APS has increased its sector-wide engagement to better support members in developing and maintaining professional competence. Each week, we’ll share an update from APS HQ so you can see the breadth of work being carried out for your benefit.

What’s happened last week?

• APS Deputy CEO Sofie Hooper and Shaun Lundy of the Industry Task and Finish Group (ITFG) met with the ICC officials to discuss next steps towards publication for both the ICC and ITFG guidance on the management of competence in organisations. The discussion covered which case studies will be targeted and what else needs to be done in advance of the coordinated publication of the documents. A joint webinar on the guidance pieces will take place on 23rd March, with sign up details to follow soon.

• Head of Operations Nicola Lally and CEO Andrew Leslie welcomed our two new Board directors for their induction session, Stefan Mordue and Stewart McArthur, ahead of the next Board meeting on 4th March. You can read more about their appointment here.

• APS are collaborating with CIAT on the PD BR Register, ensuring our standards are aligned to achieve the right outcomes of competent people for the PD BR function. With the various Government consultations out on the regulation of professions, APS met with CIAT on Wednesday morning to discuss our positions in that area. Aside from the response that is being prepared to the consultation on the Single Construction Regulator, APS has an engagement programme in place to get the right outcomes for the public interest and our members and registrants.

• APS attended the CIC Council meeting where the main point of discussion was the collaboration between the professional bodies with a view to both submitting a response to the forthcoming consultation, and to further develop the proposition on the role of professional bodies within the oversight system that is being developed within the Single Construction Regulator. Key areas where professional bodies are expected to step it up are governance, Code of conducts, robust CPD provision and a coherent revalidation proposition.

• The issue of ‘as built’ record continues to play out given the lack of clarity about what is expected to be delivered at gateway 3 in terms of ‘as built’ and whose role it is to provide the information. The Building Regulations 2010 (as amended) are clear that the client has the duty to deliver such information, but that doesn’t take away that they are reliant on others to create the information. The newly established Task and Finish Group on As Built Records within the CLC, held its first meeting to move the issue forward. The main areas where common ground is being sought are: o What should ‘as built’ information or records actually include, including format; o What should be minimum standards for validating a record, including process and responsibilities; and o How and where should these expectations be embedded so that an effective validation of records is integrated into the construction process.

The group has strong representation across the lifecycle of the building.

• APS also sits on the main competence committee for the built environment in the British Standards Institute- CPB/1. Their quarterly meeting saw a wide range of matters discussed including the Industry Task and Finish Group guidance on the management of competence in organisations, which is due to become a British Standard. Discussion also took place on the various interpretations across the sector about the role of the PDBR, on which APS is making broader representations, including with the regulator.

Recent updates members should know about

Grenfell Tower Inquiry Annual Report

MHCLG has published its first Grenfell Tower Inquiry Government Annual Report on progress implementing the Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 2 recommendations. The report marks one year since the government’s formal response to the Inquiry’s final findings and outlines the steps taken to address the systemic failures exposed by Grenfell. It highlights completed and ongoing recommendations, major reforms underway across building safety, construction products, and regulatory oversight, and sets out plans for further action with the expectation that 70% of recommendations will be closed by the end of 2026.

Construction Products Reform White Paper & general safety requirement for construction products consultation.

Also last Wednesday, Government published the Construction Products Reform White Paper, which had not been anticipated for some weeks.

The white paper sets out a package of system wide reforms to address the regulatory gaps and critical issues in the construction products sector, which has been largely unreformed since the Grenfell tragedy. It is a response to the Construction Products Reform Green Paper (published in February 2025), and its proposed reforms are seen as essential for public safety, critical to unlocking investment and economic growth, reducing trade friction and boosting productivity, and to the delivery of high-quality homes, other buildings and infrastructure.

The white paper is set out in three parts, broadly: A- system problems; B- system solutions; C- reform implementation and next steps. Part B includes clear expectations of competence and accountability across the product chain, which will impact on designers.

A summary of responses to the consultation on the Construction Products Reform Green Paper has been published alongside the White Paper. The consultation contained with the White Paper closes on 20th May.

Products will have two routes to market, either they will be regulated by designated standards, or, for all other products a proportionate, risk-based general safety requirement (GSR) will be applied. This GSR intends to address the gaps in regulatory coverage that could allow unsafe products to be placed on the market. Under this GSR, manufacturers will be required to assess safety risks connected to the intended use and the normal or reasonably foreseeable conditions of use of the product and take proportionate action to eliminate or control such risks. Importers and distributors (including merchants) will also be subject to obligations to support product safety.

The Government is also consulting on the detailed requirements of the GSR, with the same deadline of 20th May. Members are encouraged to review the proposals and share their views.

Design of fire safety in schools – BB100 withdrawn

The Department of Education (DfE’s) recently published an updated Technical Manual for design in schools, which included updated fire safety requirements. The employer’s requirements require fire safety to be designed in accordance with its Section 9.1 Fire Safety. This section has been structured to mirror the structure of Approved Document B (AD B) Volume 2, to ensure consistency and clarity in relation to DfE’s fire safety requirements pertinent to schools and colleges and to improve navigation, application and compliance.

The requirements of the sub section support Requirements B1 to B5 to Schedule 1 of the Building Regulations 2010 as well as Regulations 6(3), 7(1), 7(2), 7(3), 7(4) and 38. The general rule is that all new and refurbished schools and colleges, including Partial School/College projects, shall be designed to meet the fire safety requirements in this sub-section, except where there is an explicit requirement within this sub-section to follow particular parts of Approved Document B (AD B) Volume 2 or BS 9999. As a consequence of this update, Building Bulletin 100 is no longer required.

What’s coming up this week? (2- 8 March)

Meetings APS is involved in this week include:

• APS Board of Directors meeting

• CLC Portfolio group 4 meeting

• CIC Business and Project Panel

• Single Construction Regulator Prospectus Industry Roundtable

We’ll continue to keep members updated on key developments and engagement across the industry as plans for 2026 take shape.

If you would like to contribute or share expertise on issues that matter to you, please contact APS HQ at info@aps.org.uk.