RenovationNotes

References

Renovation

189 sources in the library on renovation. Each one says what the document covers and what it is good for. Name a source to see which document it is and where to read it. One at a time. Page 4 of 5.

  1. very strong RN-K607FJ

    Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

    The 130-page PDF of the August 2026 National Planning Policy Framework, the document a planning officer works from. It is the citable text for policy GB7, which lists what is NOT inappropriate development in the Green Belt and therefore needs no very special circumstances: agriculture, horticulture and forestry or work solely for nature conservation; the reuse, extension, alteration or replacement of an existing permanent and lawful building where the change is not a disproportionate increase in size against the original building (and any replacement is for the same use and not materially larger); limited infilling in Green Belt villages; limited affordable housing for local needs; redevelopment of previously developed land that would not cause substantial harm to openness; and, where openness impact is minimised, mineral extraction, engineering operations, utilities and telecommunications infrastructure needing a Green Belt location, Community Right to Build or Neighbourhood Development Orders, material changes in the use of land, and facilities for outdoor sport, recreation, cemeteries, burial grounds and allotments. GB7(1)(g) adds the grey belt route and GB8 sets the Golden Rules for major housing development. Chapter 20 (HE1 to HE10) is the heritage chapter: HE1 covers plan-making and local heritage lists for non-designated assets, HE2 covers conservation areas and World Heritage Sites, HE3 covers Historic Environment Records, HE4 requires conservation appropriate to significance and clear and convincing justification for harm, and HE5 requires a proportionate significance assessment and a stated degree of harm, judged on effect on significance rather than the scale of the development.

  2. very strong RN-26UWTU

    Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

    The GOV.UK landing page for Approved Document K, published 3 January 2013, ISBN 978 1 85946 484 7, covering protection from falling, collision and impact, including the design of staircases, ladders, ramps, guarding and vehicle barriers; this edition absorbed Approved Document N on glazing and some overlapping Approved Document M guidance. Since April 2023 the Building Safety Regulator has a duty under the Building Safety Act 2022 to keep the safety and standards of all buildings in England under review, which includes advising government on Approved Document updates. The linked PDF sets the figures a loft conversion note needs: the maximum pitch for a private stair is 42 degrees (Table 1.1 note 1); the normal relationship for rise and going is twice the rise plus the going between 550mm and 700mm; means of escape routes need a minimum clear headroom of 2m except in doorways (paragraph 1.12); and paragraph 1.13 with Diagram 1.4 allows reduced headroom for loft conversions in dwellings where there is not enough space, satisfied at 1.9m at the centre of the stair width falling to 1.8m at the side. Archived editions of Approved Documents K and N are at the National Archives.

  3. very strong RN-ZM5DZM

    Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

    The landing page for the 2019 research, published 1 October 2019 and applying to England, hosting the 87 page 3.97 MB report. States the primary aim was to evaluate whether the ventilation provisions recommended in the 2010 edition of Approved Document F provide satisfactory indoor air quality in new homes, with a secondary aim of establishing the extent to which installed systems comply with the minimum ADF provisions. Its headline conclusion is the one to cite: the study found poor indoor air quality in a number of the monitored homes, and failure to meet indoor air quality indicators corresponded in all cases with failure to meet the ADF ventilation recommendations, so the shortfall lay in installation and commissioning rather than in the standard itself.

  4. very strong RN-W3L96O

    Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

    An 87 page field study published 1 October 2019 measuring what installed ventilation actually delivers, and its numbers demolish the assumption that a new or upgraded system performs as designed. Of 25 homes visited with continuous mechanical extract, only one met Approved Document F guidance on both extract fan air flow rates and trickle ventilator provision, with whole dwelling extract flow rates in normal low-rate mode ranging from 85 per cent below to 8 per cent above the recommended rate. Only half the homes met the minimum trickle ventilator areas, ranging from 60 per cent below to 107 per cent above the recommended area. On two of three dMEV development sites trickle ventilators had been fitted in the same rooms as the extract fans, contrary to ADF guidance, which can stop fans drawing air through the whole house. On air quality: 11 per cent of the limited monitoring sample had a room where weekly average relative humidity exceeded the recommended monthly average, always the bedroom, and condensation or mould was reported in each such room; 30 per cent exceeded the derived carbon dioxide guideline in the bedroom; and 60 per cent of the detailed monitoring sample exceeded the ADF total volatile organic compound performance standard. Ventilation was found adequate for nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide but not for moisture, body odour and VOCs. Notes that Part F 2010 introduced a legal requirement to test and commission installed fans and for the installer to notify the building control body of commissioning and air flow rates.

