The Building (Local Authority Charges) Regulations 2010
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
2010 No. 404
Building And Buildings, England And Wales
The Building (Local Authority Charges) Regulations 2010
Made 22th February 2010
Laid before Parliament 25th February 2010
Coming into force 1st April 2010
The Secretary of State, in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 1, 16(10), 35 and 50(3) of, and paragraphs 9 and 10 of Schedule 1 to, the Building Act 19841, makes the following Regulations:
Citation and commencement
1. These Regulations may be cited as the Building (Local Authority Charges) Regulations 2010 and shall come into force on 1st April 2010.
Interpretation
2. In these Regulations—
“the Act” means the Building Act 1984;
“the Approved Inspectors Regulations” means the Building (Approved Inspectors etc.) Regulations 20002;
“building” means any permanent or temporary building but not any other kind of structure or erection, and a reference to a building includes a reference to part of a building;
“building notice” means a notice given in accordance with regulations 12(2)(a) and 133of the Principal Regulations;
“building work” has the meaning given in regulation 3(1) of the Principal Regulations4;
“chargeable function” means a function listed in regulation 5(1);
“the Principal Regulations” means the Building Regulations 20005; and
“relevant person” means—
(a) in relation to a plan charge, inspection charge, reversion charge or building notice charge, the person who carries out the building work or on whose behalf the building work is carried out;
(b) in relation to a regularisation charge, the owner of the building; and
(c) in relation to chargeable advice, any person requesting advice for which a charge may be made pursuant to regulation 5(2).
Authorisation to fix and recover charges by way of a scheme
3.—(1) A local authority are authorised by means of a scheme made under these Regulations (a “charging scheme”) to—
(a)
(a) fix such charges as they may determine, from time to time and in accordance with these Regulations, for or in connection with the performance of their functions relating to building regulations; and
(b)
(b) recover those charges, to the extent provided for by these Regulations, from relevant persons.
(2) The authorisation given by paragraph (1) is subject to the exception in regulation 4.
Exception for building work solely required for disabled persons
4.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2), in relation to an existing dwelling which is, or is to be, occupied by a disabled person as a permanent residence, a local authority shall not fix or recover any charges where the whole of the building work in question is solely—
(a)
(a) for the purpose of providing means of access for the disabled person by way of entrance or exit to or from the dwelling or any part of it, or
(b)
(b) for the purpose of providing accommodation or facilities designed to secure the greater health, safety, welfare or convenience of the disabled person.
(2) Building work does not fall within paragraph (1)(b) unless the local authority are satisfied that the work consists of—
(a)
(a) the adaptation or extension of existing accommodation or an existing facility or the provision of alternative accommodation or an alternative facility where the existing accommodation or facility could not be used by the disabled person or could be used by the disabled person only with assistance; or
(b)
(b) the provision or extension of a room which is or will be used solely—
(i) for the carrying out for the benefit of the disabled person of medical treatment which cannot reasonably be carried out in any other room in the dwelling, or
(ii) for the storage of medical equipment for the use of the disabled person, or
(iii) to provide sleeping accommodation for a carer where the disabled person requires 24-hour care.
(3) In relation to an existing building to which members of the public are admitted (whether on payment or otherwise) a local authority shall not fix charges where the whole of the building work in question is solely—
(a)
(a) for the purpose of providing means of access for disabled persons by way of entrance or exit to or from the building or any part of it; or
(b)
(b) for the provision of facilities designed to secure the greater health, safety, welfare or convenience of disabled persons.
(4) In this regulation—
“disabled person” means a person who is within any of the descriptions of persons to whom section 29(1) of the National Assistance Act 19486, as extended by virtue of section 8(2) of the Mental Health Act 19597, applied but disregarding the amendments made by paragraph 11 of Schedule 13 to the Children Act 19898; and
“dwelling” includes a dwelling-house and a flat; and “dwelling-house” and “flat” have the same meanings as in the Principal Regulations9.
Principles of charging scheme: chargeable functions and advice
5.—(1) A local authority are authorised, by means of a charging scheme, to make a charge for or in connection with each of the following functions carried out by them—
(a)
(a) the passing or rejection of plans of proposed building work which have been deposited with the local authority, in accordance with section 16 of the Act10(a “plan charge”);
(b)
(b) the inspection of building work for which plans have been deposited in accordance with the Principal Regulations and with section 16 of the Act (an “inspection charge”);
(c)
(c) the consideration of a building notice which has been given to the local authority in accordance with the Principal Regulations (a “building notice charge”);
(d)
(d) the consideration of building work reverting to local authority control under the Approved Inspectors Regulations (a “reversion charge”); and
(e)
(e) the consideration of an application under regulation 21 of the Principal Regulations and the inspection of any building work to which that application relates (a “regularisation charge”).
(2) A local authority are authorised by means of a charging scheme, to make a charge in relation to a request for advice as regards any particular case (in these Regulations called “chargeable advice”) where such a charge is made in anticipation of the future exercise of their chargeable functions in relation to that case; but no charge may be made for the first hour of time spent by an officer of the authority in providing chargeable advice.
Principles of charging scheme: overriding objective in determining charges
6.—(1) In determining the amount of the charges to be made within a charging scheme, a local authority shall have regard to the overriding objective in paragraph (3).
(2) At the end of the financial year in which a local authority first make a charging scheme, and of each subsequent financial year, the authority shall conduct a review of the level of charges set under their charging scheme in accordance with regulation 7, for the purpose of achieving the overriding objective.
(3) The overriding objective is that the authority must ensure that, taking one financial year with another, the income derived by the authority from performing chargeable functions and providing chargeable advice (“chargeable income”) as nearly as possible equates to the costs incurred by the authority in performing chargeable functions and providing chargeable advice (“chargeable costs”).
(4) Immediately following the review mentioned in paragraph (2) a local authority shall prepare a statement which sets out, as regards the financial year to which it relates—
(a)
(a) the chargeable costs;
(b)
(b) the chargeable income; and
(c)
(c) the amount of any surplus or deficit.
(5) The statement prepared in accordance with paragraph (4) shall be published not more than six months after the end of the financial year to which the statement relates.
(6) The statement to be published under this regulation must be approved by the person having responsibility for the administration of the financial affairs of the local authority under—
(a)
(a) section 151 of the Local Government Act 197211; or
(b)
(b) in the case of the Common Council of the City of London, section 6 of the Local Government and Housing Act 198912.
(7) Paragraph (8) applies where—
(a)
(a) an authority first makes a charging scheme under these Regulations, and
(b)
(b) that scheme first takes effect at any time other than at the beginning of a financial year.
(8) Where this paragraph applies, in determining the charges under their charging scheme, an authority shall have regard to any estimated surplus or deficit arising for that part of the financial year for which an existing scheme made under the Building (Local Authority Charges) Regulations 199813continues to have effect.
(9) A financial year is the period of 12 months beginning with 1st April.
Principles of charging scheme: calculating charges
7.—(1) A local authority shall determine the charges referred to in their charging scheme by reference to the costs of providing services in relation to particular building work or building work of particular descriptions, having regard in doing so to the overriding objective in regulation 6(3).
(2) The costs of providing the services shall be calculated using—
(a)
(a) the hourly rate at which the time of their officers will be charged, and
(b)
(b) such of the factors listed in paragraph (5) as will be taken into account in estimating the time required by their officers for performing a chargeable function or providing chargeable advice.
(3) Where the local authority consider it necessary to engage and incur the costs of a consultant to provide specialist advice or services in relation to a particular aspect of building work those costs shall also be included in the...
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