2013. In most cases this will include technical employees such as building officials, trainee building officials, technical clerks, and possibly some administrative staff who contribute to technical building control tasks (eg, vetting and receiving consent applications). It will also include contracted people doing similar technical tasks.
The BCA regulations take account of the different technical skills and expertise engaged by BCAs.
To an extent, what is ‘appropriate' will also be decided, in the first instance (and then assessed by IANZ for accreditation purposes), by each BCA depending on how their building control unit is structured and the roles undertaken by BCA employees and contractors. For instance, administrative staff who help with the initial vetting of building consent applications could be regarded by the BCA as performing a technical role (at least for that part of their job) and hence be required to have or be working towards a qualification that is appropriate for that part of their role.
For people in specialist technical positions (eg, structural, geotechnical or fire engineers) one of the new qualifications might be relevant if they actually do the core building control work that building officials usually do. However, in most cases such professionals usually only provide specialist advice about their technical areas of expertise. As such, they will need an appropriate qualification in that particular discipline, which will already be part of their profession's own entry criteria, (eg, a degree in engineering).
The regulation was also developed to be as flexible as possible. For instance, people can be working towards a qualification within a reasonable time (yet to be defined) or could seek to use an equivalent qualification previously gained overseas (eg, a diploma or degree in building surveying).
What about recognising previous training and/or qualifications?
Many building officials may already have completed, or partially completed, courses or existing qualifications such as a WelTec diploma, a BRANZ Construction Industry Training Enterprises (CITE) course, or a National Diploma in Architectural Technology. In many cases such prior learning is likely to be able to be cross-credited towards the new national qualifications. However, the relevance and level of cross-credit of previous training and courses to the new qualifications cannot be confirmed until NZQA has finally approved them and registered them on the National Qualifications Framework.
When this happens, new qualification documents will include sections on transitional arrangements to explain the relevance of these courses. Organisations such as WelTec and BRANZ have already assessed their existing courses against the proposed new qualifications and formed their views on what should be able to be cross credited. These organisations have communicated their positions to NZQA. If any building officials want more information on how their previous training or qualifications is likely to be relevant to the two new qualifications at this time, they should approach their training provider in the first instance.
What do the new qualifications mean for existing and experienced building officials?
A key message the Department is emphasising is that the new qualifications represent an excellent professional development opportunity for building officials working in the sector now as well as also being vital longer-term initiatives aimed at strengthening the technical capability and professionalism of the workforce.
Building officials working now have the opportunity to lead the way for the profession. While all qualifications have to be earned, skilled and experienced building officials should be well positioned to convert the opportunity presented by the new qualifications. As mentioned above, many are already likely to be part of the way there with their current competencies and work history. It is critical that the building controls sector retain its current workforce and the new qualifications have been designed so that this is realistic. People should not be wary of the new qualifications - they are a relevant and accessible opportunity for all. To help prepare for the new qualifications building officials are encouraged to keep good records of their work experience, current competencies, existing qualifications, and ongoing continued professional development training as this information will all be relevant.
The answer is to keep investing in training initiatives that are relevant to the core business of building control. Each BCA should have a system for assessing the skills and core building control competencies of its individual personnel and the BCA as a whole. This should help identify the BCA's technical strengthens and limitations and enable BCAs to develop sound training plans based on this assessment process. Existing training programmes and courses that are relevant to day-to-day building control activities and are helping to upskill building officials will all help smooth the transition to the new qualifications. None of this should be considered ‘wasted training', just because new qualifications are being developed and introduced.
Further information
Further updates and information on the development and implementation of national qualifications for building officials will be published in future editions of BCA Update as they come to hand. Information is also available online on Williams Unlimited's website .
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Building officials and the licensed building practitioner scheme
Implementation of the Building Act's Licensed Building Practitioner (LBP) scheme is progressing, with the scheme now into its second year.
While the scheme is aimed at ensuring the competence and accountability of building practitioners (including carpenters, site supervisors, and designers/draughtspersons), it is still very relevant for building officials.
This is because building consent authorities and their building officials interact with such practitioners, and undertake compliance checks of their work, on a day-to-day basis - whether this happens at the consent processing stage or while checking compliance on site as building work progresses.
It follows that as more practitioners become licensed (and as quickly as possible) then building officials should have greater confidence that the practitioners that actually undertake the building work they check have been assessed as competent to do so and are also accountable for their work.