  5. very strong RN-MQ9OJ9

    Northern Ireland Housing Executive

    Northern Ireland runs a materially wider set of housing grants than Great Britain, administered by the Northern Ireland Housing Executive rather than a local council. Six schemes are listed. The Affordable Warmth Scheme addresses fuel poverty and energy inefficiency for low-income households. The Disabled Facilities Grant adapts a disabled person's home, but unlike in England it requires a health trust occupational therapist to recommend the work. The Repair Grant helps landlords where a council has issued a statutory notice for repairs. The Renovation Grant is for homes inspected and found unfit to live in, and the property must be the applicant's main or only home. The Replacement Grant is available only where the home is in a rural area, is unfit to live in and repair is not an option. The Home Repair Assistance Grant covers small-scale repair work and improvements. The Renovation, Replacement and Home Repair Assistance Grants have no equivalent in England.

  6. very strong RN-I3VUJ8

    Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service

    Scotland's equivalent of the small claims track, and the figures differ sharply from England and Wales. A Simple Procedure claim can be made for payment of a sum of money where the value of the claim is 5,000 pounds or less, or for delivery or recovery of moveable property or an order to make someone do something, but in each of those cases only where there is an alternative money claim of 5,000 pounds or less. Where the value of the claim is over 5,000 pounds the ordinary cause procedure must be followed instead, so a Scottish homeowner with a 7,000 pound builder dispute is not in the simple track at all, unlike an English claimant whose small claims track runs to 10,000 pounds. Claims are made in the sheriff court by a claimant against a respondent, decided by a sheriff or summary sheriff, and no solicitor is required. New rules apply to claims initiated on or after 31 May 2023, and claims should be submitted through Civil Online, with sheriff approval needed to proceed on paper. Advises trying to settle first and considering Alternative Dispute Resolution, to which the sheriff may also refer parties after the claim form is lodged.

  7. very strong RN-NBV4MJ

    Scottish Government

    The Scottish equivalent of English competent person self-certification, and it works differently in ways every England-written note misses. Scotland uses a building warrant system under the Building (Scotland) Act 2003, with roles split between verifiers, approved building professionals (approved bodies and approved certifiers), local authorities and building owners. Certification in Scotland is optional, not the default, and covers design or construction, applying only where the work requires a building warrant; the works that can be certified are listed on the Scottish Government Certification Register, and the Scottish Government maintains the only authoritative list of registered approved building professionals. The benefit stated is that the work is certified by qualified building professionals as complying with regulations. Related guidance includes the Certification Handbook, Procedural Guidance on Certification covering what to submit with a building warrant application, and Modern methods of construction guidance for verifiers and certifiers. Applications for building warrants and completion certificates are submitted online through the eBuildingStandards.scot portal via an eDevelopment account.

  8. very strong RN-69H4L9

    Scottish Government (gov.scot)

    The in-force Scottish handbook, 13.6 MB PDF, applying from 6 April 2026. Figures a note on Scotland needs: Standard 4.6 requires a dwelling to have at least 4 thirteen-amp socket outlets in each apartment, 6 in the kitchen of which at least 3 above worktop level in addition to any for floor standing or built-in appliances, and a further 4 anywhere in the dwelling including at least 1 in each circulation area per storey, with no equivalent requirement in England. Clause 4.6.1 requires at least one lighting point in every circulation space, kitchen, bathroom, toilet and any space of 2 m2 or more; clause 4.6.2 sets 100 lux on stair flights and landings and 50 lux elsewhere in common circulation areas. Table 3.11 sets background ventilator equivalent areas of 12,000 mm2 per apartment and 10,000 mm2 for a kitchen, utility, toilet, bathroom or shower room, doubled where ducted, with part of the ventilator at least 1.75 m above floor level. Table 3.12 sets intermittent extract rates of 30 l/s over a hob, 60 l/s elsewhere in a kitchen, 30 l/s utility, 15 l/s bathroom or shower, 6 l/s WC, with fan and background ventilator at least 0.5 m apart. Table 6.2 sets maximum U-values of 0.17 wall, 0.15 floor, 0.12 roof, 1.4 windows, roof windows and doors, 2.1 rooflights, with a Window Energy Rating or Doorset Energy Rating of B or better as an alternative for units in an existing building; for 1 or 2 matching replacement windows the frame may be disregarded if the centre pane U-value is 1.2 W/m2K or less, secondary glazing should reach about 3.5 W/m2K, and total glazed area should not exceed 25 per cent of dwelling floor area. Clause 4.8.2 requires glazing to BS 6262-4:2018 within 800 mm of floor level, in a door leaf, or within 300 mm of a door leaf and within 1.5 m of floor level, with manifestation between 850 mm and 1.0 m and between 1.4 m and 1.6 m above floor level. Clause 4.8.3 requires any window or rooflight more than 4 m above adjacent ground or floor to be cleanable safely from inside per Clause 8 of BS 8213-1:2004, from a loadbearing surface, or from a mounted access system, sets safe reach limits of 610 mm downward and an 850 mm radius arc from a point not more than 1.3 m above floor level, and bars ladder access to glazing more than 9 m above the ladder's footing.

