Call for Evidence: Strategy for the built environment professions, trades and occupations
Annex A: Definitions
- Building control: The regulatory system intended to ensure that building work complies with building regulations.
- Building regulations: Regulations that apply to most new buildings and many alterations of existing buildings in England and Wales, whether for domestic, commercial or industrial use. Compliance is a legal requirement.
- Built environment sector / building professions: These terms are used interchangeably in this document to refer to the range of people, bodies and organisations involved in activities connected with the development, design, construction, management or maintenance of residential, civil and commercial buildings. This includes the range of professionals and tradespeople who design, build, fund and maintain our buildings, as well as those in related occupations such as planners, and residents and users of every type and tenure of building. Each of these actors has a different level and type of impact on our buildings. The scope of these terms broadly aligns with the definition of “the built environment industry” in the Building Safety Act 2022 and therefore excludes work on infrastructure, although this definition is preliminary and does not prejudge the scope of the final strategy.
- Client: Building and design work is done on behalf of the client, in relation to the client’s business. A client can be an organisation or an individual. They will often be a developer or the building owner.
- Competence (individual): The skills, knowledge, experience and behaviours necessary for an individual to perform a role safely and in compliance with regulations. Competence should be understood as both an individual and organisational responsibility (see “organisational capability”).
- Dutyholder regime: The legal framework introduced in England on 1 October 2023 by the Building Safety Act 2022, which places legal responsibility on those involved in the design and construction of buildings to ensure compliance with building regulations.
- Higher Risk Buildings (HRBs): Buildings deemed to be higher risk, subject to the requirements of the higher-risk regime directly overseen by the Building Safety Regulator.
- Organisational capability: The ability of an organisation to discharge its contractual and legal duties by ensuring it has appropriate management arrangements and resources in place to plan, manage, and monitor work effectively. Organisations must ensure that their workforce and supply chain collectively provide the competence (skills, knowledge, experience and behaviours) required.
- Professions, trades and occupations: The full range of people carrying out, for business purposes, activities and functions connected with the design, construction, management or maintenance of buildings. Throughout this call for evidence, “built environment/building professions” may be used as shorthand to include all professions, trades and occupations in the sector.
- Professional body: An organisation that comprises members whose occupation is in a specific sector or specialism, such as surveying or structural engineering. Professional bodies may also have organisations as members. Professional bodies typically set entry requirements for members and requirements for ongoing membership, such as requiring adherence to a code of conduct. Professional bodies often play a role in the education and continuing professional development of their members.
- Regulation: A set of activities and functions centred around the setting, administration, monitoring and enforcement of rules (not all these elements need be present). Regulation can play a role in incentivising and changing behaviours across the built environment, helping build trust. Regulation can play an enabling role, giving guidance to practitioners, consumers and the market; it can drive continuing competence of all those operating across a regulated sector; and can play a role in identifying and mitigating risks. Regulation is often associated with government, but this call for evidence will adopt a broad definition that will allow us to talk about “self-regulation” by professions and other forms of non-governmental regulation.
- Trade body: An organisation commonly established by and for member businesses similar occupations. Trade bodies typically advocate for their members and their occupation, and often play a role supporting members, for example with guidance or learning opportunities.