BWF responds to Housing Standards Review

The BWF on behalf of the Timber Industry Accord have expressed their concerns that government plans for housing standards risk coming up short in addressing the enormous embodied impact of the housing sector in its sourcing and construction.  In the response the importance of linking activity with the Allowable Solutions consultation was highlighted.

In the Review of Housing Standards for England, the government is proposing to reduce the number of housing standards that councils are free to apply locally from over 100 to fewer than 10.

As part of a joint response to the review the BWF re-emphasised its support for the simplification of Housing Standards for the market, noting the benefits of enhanced security but stressing that such standards should not be imposed in a way that would price smaller manufacturers out of the market. It also added that it seemed disproportionate to demand certification for security measures yet not on high risk to life products such as fire doors, a policy that much of industry supports.

The main concern expressed was that elements of sustainability, for example those relating to materials, could be cut completely from future standards under the government' plans. As we move towards zero carbon buildings, the use of more sustainable materials is becoming increasingly important relative to the impacts of building energy consumption. Embodied carbon emissions, for example, can amount to more than half of the total carbon emissions over the life of a building. With the requirements of the Code for Sustainable Homes likely to be shelved in its current form, there will no longer be a national driver to encourage the procurement of low impact and responsibly sourced construction materials.

BWF believes that a specific materials working group should have been established and that the government should establish such a group to advise on such issues and consider the establishment of a Nationally Described Standard for embodied impact and a verification route for embodied carbon as an Allowable Solution. 

Following the consultation, the government’s intention is to issue a National Described Standards document and to consider whether further changes may be needed to the Building Regulations, possibly to integrate elements of housing standards. If this is the case, then detailed cost benefit and further consultation will be undertaken to underpin the work.

You can click on the link to read a scanned copy of the UK Timber Industry Accord letter to Parliamentary Under Secretary Stephen Williams calling for a national driver to encourage the procurement of low impact, responsibly sourced construction materials.