  9. very strong RN-8T0SVC

    Scottish Government (gov.scot)

    Scotland's equivalent of the Approved Documents, and the reason a note that quotes only English rules is wrong for a fifth of the UK. This edition is in force from 6 April 2026 and applies to building warrants submitted on or after that date and to work not requiring a warrant commenced from that date. It gives guidance on achieving the standards set in the Building (Scotland) Regulations 2004, arranged in sections rather than parts: section 3 environment (ventilation, drainage, condensation), section 4 safety (electrical safety and installations, glazing and danger from accidents, including clause 4.13 which invokes PAS 24 for security), section 6 energy (U-values for windows and doors) and section 7 sustainability. Scotland uses a building warrant and a completion certificate rather than a building notice, and has no Part P competent person scheme equivalent, so electrical work is covered by the warrant system instead.

  10. very strong RN-8DX7RR

    Scottish Government (gov.scot)

    SCOTLAND. The Scottish Government policy page that explains the technical handbooks expand the functional standards set by the Building (Scotland) Regulations 2004, and dates the current edition: new technical handbooks apply from 6 April 2026, amending Section 0 General, Section 2 Fire, Section 3 Environment and Section 4 Safety. Section 0 is updated for the amendment to Regulation 8 and a changed definition of traditionally constructed buildings; Section 2 gives effect to Simon and Richard's Law with extended guidance on conversions of traditional buildings, materials limiting fire spread and escape, and amends Standard 2.15 on automatic fire suppression; Standard 3.3 gains new flooding and groundwater guidance with a flooding annex; and clause 4.1.7 gains advice on letterplate positioning in new dwellings.

  11. very strong RN-VR0Q0L

    Scottish Government (gov.scot)

    SCOTLAND, and this contradicts the England position outright. New-style Scottish EPCs are introduced from 30 April 2028 under the Energy Performance of Buildings (Scotland) Regulations 2025, replacing the 2008 regulations. Domestic EPCs will show separate ratings for heat retention, heating system and energy costs, non-domestic ones for energy performance, energy use and direct emissions, and certificates will be valid for 5 years rather than 10, so the familiar ten-year EPC validity will not hold in Scotland. Between 30 April 2028 and 30 April 2029 a sale or let may use either an old-style EPC and recommendations report or a new-style EPC and property report, but a property sold or let a second time inside that window must have the new-style pair; from 30 April 2029 only new-style certificates are valid. Assessors can issue only new-style EPCs from 30 April 2028. The same one-year grace period applies to Scotland's roughly 30,000 short-term lets. Dates remain subject to Scottish Parliament approval.

  12. very strong RN-QT7ZA7

    Scottish Government (gov.scot)

    SCOTLAND, last updated 24 August 2026. Confirms the EPC in Scotland is administered separately from England and Wales: buildings are rated A to G with A most efficient, the certificate lists improvement measures with an indicative cost for each, and it is accompanied by a recommendations report. The assessment reflects the building not the occupants, using standard assumptions about occupancy and use, and carries no personal data other than the assessor's name and contact details. For non-domestic buildings the EPC shows an asset rating alongside primary energy use. The page states that EPCs in Scotland are being reformed by the Energy Performance of Buildings (Scotland) Regulations 2025, replacing the 2008 regulations, with new-style certificates and strengthened quality assurance. Enquiries go to EPCenquiries@gov.scot, not to an England service.

  13. very strong RN-EKQKEC

    Scottish Government (gov.scot)

    The Scottish permitted development classes for domestic microgeneration, which a garden building or garden energy note needs because Scotland's class numbering is entirely its own. Section 6 covers ground and water source heat pumps at Classes 6D and 6E, air source heat pumps at Class 6H, free-standing wind turbines at Class 6G, roof-mounted wind turbines on detached dwellinghouses at Class 6HC, solar panels on a dwelling at Class 6HA, solar panels on a building within the curtilage of a dwelling at Class 6HB, and flues for biomass heating systems at Class 6C and combined heat and power at Class 6F. Paragraph 6.2 is the one a garden note needs: free-standing solar panels within the curtilage of a dwellinghouse are covered by Class 3B, not by the section 6 classes. Paragraph 6.4 confirms that Classes 6D and 6E permit installation, alteration or replacement of a ground or water source heat pump and any associated pipes or apparatus within the curtilage of a dwellinghouse or a building containing a flat, with no additional restrictions on those rights. Paragraph 6.3 stresses that every limitation in a class must be met for the right to apply.

