Region to be the home of building hub

Fife Council is officially the home of the permanent national Building Standards Hub (BSH) following a successful trial and cabinet committee approval.

Costing an estimated £1.3 million in the first year, the hub will be fully funded from across all 32 local authorities in Scotland. Fife will receive the money directly from the Scottish Government to host the programme.

Fife Council has already proved it can operate the hub – since May 2022, it has successfully played host to the BSH pilot programme. When the trial ends in May, the council is poised to kickstart the permanent hub.

It will work with local authority building standards teams to support the transformation, quality, and consistency in building standards services across Scotland.

Patrick Harvie MSP, building standards minister, said: “Following the successful trial of the Building Standards Hub, I am pleased to confirm that there will now be a permanent hub based within Fife Council to provide services, advice and learning and development opportunities for the construction sector across Scotland.”

He added: “The hub has already shown, through the trial period, its ability to provide a high standard of service and I look forward to seeing it delivered across the country.”

The hub will have two directors and 10.5 fulltime employees working to improve the building standards system

“Buildings in Scotland need to provide highquality, safe and environmentally sustainable places for people to live and work in. Building standards have a critical role in making sure new buildings meet the standards we expect,” Mr Harvie said.

The permanent hub will have its debut in May when the pilot programme ends.