Building Regs in Canterbury: what triggers a notifiable job
The Building Regulations cover domestic electrical work in England. Not every job is notifiable. Here is a plain summary of what usually needs building control involved and what does not.
Electrical safety in dwellings has been part of the Building Regulations since 2005. The aim is to bring domestic electrical work under the same building-control regime as extensions and structural changes - the work must comply with BS 7671:2018 (current edition, Amendment 2:2022) and, where the job is notifiable, be notified to a building control body before work starts.
What is usually notifiable
In summary, the main categories of domestic electrical work that need notifying are below. Check the current Approved Document P on GOV.UK for the full rules.
- Replacement of a consumer unit. Any swap of the main fuseboard, including like-for-like replacements.
- Installation of a new circuit. Any circuit that runs back to a new way in the consumer unit, whether it feeds one accessory or a whole floor.
- Electrical work inside a special location. "Special locations" are defined in BS 7671 Part 7 and in practice on domestic work this means bathrooms and shower rooms (Section 701), swimming pools and saunas (Sections 702, 703). New circuits and changes to circuits in these locations are the usual trigger.
Many smaller jobs are not notifiable - replacing sockets, replacing switches, adding a spur to an existing ring main outside a special location, installing garden lighting on an existing outdoor circuit, moving a light fitting. Even then the work still has to comply with BS 7671, and the work should be tested and certified (for example with a Minor Electrical Installation Works Certificate), but building control does not usually need to see it.
How a notifiable job gets signed off
Notification goes to a building control body, such as Canterbury City Council building control, before the work starts. The body either inspects the work itself or accepts another recognised route to sign-off. Fees and timescales vary, so ask the building control body for current figures. Ask whichever electrician you use how a notifiable job will be signed off before you agree the work.
Canterbury listed-property nuance
Building Regulations and Listed Building Consent are two separate consent regimes. Building Regulations notification discharges the Building Regs side. It does not discharge the LBC side.
A consumer unit swap inside a Canterbury listed cottage - in the city centre or in a village such as Bridge - is likely to be notifiable under the Building Regulations. If the consumer unit is being moved to a new position (say from a Georgian coal-cellar under the stairs to a modern hallway cupboard), the sub-main routing might cross a listed corridor and touch a listed wall. That crossing may need LBC from Canterbury City Council, separately from the Building Regulations notification.
On a listed property, raise both consents early. The LBC application takes longer than the Building Regulations side and must be in place before work starts; the council sets its own timescales.
Solar and battery work
A new circuit for solar PV, a battery or an EV charger counts as a new circuit, so it is likely to be notifiable. Planning rules for the panels themselves are separate and have changed. See our solar PV and battery page for the overview.
What the Building Regulations do not require notifying
Some jobs that homeowners assume are notifiable are not:
- Rewiring a single room outside a bathroom. If you strip and rewire a bedroom back to the existing consumer unit, and it re-uses the existing circuit, it is not notifiable.
- Installing a new socket on an existing ring main. A spur from an existing outlet to a new socket, in a room that is not a bathroom, is not notifiable.
- Installing a new outdoor light on an existing outdoor circuit. Not notifiable, as long as no new circuit is required.
- Replacing a light fitting like-for-like outside a bathroom. Not notifiable.
All of these still require BS 7671-compliant work and a test-and-certify. If you are unsure, ask building control or your electrician before work starts.
Not sure whether your job is notifiable?
Send a description of the scope to hello@canterburyelectrical.co.uk or WhatsApp 07763 100 477. We will tell you before we start whether it is likely to need Building Regulations notification, whether LBC may apply at your address, and what the paperwork looks like.
Sources: Approved Document P, Electrical safety - Dwellings (GOV.UK); BS 7671:2018 Amendment 2:2022.