  14. very strong RN-4KIEKS

    Scottish Government (gov.scot)

    SCOTLAND. Standard 3.2 requires protection from radon and sets the action level at 200 becquerels per cubic metre, the level above which radon in homes should be reduced. Clause 3.2.1 defines a radon probability area as one where tests show 1 per cent of existing dwellings are likely to exceed 200 Bq/m3, mapped in the Indicative Atlas of Radon in Scotland published July 2011 by the Health Protection Agency and the British Geological Survey on the UKradon website, with per-property radon risk reports available from the same source. Clause 3.2.2 requires protective work where a dwelling is to be located or extended on ground designated as a radon probability area or where radon is known to exist, so an extension in Scotland can trigger radon measures that an England-based note would attribute to Approved Document C.

  15. very strong RN-9WXESB

    The National Archives (legislation.gov.uk)

    The private route that lets an individual go to the magistrates' court directly, without waiting for the council, when aggrieved by a statutory nuisance; in Scotland the equivalent is a summary application to the sheriff. If satisfied the nuisance exists, or that though abated it is likely to recur, the court must make an order requiring the defendant to abate it within a specified time and to execute any works necessary, or prohibiting recurrence, and may also impose a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale. Section 82(3) allows the court, where the nuisance makes premises unfit for human habitation, to prohibit their use for habitation until they are made fit. Section 82(4) fixes who is sued: normally the person responsible, but (b) where the nuisance arises from any defect of a structural character it is the owner of the premises, and (c) where the person responsible cannot be found, the owner or occupier. Section 82(5) makes each of several responsible persons liable even where their own contribution would not by itself be a nuisance.

  16. very strong RN-HSIYH3

    The National Archives (legislation.gov.uk)

    The instrument that rewrote Part R of Schedule 1 to add the gigabit duties, in force on 26 December 2022 and applying in England. Its Schedule Part 1 renames the heading to Part 9A as "Infrastructure for electronic communications", inserts new exemptions before regulation 44A, amends regulation 44C (the interpretation provision that defines major renovation works), amends regulation 55 (review of Part 9A and Part R), and substitutes Part R of Schedule 1 so that the old single requirement R1 is joined by requirements RA1 (gigabit-ready physical infrastructure) and RA2 (connection to a gigabit-capable network) for new dwellings. It also amends regulations 13 and 14 of the Building Regulations 2010, on the particulars accompanying a building notice and full plans, so the connectivity plan must be submitted, and amends Schedule 1 to the Building (Approved Inspectors etc.) Regulations 2010 to match. A correction slip was issued on 22 November 2022. This is the source that dates the split between Approved Document R Volume 1 (new dwellings) and Volume 2 (other buildings and major renovation works).

  17. very strong RN-6OFYWG

    The National Archives (legislation.gov.uk)

    The instrument that first put broadband infrastructure into the Building Regulations, creating Part R of Schedule 1 and Part 9A of the Building Regulations 2010, which is why a whole-house renovation can carry a connectivity duty at all. Regulation 1 brings it into force on 6 April 2016, except regulation 2(19)(b) which came into force on 1 May 2016. It extends to England and Wales but does not apply to any building in Wales other than an excepted energy building as defined in the Schedule to the Welsh Ministers (Transfer of Functions) (No.2) Order 2009. Regulation 2 amends the Building Regulations 2010 and regulation 3 amends the Building (Approved Inspectors etc.) Regulations 2010. Cite this alongside SI 2022/984, which later substituted Part R to add the gigabit requirements RA1 and RA2 for new dwellings.

  18. very strong RN-FTUHBF

    The National Archives (legislation.gov.uk)

    The companion instrument to SI 2021/1391 that created Part S, infrastructure for the charging of electric vehicles. Regulation 1 brings it into force on 15 June 2022 immediately after SI 2021/1391, extending to England and Wales and applying in England. Regulation 2(2) adds requirement S2 to the list in regulation 6(1)(a) of the Building Regulations 2010, so an EV charge point duty is triggered by a material change of use creating dwellings, alongside the existing P1 electrical safety duty. Regulation 2(3) inserts a new Part 9B with regulations 44D and 44E. Regulation 44D sets the cost cap for new residential buildings with associated parking: the number of charge points to be installed is the maximum possible at an average connection cost of GBP 3,600 or less per charge point, and where the cap bites, cable routes must instead be installed in the parking spaces that would otherwise have needed charge points. Regulation 44D(4) sets out how covered car parks are treated, with different rules above and below a threshold of 10 associated parking spaces. Regulation 44E applies requirement S2 to a building undergoing a material change of use into one or more dwellings, where the work touches a car park within the site boundary or the electrical infrastructure serving it, and subject to whether a charge point per dwelling can be accommodated within the incoming supply without upgrading its capacity.

