The regulations have changed. The responsibility has changed. So why are some of the old ways of working still hanging around?
The building control industry has been through one of its biggest periods of change in decades.
The Building Safety Act, the Building Safety Regulator, Registered Building Control Approvers, Registered Building Inspectors and new dutyholder responsibilities have fundamentally changed the way projects are expected to approach compliance.
But regulation alone doesn’t create safer buildings.
The real change comes from how people work.
At Restore Compliance, that means asking a bigger question: What does good building
control actually look like in 2026?
It’s not just about saying no
Building control has historically been viewed by some project teams as the person who turns up, finds the problems and tells everyone what they can’t do.
That approach is increasingly difficult to reconcile with the collaborative, accountable
environment created by the Building Safety Act. Good building control shouldn’t mean simply finding defects.
It should mean identifying risk early, explaining the issue clearly and helping the project team understand what needs to happen next.
That doesn’t mean lowering standards.
Quite the opposite.
It means having the confidence to challenge
where something isn’t compliant, while
having the technical knowledge and
communication skills to explain why.
For Restore, the role of the building control
professional is evolving from simply checking
compliance to becoming an important part
of the project’s wider safety culture.
Paperwork is not the same as compliance
One of the biggest lessons emerging from
the new regulatory environment is the
importance of evidence.
A decision isn’t simply a decision.
Can you demonstrate why it was made?
Can you show what information was considered?
Can you demonstrate who was responsible?
Can you evidence the inspection?
Can you demonstrate that issues were identified, communicated and closed?
Can you show that the information supporting completion and certification is robust?
These questions are becoming increasingly important.
At Restore, this has led to a strong focus on auditability and the golden thread of information.
Inspection notes, photographs, design information, correspondence, declarations and decisions all contribute to the story of a building.
And that story needs to make sense.
“If you can’t evidence it, how do you know it happened?”
It is a deliberately uncomfortable question — but an important one.
The industry is moving away from a culture where a certificate at the end of a project is
treated as the finish line.
Instead, compliance needs to be demonstrated throughout the journey.
The human side of building safety
Technology, legislation and processes are important.
But ultimately, building safety still comes down to people.
The designer making a decision.
The contractor constructing the work.
The building control professional reviewing it.
The client understanding their responsibilities.
The dutyholder providing the right information.
And everyone communicating when something doesn’t look right.
That creates a different challenge for the industry.
People need to feel able to ask questions, challenge decisions and report issues
without simply passing responsibility somewhere else.
At Restore, this is central to the company’s approach.
The team believes that a strong compliance culture isn’t created by having the biggest
rulebook.
It is created when people understand why something matters and take ownership of
getting it right.
The building control skills gap
There is another issue that the industry cannot ignore.
Who is going to deliver building control in five, 10 and 20 years?
The regulatory changes have increased expectations of technical competence at exactly the time when the industry is already facing a significant skills challenge.
Restore has responded by investing in developing its own people, including supporting trainee building control professionals alongside experienced Registered Building Inspectors.
For the business, developing the next generation isn’t simply a recruitment strategy.
It is part of the industry’s long-term solution.
Experience matters.
But experience has to be passed on.
“The Building Safety Act, the Building Safety Regulator, Registered Building Control Approvers, Registered Building Inspectors and new duty-holder responsibilities have fundamentally changed the way projects are expected to approach compliance.”
From compliance checker to trusted adviser
The building control professional of the future will need more than technical knowledge.
They will need to understand risk.
They will need to communicate.
They will need to document decisions.
They will need to understand the regulatory framework.
And perhaps most importantly, they will need the confidence to challenge when something doesn’t look right.
That is where Restore sees the opportunity.
Not to make building control easier by making the requirements less demanding.
But to make compliance clearer, earlier and more collaborative.
So, what does “good” look like?
There probably isn’t one single answer.
But there are some questions worth asking.
Are we identifying risks early enough?
Are responsibilities genuinely understood?
Are decisions properly recorded?
Is the evidence there?
Are we developing the people who will deliver the service tomorrow?
And perhaps the biggest question of all: Are we building a culture where doing the right
thing is easier than doing nothing?
Because the future of building control isn’t going to be defined by certificates alone. It will be defined by competence, accountability, evidence and culture. And that is where Restore Compliance believes the real opportunity lies.
The post Building control after the change: What does “good” look like now? appeared first on Planning, Building & Construction Today.