The Department administers the scheme, including developing licensing standards, licensing those who have met the relevant standards, and administering the public register of licensed building practitioners. BCAs can use, for example, the online register to confirm whether a producer statement author is licensed, identify the licensing class or classes the author holds, and to identify any disciplinary action taken by the Building Practitioners Board against them. To become licensed, applicants must show that they meet the national competency standard(s) for the licensing class(es) they apply for. The scheme also includes an independent Building Practitioners Board to hear complaints about licensed building practitioners' work and appeals about licensing decisions.
While we are continuing to promote the scheme, and encourage its uptake amongst practitioners, building officials are also in a unique position to inform building practitioners and other tradespeople they deal with about the scheme. The easiest way building officials can do this is to display copies of the Department's guidance material about the scheme at their front reception counters and hand these out to practitioners they deal with on site.
Practitioners can then take this material away and work through it. The guide is called ‘Is licensing for me?', and explains how the licensing scheme functions and the advantages for practitioners. It also sets out the different licensing classes that are available and explains how to apply for licences and the process.
Free copies of guide can be obtained from the Department by calling 0800 60 60 50. Online copies, along with further information about the licensing scheme, are available at: www.dbh.govt.nz/occupational-licensing
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Overview of key building control guidance
One of the key responsibilities of the Department of Building and Housing is to publish guidance information for the building control sector on the requirements of the Building Act and Building Code.2
Over the years we have produced a wealth of best practice guidance on a range of issues.
This includes publishing:
- regular email bulletins and newsletters, which can contain guidance along with other material (examples include Building Controls Update, Codewords, BCA Update, and Practice Advisories)
- more comprehensive stand-alone guidance documents on key issues.
A summary of some of the key stand-alone guidance documents available is provided below.
In most cases, this information is freely available in both hard copy and electronic forms.
- You can request publications by calling 0800 242 243.
- They are also available on our website
| Title |
Summary of content |
Primary audience |
| Building Act 2004: Guide to exemptions from building consent requirements |
Contains a high-level overview of the changes to Schedule 1 of the Building Act 2004, which came into force in October 2008. Schedule 1 lists the types of minor building work that do not require a building consent. |
Building officials |
| Building work that does not require a building consent: A Guide to Schedule 1 of the Building Act 2004 |
Provides more detail about each of the exemptions in Schedule 1 and specific examples to illustrate where such exemptions are likely to be appropriate. |
Designers Builders Building officials Homeowners |
| Guide to building consent amendments |
Outlines the Department of Building and Housing's expectations around notifying proposed variations to building consents, assessing those variations and making amendments to building consents. |
Designers Builders Homeowners Developers Building officials |
| A beginner's guide to resource and building consent processes |
Explains in plain English the requirements of, and relationship between, the Resource Management Act 1991 and the Building Act 2004. It was jointly produced by the Department and the Ministry for the Environment. |
General public who are considering a building project |
| Compliance Schedule Handbook |
Provides information about the compliance schedule and building warrant of fitness regime under the Building Act 2004. It also provides a guide to developing a compliance schedule for a specified system or systems in a building, including guidance on the associated inspection, maintenance and reporting procedures. |
Building officials Designers IQPs Compliance companies Building owners Building managers |
| Guide to applying for a building consent (simple residential buildings) |
Describes the key issues to consider when applying for a building consent, along with the minimum documentation that should be supplied with an application to demonstrate compliance with relevant clauses of the Building Code. |
Designers Building owners Building managers Building users Building officials |
| Accessible car parking spaces |
Provides information on car parking spaces suitable for use by people with mobility disabilities. It outlines the number of parks that must be provided and how they are to be constructed and located. Mobility Parking Permits are explained, along with how accessible parks at motels and in commercial buildings can be managed. |
Designers Building owners Building managers Building users Building officials |
| The international symbol of access |
Contains information on the international symbol of access - the symbol used to indicate the features and facilities in buildings that can be used by people with mobility disabilities. |
Designers Builders Building users Building officials |
| Accessible reception and service counters |
Contains information on the correct use of the international symbol of access, and the sound design and installation of accessible reception and service counters. |
Designers Builders Building users Building officials |
| Building Act 2004: Information for designers, builders and specialist trades |
Discusses changes to building legislation brought about by the introduction of the Building Act 2004 and new Regulations, including: contracts for building work building consents and inspections spec building and housing developments occupational licensing. |
Designers Building site supervisors Tradespeople |