  19. very strong RN-BWO1CR

    The National Archives (legislation.gov.uk)

    The instrument that made the 2021 changes real, so a note can date them exactly. Regulation 1 sets citation and commencement on 15 June 2022, extending to England and Wales but applying to buildings and building work in England. Regulation 11 amends Schedule 1: it adds "to a reasonable standard" to entry L1(b)(i), inserts new requirement L2 on on-site generation of electricity (systems must be appropriately sized, have effective controls and be commissioned to produce the maximum electricity reasonable in the circumstances), and inserts a whole new PART O OVERHEATING with requirement O1, reproduced in full and carrying NO limits on application. Regulation 4 inserts regulation 4(4) and 4(5), a rule renovation guides almost never mention: where Part L imposes a requirement on the work, then on completion the whole building must comply with Part F or be no more unsatisfactory in relation to Part F than before the work began, so a Part L job such as new glazing or wall insulation drags a whole-house ventilation duty with it. Regulation 8 inserts regulations 40A and 40B, requiring the person carrying out the work to give the owner information about an on-site electricity generation system, and about the Part O overheating provision, no later than five days after completion. Regulation 17 is the transitional provision: the amendments do not apply where a building notice or initial notice was given, or full plans deposited, before 15 June 2022, provided the work started before 15 June 2023.

  20. very strong RN-HVZ7RL

    The National Archives (legislation.gov.uk), Acts of the Scottish Parliament

    SCOTLAND. The primary Act behind Scotland's building standards system, in force as amended to 7 September 2026 with section 36(3) still to be inserted by 2026 asp 14 section 7. Section 4 gives the Technical Handbooks their status as guidance documents and section 5 governs compliance with them. Section 7 creates verifiers and certifiers, sections 8 to 16 the building warrant regime including certification of design at section 11 and late applications at section 15, and sections 17 to 21 the completion certificate regime, with section 19 covering certification of construction and section 21 making it an offence to occupy or use a building without a completion certificate. There is no England-style building notice or full plans choice in Scotland: a warrant is applied for before work starts.

  21. very strong RN-3APQ6X

    The National Archives (legislation.gov.uk), Acts of the Scottish Parliament

    SCOTLAND, and there is no England equivalent: England relies on leases and service charges where Scotland legislates for flat ownership directly. Sections 1 to 3 fix tenement boundaries and pertinents by default, so ownership of the roof, close and solum is settled by statute rather than by title alone. Section 4 applies the Tenement Management Scheme in Schedule 1 wherever the title deeds are silent, and section 4A lets a local authority pay a share of scheme costs. Sections 7 to 10 abolish the common law of common interest for tenements and replace it with a statutory duty at section 8 to maintain any part providing support or shelter, a prohibition at section 9 on interfering with support or shelter, and a cost recovery right at section 10. Sections 11 to 15 set when liability for repair costs arises, bind successors at section 12, allow a Notice of Potential Liability for Costs at section 13 and give a former owner a recovery right at section 14. Sections 5 and 6 route disputes to the sheriff.

  22. very strong RN-T7W376

    The National Archives (legislation.gov.uk), Scottish Statutory Instruments

    SCOTLAND. The instrument that sets Scotland's building standards, made under the Building (Scotland) Act 2003, and the reason England's Approved Documents do not apply north of the border. Regulation 3 exempts certain buildings and services, regulation 5 introduces the descriptions of work not requiring a building warrant, regulation 8 covers fitness and durability of materials and workmanship, regulations 9 to 12 set the building standards for construction, demolition, services and conversion, and regulation 16 provides for relaxations. Schedule 1 lists exempted buildings, Schedule 3 the warrant-exempt work and Schedule 5 the mandatory building standards that the Technical Handbooks expand.

  23. very strong RN-DBLVHY

    The National Archives (legislation.gov.uk), Scottish Statutory Instruments

    SCOTLAND. The instrument behind Scotland's EPC reform, replacing the Energy Performance of Buildings (Scotland) Regulations 2008 and underpinning the new-style certificate introduced from 30 April 2028 with a 5 year validity instead of 10. Regulation 1 sets citation, commencement and extent, regulation 2 interpretation, and the following regulations the duties to obtain and produce certificates. Cite this rather than the England and Wales Energy Performance of Buildings (England and Wales) Regulations 2012 for any Scottish property.

  24. very strong RN-I5NTO7

    UK Health Security Agency

    UKHSA's cold weather health guidance, first published 2 November 2012 and last updated 28 April 2026, applying to England, reference GOV-15292. Establishes the alerting framework a heating or insulation note can anchor to: the UKHSA Cold-Health Alerting system is operated by the Met Office and runs from 1 November to 31 March each year, and this guidance forms the cold weather part of UKHSA's Adverse Weather and Health Plan, whose aim is to protect health and reduce harm from adverse cold weather. Issued in several formats including an HTML main version, an easy read PDF of 8 pages, a British Sign Language video, a two-page print version of top tips, and a poster, with easy-read translations added on 28 April 2026 in Arabic, Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Italian, Kutchi, Punjabi, Portuguese, Somali, Tamil and Urdu.

