The representative body for local authority building control in England and Wales is set to receive a £16.5m grant to support the delivery of new building safety standards.
The Local Authority Building Control’s (LABC) grant is part of a £42m package announced on Thursday which will support the delivery of new standards for managing building safety brought in by the Building Safety Act.
Around £26m of funding will go towards supporting the Fire and Rescue Services in England and the National Fire Chiefs Council.
The grant funding will go towards recruiting and training around 110 Building Inspectors and 111 new Fire Protection Officers as part of a three-year programme designed to direct skills and resource to areas with a greater distribution of high-rise buildings.
LABC chief executive, Lorna Stimpson, said: ‘We are delighted to have secured this funding to provide much needed additional resources for our local authority members in England.
‘Building control surveyors are a scarce commodity and so it’s important that we start to invest in this previously underfunded but vital public service role.
‘We welcome the role that local authority building control will have as part of the new building safety regulator’s multi-disciplinary teams, and in helping to implement the reforms recommended by Dame Judith Hackitt.’
Peter Baker, chief inspector of buildings at the Health and Safety Executive said: ‘Local Authority and Fire and Rescue Services are vital to the delivery of the new safety regime for higher-risk residential buildings. I welcome the work to quickly increase capability and capacity so our regulatory partners can deliver their important roles.
‘Our common goal is ensuring the success of the new regime in keeping residents safe in their homes, now and in the future.’
