Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 21 June 2016
260. Deputy Dessie Ellis asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if he is aware that over the past number of years, a clerk of works has not been mandatory on site, and if he will reintroduced this measure in the interest of better building regulations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17255/16]
View answerIn broad terms, the role of a clerk of works is to monitor the quality of work on site, check and supervise construction details, record progress and report to the project design team. The Building Control (Amendment) Regulations 2014 which came into effect on 1 March 2014, introduced requirements for the appointment of design certifiers and assigned certifiers. The role of the assigned certifier is to draw up and execute an appropriate inspection plan, in conjunction with the builder and the project team, and to jointly certify with the builder that the building is in compliance with the Building Regulations when complete.
Whereas heretofore local authorities, who frequently employed clerks of works on local authority construction projects, were exempt from building control requirements, this general exemption was removed under the Building Control (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2015 with effect from 1 September 2015 following a review of the 2014 Regulations after 12 months in operation.
In response to this change , my Department has written to all local authorities outlining the revised funding arrangements that will apply typically in respect of social housing projects funded by the Department. The revised funding arrangements make provision for the additional costs associated with the new design certifier and assigned certifier roles now required under Building Control Regulations. These inspection and certification roles are a statutory obligation unlike the non-statutory system of inspections previously undertaken by the clerks of works.
The design and assigned certifier roles must be undertaken by registered construction professionals (i.e. an architect, a building surveyor or a chartered engineer), who may be directly employed by the local authority or whose services may be procured by way of public tender. It is unlikely that persons who previously undertook the role of clerk of work will be in a position to undertake the design or assigned certifier role although some clerks of works may be qualified to do so.
Staffing and resourcing issues are in the first instance a matter for the Chief Executive of each local authority. Standard funding arrangements communicated by my Department to local authorities are necessarily based around the general arrangements that typically apply to construction projects. If, in relation to specific projects, circumstances exist which require alternative approaches, these can be considered on a case by case basis by the Department in consultation with the local authority concerned. Reasonable and appropriate proposals that represent good value for money having regard to the public funds invested will always receive due consideration.