  25. very strong RN-1H8UHK

    UK Health Security Agency (UKradon)

    Gives a floor-type and concentration decision table for remediation. For a solid floor under 500 Bq per cubic metre the recommended solutions, best first, are a radon sump or positive ventilation; for a solid floor over 500 the answer is a radon sump. For a suspended floor under 500 it is natural under-floor ventilation or positive ventilation; over 500, mechanical under-floor ventilation or natural under-floor ventilation. Warns explicitly that simple actions such as sealing around loft hatches, sealing large openings in floors and extra ventilation do not reduce radon levels on their own, and that completely sealing floors is difficult and can cause rot in wooden floors. Names an active radon sump fitted with a fan as the most effective method, working best under solid floors and under suspended floors where the ground is covered with concrete or a membrane. Advises contacting UKHSA for levels above 1000 Bq per cubic metre, and the local council Environmental Health Department for advice.

  26. very strong RN-6PQK9U

    UK Health Security Agency (UKradon)

    UKHSA recommends that radon levels be reduced in homes where the average exceeds 200 becquerels per cubic metre, the Action Level, and states that this recommendation is endorsed by Government. The Action Level refers to the annual average concentration, so a valid measurement uses two detectors, one in a bedroom and one in a living room, left in place for three months to average out short-term fluctuations. Separately defines a Target Level of 100 Bq per cubic metre as the ideal outcome of remediation in existing buildings and of protective measures in new buildings, and advises that where a result falls between the Target and Action Levels action to reduce the level should still be considered, especially where a smoker or ex-smoker lives in the home. Radon is described as a colourless, odourless radioactive gas formed by decay of naturally occurring uranium in rocks and soils.

  27. very strong RN-Y8BXXY

    UK Health Security Agency and Centre for Climate and Health Security

    UKHSA guidance published 7 August 2025, applying to England, on the allergens and irritants in indoor air, useful for any note that claims a renovation improves or harms air quality. States that indoor bioaerosols can contribute up to 34 per cent of indoor air pollution, and that people in Western countries spend the majority of their time indoors. Identifies the protein-based allergens as mould spores, which thrive in damp poorly ventilated spaces such as bathrooms and arise from leaks, condensation, poor heating or inadequate ventilation; house dust mites, which thrive in warm humid environments in bedding, carpets and upholstered furniture; and pet dander from skin flakes, urine and saliva. Separately names non-protein respiratory irritants: volatile organic compounds emitted by paints, cleaning agents and air fresheners, and particulate matter from cooking, smoking and open solid-fuel fireplaces. Warns that energy efficiency and adaptation measures can have unintended consequences for indoor environmental quality, and that poorly installed mechanical ventilation can worsen air quality.

  28. very strong RN-DK9G2M

    Valuation Office Agency (HM Revenue & Customs)

    VOA guidance (published 28 October 2024, updated 7 October 2025) on when a home can be deleted from the Council Tax list during works. Deletion is possible for fully demolished properties, truly derelict properties needing structural reconstruction, and major renovations where significant redevelopment affects most of the property; planning permission alone does not count as work starting. Poor repair (redecoration, minor plaster or ceiling repairs, replacement windows) does not qualify, and an occupied property must always keep a band. Approved deletions are backdated.

  29. very strong RN-MZWVT0

    Valuation Office Agency, HMRC (GOV.UK)

    Published 22 January 2016 and last updated 15 June 2026, applying to England and Wales, this is the authority that corrects two common claims. First, on rebanding after an improvement: bands are based on the open market price on 1 April 1991 in England and 1 April 2003 in Wales, and if a property has increased in size since it was first assessed it may move to a higher band when it is next sold, so an extension does not trigger an immediate rebanding of the current owner. Second, on Council Tax during works: if the property is occupied the band will not be deleted even if significant repair or renovation works are underway, and only where the property is unoccupied and either beyond repair or undergoing major works making it uninhabitable can the owner apply to have the band removed. Reproduces the full band tables: England Band A up to 40,000 pounds through Band H over 320,000 pounds; Wales Band A up to 44,000 pounds through Band I over 424,000 pounds, Wales having nine bands to England's eight. Assessments are based on size, layout, character, location, change of use and the 1991 or 2003 value, and the Valuation Office does not use property price indexes.

