If you are confused by what has changed, what will change and what might change within the Scottish Building Regulations then read on.
What has changed
In February 2023 changes to Section 6 (the energy standards) of the Scottish Building Regulations came into effect. We ran a webinar for members to explain the details of these changes with the Building Standards Division of the Scottish government. You can watch the recording here.
What will change
From 1 April 2024, new homes and buildings in Scotland will not be allowed to use direct emission (or polluting) heating systems such as oil and gas boilers. Instead, climate-friendly alternatives like heat pumps and heat networks will need to be used.
This is known as the New Build Heat Standard (NBHS) and it affects the type of heating system that new-build homes and properties will be allowed to use. The NBHS applies to all new buildings and some conversions where a building warrant is applied for from 1 April 2024.
To find out about the exceptions and why the NBHS is being introduced read this factsheet.
The technical handbooks which explain how to achieve the requirements are here. The Scottish Government is developing separate proposals for heating existing buildings. Please note that these are not yet law.
What might change: A Scottish Passivhaus Equivalent for new build housing
Back in May 2022, Alex Rowley MSP proposed a draft Members’ Bill in the Scottish Parliament which sought ‘new minimum environmental design standards for all new build housing to meet a Scottish equivalent to the Passivhaus standard, in order to improve energy efficiency and thermal performance’.
To support this work, Mr Rowley undertook a public consultation and received over 600 responses on the potential bill. The final proposed Bill then gained the necessary cross-party support in the Scottish Parliament. In December 2022, Patrick Harvie, Minister for Zero Carbon Buildings, Active Travel and Tenants' Rights confirmed that the Scottish Government would bring forward legislation to give effect to Mr Rowley’s Bill.
To develop proposals for the legislation, a review of energy standards within the Scottish building regulations was initiated at the beginning of 2023. The review is considering standards for both new homes and new non-domestic buildings.
A working group to support this review of energy standards was established in June 2023. As building contractors will be at the sharp end when it comes to build costs and affordability, the FMB was invited to participate. My thanks to FMB Scotland Board member Peter Tait and his colleague Clint Cook from D.I.T.T Construction who agreed to get involved.
Now the working group’s role is to offer advice and expertise to the Scottish Government to help define what and how, a Scottish equivalent to the Passivhaus standard will look like. The Scottish Government are also undertaking a public consultation in the summer of 2024 to gather views on this.
The deadline to implement the Bill and lay regulations in the Scottish Parliament on the Scottish equivalent to the Passivhaus standard is 15 December 2024.
Hopefully this helps to clarify what has already become law and what is in the pipeline on building regulations.
Authors
Gordon Nelson
Director, Federation of Master Builders Scotland
