Appointing designer for BC short commencement notice

cmc2015

Hi all,
I apologise if this has been asked before, can't seem to find what I'm looking for in other threads.
Very quickly, have secured planning for a single storey side extension (approx 30m squared).
Went on to the Building control site to apply for the short (no paperwork) commencement notice.
Where I ran into problems is submitting people for roles. (Builder part is fine) My brother did up the plans, and would not be a qualified architecht/ surveyor etc, just an architectural drawer as such. So when I entered his name and email, he got back to me saying he wasnt qualified under it. (My brother has been living in Australia for several years so hadn't kept up to date with new building requirements)
My question if anyone can clarify - Do I have to hire somebody qualified now to sign off on this build?? When I went back into the BC control page, despite my brother not having accepted the role, it is letting me proceed on to submitting a plan and payment. If anyone could just clarify?? Yes am a female - and yes this is my first time sorting any kind of buid (and last!) Thanks in advance folks.

Supertech

I'd suggest that you hold off lodging your commencement notice and get some specific professional advice as to what is likely to be involved for your particular project.

There is no requirement for a 'registered' professional to be listed as the 'Designer' on the short form Commencement Notice, and the system won't check one way or the other. As long as it gets a name then it will allow you to proceed, so your brother could be named in this role (he IS the designer anyway!). However, you will only get one chance to do this correctly, and rectifying any problems could be very difficult in the future. You also need to be sure about your obligations under Health and Safety legislation.

The onus for compliance with all of these Regulations lies with you, and while there is no obligation in your case to nominate anyone at this point to sign off on the project, it would be well worth your while to discuss it with a local Architect, Engineer or Surveyor to get some advice as to how to proceed.

Whatever you decide to do, make sure that you get acknowledgement of a valid Commencement Notice having been lodged before you start any work on site.

cmc2015

Cheers for that Supertech, that makes sense alright! Can't believe I haven't a single buddy or relation that is qualified in any of those roles - would have been handy! As extension is due to start in 2 weeks I need to get it sorted asap. Didnt think it was going to be an issue or would have sorted it weeks ago!

Gumbo

Don't forget you have to give 2 weeks notice so it will be 2 weeks from the lodgement of the commencement notice. That will decide when you can start, not your builder.

Also, even if the system allows you to proceed with payment after entering you brothers details, he will still have to confirm he is acting into the role and log in and sign up etc.

The commencement notice will not be valid until all fields and roles are accepted.

Be careful as Supetech says, if you mess up here there is no retrospect way of gaining a valid CN.

Have you not got an engineer designing foundations? Or an arch tech designing compliance with building regulations?

How will your builder know what insulation levels to put in to achieve elemental compliance? Who will sign off on it when complete?

cmc2015

Thanks everyone for all the advice! To cut a long story short, did contact an architect and the building control authority. As the build is under 40m squared, my brother being only an architectural drawer is in fact able to accept the role as designer (only on short commencement notice) The site itself is full of flaws (as agreed by the very helpful girl in building control).
Got everything uploaded and sorted only to see and "incomplete" notice on making payment. Rang building control and the girl looking at my application on her end said everything was perfect to proceed. What an utter nightmare and that is only for the short commencement notice - not very user friendly! Thanks again everyone!

Gumbo

cmc2015 wrote: »

Thanks everyone for all the advice! To cut a long story short, did contact an architect and the building control authority. As the build is under 40m squared, my brother being only an architectural drawer is in fact able to accept the role as designer (only on short commencement notice) The site itself is full of flaws (as agreed by the very helpful girl in building control).
Got everything uploaded and sorted only to see and "incomplete" notice on making payment. Rang building control and the girl looking at my application on her end said everything was perfect to proceed. What an utter nightmare and that is only for the short commencement notice - not very user friendly! Thanks again everyone!

Aslong as your brother can provide detail on compliance with the building regulations if inspected by BC then you should be fine.