Guide to 2022 Building Regulation Changes
On the 15th of June, new building regulations came into place governing energy performance and carbon emissions for both existing and new-build homes in England. These changes have set out higher energy performance standards to ensure that all new homes will produce 31% less CO2 emissions than what was previously acceptable.
This uplift is an interim step before the government’s announcement of the Future Homes and Building Standards, which will require all new homes to be carbon net-zero by 2025.
Several regulations have been updated, and some new ones introduced. These changes may affect you if you’re undertaking a home improvement project, extension, or renovation within the next 12 months.
Here, Nash Baker offers a guide on everything you need to know about the updates to the following building regulations in relation to new and existing dwellings:
Approved Document Part L: Conservation of Fuel and Power
Approved Document Part F: Ventilation
Approved Document Part O: Overheating
Approved Document Part S: Infrastructure for charging electric vehicles
The new rules came into place on the 15th of June 2022, with a one-year transition for existing planning applications. Changes will not apply in relation to building work where an initial notice was submitted before the 15th of June 2022, provided that the building work starts before the 15th of June 2023. The new regulations will apply to all projects regardless from the 15th of June 2023.
Part L: Conservation of Fuel and Power
Updates to Part L Volume 1: Dwellings introduces energy efficiency standards to the building materials, services, and heating systems used in our homes. The requirements for new build dwellings differ from those set out for alterations and extensions made to existing properties, so the individuals responsible for such works must legally ensure to follow the appropriate regulations provided within this document.
KEY CHANGES FOR NEW HOMES:
All new build homes must reduce their carbon emissions by 31%. This will mainly be achieved by using electric heat pumps and PV panels rather than traditional gas boilers.
A new ‘fabric-first’ approach requires a higher-performing external building envelope for new buildings, setting new fabric standards with maximum U-Values of 0.26 W/m2 for walls, 0.18 W/m2 for floors, 0.16 W/m2 for roofs, and 1.6 W/m2 for windows and doors.
All new heating systems will have to be designed to accept low-carbon heating, which limits the maximum flow temperature to 55°C or lower.
A new calculation has been adopted for the Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP) which sets greater insulation requirements and requires all dwellings to be pressure tested for air tightness. SAP 10.2 utilises a new performance metric, referred to as ‘Primary Energy’, to define compliance against Part L.
The new metric, ‘Primary Energy’ (measured in kWhPE/m2 per year), evaluates the performance of a building’s heating system in addition to the energy required to deliver fuel to the building. This will be the new principal measure of a building’s efficiency and will be favourable to buildings using energy from renewable sources.
Design stage and as-built SAP10 calculations are now legally required by building control for new build homes. Post construction, calcs are to be submitted alongside photographic evidence in the Building Regulations England Part L report (BREL report) to confirm that the designed details have been constructed to a high standard.
KEY CHANGES FOR WORKS TO EXISTING HOMES:
The new fabric-first approach also applies to alterations and extensions proposed on existing homes, increasing the individual efficiency standards for new/replacement, and renovated/retained thermal elements of your project.
Fixed light fittings should now have lamps with minimum luminous efficacy of 75 lumens per circuit watt to improve the power consumption of lighting throughout a property. This increase the need for high efficiency LED lighting.
All replacement heating systems must now be designed to accept low-carbon heating and have a maximum flow temperature set to 55°C or lower.
Extensions are now limited to having glazing that amounts to no more than 25% of the new floor area unless being able to demonstrate energy efficiency compliance through alternate calculations. Options include using an area-weighted U-Value calculation that proves the proposed extension is no less efficient than a design that falls within the glazing limits or using the SAP10 calculations which assess efficiency rates for the existing dwelling and proposed extension as a whole.
Part F: Ventilation
Approved Document Part F is closely linked to Part L as measures to improve energy efficiency include reducing heat loss through air permeability. Updates to Part F have redefined recommended systems for ventilation in domestic buildings, which now include a combination of; extract ventilation from wet rooms, whole dwelling ventilation to provide fresh air and purge ventilation to remove pollutants and water vapour.
KEY CHANGES:
New requirements state that when any improvements, extensions, or renovations are done to a property, the ventilation is to be no worse than before the works began.
Any replacement windows should be fitted with trickle vents unless there is an alternative form of ventilation present in the building. Examples include the use of air bricks or mechanical ventilation and heat recovery (MVHR) units.
Homes will now be categorised as either ‘Less Airtight’ or ‘Highly airtight’. Buildings that achieve an air tightness score of 3 or less, are considered highly airtight and will require a continuously running mechanical extract system.
The ventilation rate for bedrooms has now been increased and the standard no longer accounts for the presence of additional occupants.
Part O: Overheating
Part O is a new approved document that puts measures in place to reduce the potential of overheating in new-build dwellings. The regulations outline two possible methods of compliance:
The ‘Simplified Method’ sets maximum glazing limits for a property based on the façade orientation, location risk and whether it has cross-ventilation. High-risk locations include parts of central London and some areas of Central Manchester, moderate risk locations are the remaining areas in England.
The ‘Dynamic Thermal Modelling’ method uses the Chartered Institute of Building Services Engineers TM59 calculation to predict the internal conditions and energy demands of a building. This method can usually offer increased design flexibility for energy-efficient buildings as it considers the quality of insulation and airtightness
New houses across England must be provided with openings on opposite façades, allowing for crossflow ventilation. There can be two or fewer fabric elements and openings on facades that are not opposite for new flats and residential units.
Information on a new home’s potential to overheat and advice on how to stay cool in hot weather must be given to the building owner in the form of a Home User Guide.
Part S: Infrastructure for charging electric vehicles
Part S was introduced to Building Regulations earlier this year to account for the provision of electric vehicle charging in domestic buildings. This will prepare homes for the UK ban on the sale of combustion engine vehicles in 2030, and futureproof properties when all road-legal vehicles must be electric.
All new builds must include the minimum installation of a 7kW untethered EV charger, or cable routes capable of providing the power supply.
Residential buildings undergoing a ‘major renovation’ must also include the minimum EV charger. ‘’Major renovation’ is defined as being renovation work to a car park within the site, a change in the electric infrastructure of a car park, or in the electrical infrastructure of a building with a car park inside.
Further Reading
You can take a look at the new and updated Buildings Standard documents here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/the-future-buildings-standard
New Approved Document L:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/conservation-of-fuel-and-power-approved-document-l
New Approved Document F:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ventilation-approved-document-f
New Approved Document O:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/overheating-approved-document-o
New Approved Document S: