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Engineering Council launches new ‘higher-risk’ building standard


The official launch of a new Standard for building safety was held last month at the House of Lords, at an event hosted by his Lordship the Earl of Lindsay (pictured). The new UK Standard for


Professional Engineering Competence and Commitment contextualised for Higher-Risk Buildings (UK-SPEC HRB) has been developed by the Engineering Council in response to recommendations in Dame Judith Hackitt’s independent review of building regulations and fire safety, Building a Safer Future, commissioned by the UK government in the aftermath of 2017’s Grenfell Tower fire. UK-SPEC HRB was developed in conjunction with professional engineering institutions and expert volunteers ‘to assess the competence and commitment of individual engineers and technicians working on higher-risk buildings in the UK’. Based on the UK Standard for Professional


higher-risk buildings, emphasising that this ‘must be centred on professionalism: people who will uphold high standards of professional conduct themselves, and call out those who undermine that in any way’. She dubbed the launch ‘very much the end of the beginning of the process’, with engineering institutions needing to promote the new Standard to members, and to strongly encourage people to go through the process, and wider industry needing to be informed about it and its benefits. A welcome and overview of


Engineering Competence and Commitment (UK-SPEC), the new Standard is ‘tailored for engineers and technicians working in the built environment, particularly on the design, construction, maintenance, and operation, of higher-risk buildings’. Incorporating the criteria from


BS 8670, it sets out a sector-specific competence framework consisting of a core document and Discipline


‘Stakeholder-led’ upgrade of Alnwick Day Surgery


Work has completed on what the architects describe as ‘a tailored package of upgrades’ to improve the internal environment at the Alnwick Infirmary Day Surgery. The £1.8 m ‘transformation’


was designed by Medical Architecture for Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, with the works delivered by OPUS Building Services, and the project driven by the need to replace air- handling units for the Endoscopy and Day Surgery Theatre to ensure HBN and HTM compliance. In collaboration with M&E consultants, Desco, and cost consultants, Turner and Townsend, Medical Architecture led a feasibility study to explore options for progressing various other functional and environmental improvements during the required downtime. Through a partnership approach


with the Trust, and continuous stakeholder engagement, the team developed ‘a tailored package’ of improvements to meet the clinical team’s specific needs, ‘set


against a challenging budget and programme’. The project’s collaborative nature ensured the impact on cost and programme was monitored and managed effectively. The outcome is an improved clinical working environment, with upgrades to equipment and infrastructure – including pendants, monitors, and lighting. The improved air quality and environmental conditions support wellbeing, both for staff, and for patients in the dedicated recovery spaces. New ceilings and updated finishes also feature throughout. The interior strategy was devised with stakeholder input with a focus on standardising specifications and finishes against recent work on the Trust’s estate, making it simpler to manage, and more cost-effective to maintain long term.


Annexes. Demonstrating competence could involve registration against the core framework only, or a combination of the Discipline Annexes: Fire Engineering, Structural Engineering, Building Services Engineering, and Facade Engineering. As the launch’s keynote speaker, Dame Judith Hackitt highlighted the importance of having assured competence of those working on


the importance of regulation was given by Lord Lindsay, Chair of the UK Accreditation Service (UKAS), followed by an address by Prof John Chudley, Chair of the Engineering Council, who described UK-SPEC HRB as ‘a framework that reinforces professional accountability with public safety at its core’. Speaking for the Building Safety Regulator, head of Operational Policy – Competence, Sandra Ashcroft, welcomed the new Standard as ‘an invaluable tool for identifying and engaging truly competent professionals who can meet the stringent safety requirements of HRBs’.


Plans for Watford General rebuild get financial backing


Plans to rebuild Watford General Hospital have taken a major step forward, after the government committed to fund almost £12 m of the scheme. The money will be used to deliver


the next phase of preparing the site for the new building, and fund a Project team to drive forward the project.


In January, the government announced its review into the New Hospital Programme (NHP), providing a new timetable for delivering the schemes countrywide. Ministers confirmed Watford General would be funded and rebuilt. West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust says negotiations have been continuing with the NHP on two key aspects: moving ahead with enabling works to prepare the site, and retaining a Project team to progress this. Following confirmation that the NHP had committed £11.86 m for the next phase of works, Matthew Coats, CEO at WHTH, said: “This marks a major step forward in our project, and a sign of confidence


from the government in our plans. We now have the money we need for this year to continue our preparations for the main build. The cash will be used to deliver new power supplies for the site, remove the Granger Ward, and demolish the Pathology and Medical Assessment Unit buildings. “The funding will also support a


Project team to drive forward this critical next stage of redeveloping the hospital – something many other schemes have not been granted. Huge progress has been made on the site over the last few years. We have the land to build on, well- developed plans, and the support of local and national stakeholders. We want to be ready to go if an earlier slot does become available – and agreeing the enabling works will help strengthen our case further.”


June 2025 Health Estate Journal 17


3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0)


West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust


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