From fee scales to, yes, building regulations, this year’s professional features continue to provide guidance and best practice solutions.
What resources are available to architects when it comes to setting fees?
Setting fees at the optimum level for a practice is the key to business success. This feature presents the RIBA resources than can help to sustain profitability, including: the RIBA Business Benchmarking 2024 report, which enables Chartered Practices to compare key business metrics against similar practices, including charge out rates; the RIBA Fee Calculator, the powerful digital tool that is free to use by RIBA Chartered Practices to produce accurate, resource-based fee calculations; RIBA Academy CPD modules dealing specifically with fee generation, notably the Practice management series: Appointments and Fees and the guide to getting the most out of the RIBA Fee Calculator; the Good Practice Guide: Fees, published by RIBA Publishing as the definitive guide to fee calculation, negotiation and management.
The feature also seeks to answer the frequently asked question: “Why doesn’t RIBA publish fee scales anymore?”
Building Safety Act: what does a good Gateway 2 application look like to get a validation?
This feature explains what is needed for a Gateway 2 application to the Building Safety Regulator – full plans, specifications and schedules catalogued in a reference file, supporting documents in accordance with Regulation 4 of the Higher Risk Building Regulations – and looks for an emerging consensus on “what does ‘good’ look like?” when it comes to the level of design detail that should be submitted.
David Brook, Technical Director at Hawkins\Brown, also explores how Design and Build projects add further complexities to the procurement phase of residential HRB projects, including the effect of the timing of the client’s letter of intent and contract award to the Principal Contractor, and at what point the contractor takes over Principal Designer duties.
Read all RIBA's professional features exploring building regulations and the Building Safety Act.
What architects need to know about RIBA’s new Health and Safety Test 2024
In May, RIBA relaunched its Health and Safety Test, specifically developed so that members can demonstrate they meet the requirements of RIBA Health and Safety Competency. The free online test becomes mandatory for Chartered Members working on projects in England from the New Year (2025) and replaces a voluntary pilot test introduced in 2021.
The first half of the test covers personal safety on construction sites and other professional environments; the second covers the wider design processes, requiring an understanding of the principles that guide CDM regulations, the Building Safety Act, amendments to Building Regulations relating to design risk management, and design for fire safety.
Sarah Susman, Associate Director and building safety specialist at PRP explains why architects should not be daunted by the test, the first of RIBA’s mandatory competency requirements.
Ben Oram, Head of Technical at Buckley Gray Yeoman and Chair of the Architectural Technical Lead Group (ATLG) explains why RIBA’s assessment process for members wishing to join the Principal Designer Register is the industry’s best effort so far, and how being on the Register takes care of any questions regarding the practice’s competency to take on the Principal Designer role.
RIBA created a three-stage assessment process for members wishing to join its ‘General’ or ‘Higher-Risk Building’ attainment levels within the Principal Designer Register: a knowledge test; a written submission of knowledge, skills, experience and behaviours; and an interview. In Autumn 2023, a third ‘Domestic’ category for domestic clients only was added, with a simpler two-stage assessment process.
RIBA’s highly-anticipated Building Regulations Principal Designer (BRPD) Professional Services Contract 2024 launched in the Summer, setting out the services to be provided in accordance with the new Building Safety Act regime. The contract became available to purchase in paper form in June.
The RIBA BRPD Professional Services Contract 2024 is a standalone contract following a similar format to the RIBA CDM Regulations Principal Designer contract. It can be used to appoint any competent professional undertaking the BRPD role on commercial projects sourced through different forms of procurement, including design and build pre-novation.
The Schedule of Services has two parts: the services under Part 2A of the Building Regulations 2010 and those under the Building (Higher-Risk Buildings Procedures) (England) Regulations 2023(HRB Procedures Regulations).
Margaret Wright, Senior Associate at Hawkins & Associates and a member of the editorial group that led the drafting of the contract explains how to use it.
This is a professional feature edited by the RIBA Practice team. Send us your feedback and ideas.
As part of the flexible RIBA CPD programme, professional features count as microlearning. See further information on the updated RIBA CPD core curriculum and on fulfilling your CPD requirements as a RIBA Chartered Member.