| Building Act 2004: New safety measures for premises intended for public use - Section 363 |
Contains information about section 363 of the Building Act 2004, which covers premises intended for public use that are affected by building work. The main topics discussed are: when section 363 applies responding to section 363. |
Owners and occupiers Those who control premises intended for public use |
| Building officials' guide to the Building Act 2004 |
Provides information for building officials about the key changes to building legislation introduced by the Building Act 2004. The main topics it covers are: responsibilities of TAs and BCAs core building control provisions (eg, project information memoranda, building consents, compliance schedules) other provisions (eg, warnings and bans, offences, product certification) a comparison with the Building Act 1991. |
Building officials |
| Building officials' FAQs |
Provides answers to building officials' most frequently asked questions about the consent and inspection process under the Building Act 2004. |
Building officials |
| Earthquake-prone building provisions of the Building Act 2004: Policy guidance for territorial authorities |
Provides guidance on how councils can make a policy for dealing with earthquake-prone buildings. The main topics covered include: the intent of the legislation a policy template policy guidance a model policy. |
Territorial authority chief executives Building officials |
| Dangerous and insanitary building provisions of the Building Act 2004: Policy guidance for territorial authorities |
Provides guidance on how to develop a policy for dealing with dangerous and insanitary buildings. The main topics covered include: a policy approach priorities for action dealing with heritage buildings a template check sheet for inspections. |
Territorial authority chief executives Building officials |
| Building infringement scheme guidelines |
Contains information to assist effective and appropriate implementation of the Building (Infringement Offences, Fees, and Forms) Regulations 2007 and the development of relevant local enforcement policies and procedures. |
Territorial authorities Regional councils |
| Building Consent Authority Accreditation Preparation and Self-assessment Guide |
Provides information to assist territorial and regional authorities that apply to become building consent authorities to prepare their policies, processes and procedures for accreditation assessment. The guide is also a tool to support self-assessment for building consent authority accreditation applicants against the Building (Accreditation of Building Consent Authorities) Regulations 2006. |
Building officials |
| BCA Accreditation Regulation 17 Quality Assurance System Guidance |
Provides guidance for building consent authorities on the quality assurance requirements of regulation 17 of the Building (Accreditation of Building Consent Authorities) Regulations 2006. Building consent authorities must have implemented, and be successfully accredited against, these requirements before 1 December 2010. |
Building officials |
| Building consent authority development guide |
A tool for applicant building consent authorities to use when preparing for accreditation. The guide includes process flowcharts and information about the technical processes and procedures of territorial authorities, regional authorities and building consent authorities. Note: A CD version for regional authorities is also available on request. |
Building officials |
| Building consent authority development guide: Management processes and procedures module |
Provides assistance to territorial and regional authorities that apply to become building consent authorities to prepare their quality assurance policies, processes and procedures for accreditation assessment and ongoing compliance. The guide also provides good-practice guidance that may be used (or adapted for use) by building consent authorities to demonstrate compliance with the accreditation regulation 17 Assuring Quality. |
Building officials |
| Means of establishing compliance: alternative solutions |
Contains guidance on how to use alternative solution proposals when applying for building consents. This includes the use and assessment of alternative solutions by building consent authorities. |
Building consent applicants Designers Architects Engineers Other building and construction professionals Building officials |
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Building act and building regulations helpline
The Department's Consent Authority Capability and Performance Group offers a helpline for building official's enquiries about the Building Act and Building Regulations. If you have a general question about a particular section of the Building Act or regulations, you can email us on info@dbh.govt.nz
Please address your enquiry to the Consent Authority Capability and Performance Group, provide all of your contact and be as comprehensive as possible in explaining your question. Like you, staff in the group are busy and it can take a day or more to respond to an individual enquiry, as these are fitted in between other core tasks and activities.
Please note, if your enquiry is about a specific issue surrounding a specific building consent application, such as technical Building Code compliance matter or issue of doubt or dispute between the BCA and the consent applicant, then a determination may be the most appropriate solution.
This Building Act helpline does not provide building consent-specific code compliance advice or independent legal advice. It provides guidance and advice on interpreting and understanding the Building Act and Regulations.
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Subscribe to BCA update
This publication has been developed to highlight and communicate topical building control issues. The original circulation list was developed from multiple mailing lists within the Department. To ensure you continue to receive this publication, subscribe online through the address below.
This publication is only produced electronically, so please ensure we have your correct email address.
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