  30. very strong RN-L7ESTP

    Welsh Government

    The Welsh route to funded adaptations, which differs from England in having a second scheme alongside the Disabled Facilities Grant. A Welsh applicant can apply for support from one or more of the ENABLE support for living independently scheme and the Disabled Facilities Grant, whereas an English applicant has the Disabled Facilities Grant alone. The listed adaptations are widening doors and installing ramps, improving access to rooms and facilities such as stair lifts or a downstairs bathroom, providing a heating system suitable for the applicant's needs, and adapting heating or lighting controls to make them easier to use. Part of the Welsh Government's Home safety, repairs and adaptation collection, with parallel guides for social housing tenants and for adapting a home before returning from hospital.

  31. very strong RN-MY15X0

    Welsh Government (gov.wales)

    The Welsh Approved Document L Volume 1, in force until 3 March 2027, and the source for Welsh window figures, which are not identical to England's. Table 10.1 sets, for new and replacement windows and roof windows, a maximum U-value of 1.4 W/(m2K) or WER Band B, with an alternative for replacements of 1.2 W/(m2K) centre pane or low-E secondary glazing, and a threshold U-value for retained windows of 3.3. Rooflights: 2.2 for new and replacement, threshold 3.8. Doors more than 60 per cent glazed: 1.4 or DSER Band C, alternative 1.2 centre pane, threshold 3.3. All other doors: 1.4 or DSER Band B, threshold 3.3. External fire doorsets as defined in Approved Document B Volume 1 may be 1.8. Transitional easements allowed timber windows at 1.6 or WER Band C and timber doors at 1.8 or DSER Band E only where a building notice, initial notice or full plans were given before 23 November 2023. Paragraph 11.35 requires an existing window or door worse than the column (c) threshold to be replaced to column (a); paragraph 11.37 states that windows and doors mean the whole unit including the frame, so replacing just the glazing or the door leaf while retaining the existing frame is not building work and does not have to meet the energy efficiency requirements, though upgrading as close as practicable is sensible; paragraph 11.38 caps the total area of windows and doors at 25 per cent of total floor area where one is enlarged or created.

  32. very strong RN-JOH3I6

    Welsh Government (gov.wales)

    The Welsh Government landing page that shows which edition of Approved Document L applies in Wales and when. Two editions of Volume 1 (dwellings) sit side by side: the current edition in force until 3 March 2027 at /sites/default/files/publications/2024-05/building-regulations-approved-document-l-vol-1.pdf, and the 2026 edition in force from 4 March 2027 at /sites/default/files/publications/2026-04/building-regulations-approved-document-l-vol-1-2026.pdf. Note the date differs from England, where the 2026 edition of Approved Document L takes effect on 24 March 2027, so a note giving a single UK-wide changeover date is wrong for Wales by three weeks.

  33. very strong RN-UQJZBJ

    Welsh Government (gov.wales)

    WALES. Published 3 April 2017 and not updated since, a 3 MB PDF to be read with the September 2013 amendment slip. This is the Welsh Part P, and it is not the same document as England's 2013 edition. Wales did not follow England in narrowing the definition of a special location, so the scope of notifiable domestic electrical work is wider in Wales. Cite this rather than the England Approved Document P for any Welsh rewire, kitchen or bathroom job.

  34. very strong RN-MQY230

    Welsh Government (gov.wales)

    WALES, and this is a hard contradiction with England. The Welsh Approved Document P states that notifiable jobs include new circuits back to the consumer unit AND extensions to circuits in KITCHENS and special locations such as bathrooms, and that consumer unit replacements are notifiable. England's Approved Document P 2013 edition defines a special location at regulation 12(9) as only the zone around a bath tap or shower head, extending 2.25 metres vertically and 0.6 metres horizontally from a bath tub or shower tray, or 1.2 metres from a shower head where there is none, plus a room containing a swimming pool or sauna heater, so a kitchen is NOT a special location in England and extending a kitchen circuit there is not notifiable. In Wales it is. The Welsh document also confirms replacement, repair and maintenance work is generally not notifiable even in a kitchen or special location, that in large bathrooms the special location is bounded by the walls of the bathroom, and that conservatories, attached garages, detached garages and sheds are not special locations, so work there is notifiable only if it involves a new circuit.

  35. very strong RN-DWRRP2

    Welsh Government (gov.wales)

    WALES. A Welsh Government collection of quick guides, first published 27 October 2017 and last updated 22 March 2023, saying for each common project whether building regulations approval is needed in Wales. It covers adverts and signs, basements, biomass fuelled appliances, boilers and heating, ceilings and floors, change of use, conservatories, decking, decorations, demolition, doors and windows, drains and sewers, electrics, extensions, external walls, fascias, fences gates and garden walls, flats and maisonettes, flues, fuel tanks, garage conversion, heat pumps, hydro electricity, insulation, internal walls, kitchens and bathrooms, lighting, loft conversions, micro combined heat and power, outbuildings, patio and driveway and paving your front garden. Use it instead of the England Planning Portal common projects pages for any Welsh job.

