Building Safety Reform in Wales: what the new higher-risk building rules mean in practice

The Welsh Government has published new regulations that mark the next major step in building safety reform in Wales. As part of its phased implementation of building safety reforms in Wales and associated changes to the building control system, the Welsh Government has published further regulations relating to higher-risk buildings (HRBs), the new dutyholder and competency requirements and an accompanying circular highlighting the changes. These regulations come into force on 1 July 2026. The Welsh regime in large part mirrors that already in force in England since 2023 but benefits from the experiences of England’s prior implementation.

A new approval regime for higher-risk buildings

The Building (Higher-Risk Buildings Procedures) (Wales) Regulations 2025 introduce a new procedural framework setting out how an applicant must apply for building control approval for work on HRBs and create a clear staged approval system which prohibits construction or occupation of an HRB in the absence of regulatory approval. Higher-risk buildings are defined under earlier Welsh regulations and include residential buildings at least 18 metres or seven storeys high, as well as hospitals, care homes and children’s homes (subject to specified exclusions such as hotels and Ministry of Defence accommodation).

Key points of note relating to the new Regulations:

• They will apply to new construction of an HRB or to work causing an existing building to become higher-risk.
• No HRB work, including work to an existing HRB, may commence unless building control approval has first been obtained.
• The relevant local authority acts as the building control authority, rather than the Building Safety Regulator (which performs that role in England).
• At the pre-construction stage, the client must apply to the building control authority for building control approval, submitting full plans, the prescribed information, and statutory declarations from the relevant dutyholders. No construction work may commence until that approval has been granted.
• The building control authority must determine the application for an HRB within 12 weeks of receipt of the application, or eight weeks where the application is for work to an existing HRB (or such longer period as the applicant may agree with the authority). The Regulations provide for a consultation period and set out the bases on which an application may be refused.
• At the completion stage, approval must be sought for the building as constructed, and the build control authority must be satisfied of compliance with the Building Regulations 2010 before the building, or any part of it, may be occupied.
• Amendments to approved plans or documents during the course of building work are regulated by a formal change control process under Part 3. This will cover changes like new contractors, insolvency of key parties, or major revisions to design. Such changes must be recorded and notified to the relevant build control authority, if appropriate.
• A digital golden thread facility must be maintained to record designs, application information and subsequent changes.
• Before construction work begins, a mandatory occurrence reporting system must be established for the recording and reporting of design matters or incidents which present a risk of a significant number of deaths or injuries arising from structural or fire safety issues.
• The Regulations provide for transitional provisions for work begun under earlier procedures before 1 July 2026.
• Other issues covered include completion certificates, powers for inspection, testing and sampling during the works and exempt work (work not covered by these procedures).

Reworking the Building Regulations 2010 and new dutyholder and competency requirements

The Building etc. (Amendment) (No. 2) (Wales) Regulations 2025 re-engineer the Building Regulations 2010 (as they apply in Wales) so that they work alongside the new, standalone regime for HRBs described above. These Regulations remove most procedural rules for HRBs from the 2010 Building Regulations such as building notices and full plans procedure,  completion certificates under regulation 17 and fire safety information procedures under regulation 38. From July 2026, all procedural control of HRBs will be routed through the new HRB regime. The Amendment No. 2 Regulations also:

• Introduce new dutyholders and competence requirements for those involved in building work, ensuring that individuals are competent and accountable. Clients will need to ensure they appoint competent designers and contractors, who must demonstrate competence and cooperate throughout the project lifecycle. These duties will apply across all building work in Wales (not just HRBs). Domestic clients are given modified arrangements, including default assignment of duties where no express appointment is made.
• Replace the current ‘deposit of plans’ system with a new building control approval framework.
• Introduce a clear statutory test for when work is ‘commenced’ and sets out detailed rules, distinguishing complex buildings, new builds, extensions, and other building work.
• Establish new enforcement tools including compliance notices and stop notices with associated appeal rights.

How does the regime in Wales compare to England?

The Welsh Government, during its consultation on the changes in March 2025, recognised the need for alignment with the English regime wherever possible. The new regime therefore largely reflects the system in force in England, including comparable dutyholder obligations and the gateway and golden thread arrangements for HRBs. There are some differences:

In England the regime refers to applications to the Building Safety Regulator as the building control authority for HRBs under the Building Safety Act 2022. The Welsh Regulations refer to applications to the local authority as the building control authority.

The Building (Higher-Risk Buildings Procedures) (Wales) Regulations 2025 define ‘applicant’ to expressly include the client, or the client together with the person making the application, reflecting shared responsibility where agents act on the client’s behalf.

In Wales, the Building (Higher-Risk Buildings Procedures) (Wales) Regulations 2025 are more prescriptive in relation to the definition of category A work to existing HRBs, including the meaning of active and passive fire safety measures and what must be included in the application.

Unlike the English regulations, the Welsh regime does not provide a right to request paper copies, with all documentation handled electronically by the building control authority.

The provisions on decisions relating to applications to approve work to existing HRBs are worded differently. In Wales, an application concerning category A work to an existing HRB must include reports or calculations necessary to show that the work would comply with all applicable requirements of the building regulations when the work will affect the structural loading of the building (Regulation 12). In England, the application must include a statement setting out details of the work which the client considers amounts to 15% of the proposed work (and so will be considered as commenced according to changes made the Building Regulations 2010). Refusal of an application is triggered if information shows the work will exceed this 15% threshold. In Wales, no express numerical thresholds appear.

In Wales, there are further reasons given why the building control authority might reject an application regarding an existing HRB, including disagreement with the client’s assessment as to whether works have commenced and disagreement about the time when regulatory oversight is required (Regulation 15).

In Wales, additional information is required (Schedule 1) in the building regulations compliance statement (reasons for any departure from an approach specified in an approved document) and the fire and emergency file (the proposed fire strategy demonstrating compliance with the requirements of the Building Regulations 2010).

Exempt work (Schedule 2) in Wales includes the installation of thermal insulation to suspended timber floors.

In Wales, completion and partial completion certificates must also be copied to the local authority where it is not the building control authority, reinforcing local oversight (Regulations 43 and 44). Also, in Wales, applications for completion certificates must be accompanied by a list of all reports entered in the mandatory occurrence reporting system (Regulation 39), unlike in England.

Looking ahead

Both regimes require largely the same core information in a higher-risk building control approval application, which is welcome news for clients operating in both jurisdictions. Whilst the Welsh and English systems are substantively the same, in Wales there is a stronger emphasis on electronic-only processes, and clearer drafting around client responsibility. Most of the differences we highlight are procedural rather than conceptual, but they are important for compliance planning on cross-border projects. The regime marks a significant development in building safety in Wales with the introduction of new roles and responsibilities.

While much of this will be familiar to those already operating under the English system, the changes introduce important new responsibilities and processes that will require early planning and careful preparation. Understanding the new requirements well in advance will be key to avoiding delays and ensuring compliance once the regime comes into force.