  36. very strong RN-C01OHV

    Welsh Revenue Authority

    Land Transaction Tax replaced Stamp Duty Land Tax in Wales from 1 April 2018 and is collected and managed by the Welsh Revenue Authority for the Welsh Government. First published 21 September 2017 and last updated 25 November 2024. The current LTT threshold is 225,000 pounds for residential properties where the buyer does not own other property, and 225,000 pounds for non-residential land and property. The correction most often needed: there is no first-time buyers' relief in Wales, unlike England and Northern Ireland. Higher residential rates apply where the buyer already owns one or more residential properties, though not normally where they are replacing a main residence. LTT is a self-assessed tax and a return must be sent even where there is nothing to pay, except for certain transactions that need no return. Specific reliefs exist for multiple dwellings, group structures and charities. Since 3 July 2023 solicitors and conveyancers can only file LTT online, and the WRA publishes a postcode checker to establish whether a property is in Wales.

  37. strong RN-4PFJ8L

    BRE Group

    The catalogue of BRE Digests, Good Building Guides and reports that building professionals cite, with document numbers, authors, dates and prices, which lets a note reference the correct BRE publication rather than BRE in general. Titles include Rising damp in walls: diagnosis and treatment (DG 245, 2007, 15 pounds), Assessment of damage in low-rise buildings with particular reference to progressive foundation movement (DG 251, revised 1995, 15 pounds), Foundation movement and remedial underpinning in low-rise buildings (BR 184, 1991, 35 pounds), Recognising wood rot and insect damage in buildings 3rd edition (BR 453, 2003, 37.50 pounds), Radon: guidance on protective measures for new buildings including supplementary advice for extensions, conversions and refurbishment projects, 2023 edition (75 pounds), Site layout planning for daylight and sunlight: a guide to good practice (BR 209, 2022 edition, 75 pounds, superseding the 2011 edition), External fire spread: building separation and boundary distances (BR 187 2nd edition, 55 pounds) and Wind loads on roof-mounted photovoltaic and solar thermal systems (DG 489, revised 2014, 24 pounds). The BRE U-value Calculator is listed at 0 pounds plus VAT.

  38. strong RN-UGNV9N

    BRE Group

    Important currency point for any note mentioning certification schemes: the Home Quality Mark no longer exists under that name. BRE has folded it into the BREEAM product range as BREEAM UK New Construction: Residential, with version 6.1 released in April 2025. HQM led residential sustainability assessment in the UK from 2015 with more than 50,000 homes registered. The scheme assesses homes against three sustainability indicators covering environmental performance (carbon emissions, resource efficiency, biodiversity, circular design), social performance (occupant health and wellbeing, indoor air quality, daylight, thermal comfort, noise, access to green space) and economic performance (efficient use of materials, future-ready infrastructure, running costs, adaptability). Homes are rated on a scale from pass to outstanding. BRE states the certification recognises performance BEYOND minimum regulations only, and that certification can open access to green mortgages and investment incentives. Separately, BREEAM Refurbishment and Fit-Out (currently V7) is the BREEAM standard covering refurbishment rather than new build, and BREEAM has run third-party certified standards since 1990.

  39. strong RN-E6EZEI

    BSI (British Standards Institution)

    The standard the conservation trade works to, and the one a listed-building or period-property note should name. BS 7913 is paywalled, so only the BSI catalogue page is public; it confirms the current edition is BS 7913:2013, published 31 December 2013, status Current, ISBN 978 0 580 75778 5, prepared by BSI committee B/560 and classified under ICS 91.040.99. The catalogue page states this is the SECOND edition, updated to align with current best practice, and that the standard describes best practice in the management and treatment of historic buildings, applying to historic buildings both WITH and WITHOUT statutory protection, which is the point most renovation articles miss when they treat conservation guidance as relevant only to listed buildings. Its named audience includes owners, users, occupiers and managers of historic buildings, architects, engineers, surveyors, building managers, conservators, planners and local authority building control officers. The listed descriptors show its coverage: conservation, legislation, maintenance, fire safety in buildings, costs, hazard prevention, inspection, repair, building maintenance, design, renovation, building specifications, contracts and records.

  40. strong RN-7KAKIH

    BSI (British Standards Institution)

    Part 1 of the BS 8300 pair, covering the external environment rather than the building. Paywalled, so only the catalogue page is public; it confirms BS 8300-1:2018, published 31 January 2018, status Current. Scope covers key external features within the curtilage of or associated with a building or group of buildings, specifically parking provision, setting-down points, access routes to and around buildings and the approaches to entrances, plus wider external environment matters including street design, landscaping, way-finding and information, horizontal and vertical movement and public facilities. Its named audience is built environment professionals in planning, design and management of the external environment, particularly local authority planners in highways, street enhancement and open space departments, and the page notes it is used in producing Local Development Frameworks, client briefs and contract documents.