INDUSTRY COMMENT
become a compliance weak spot under 2027 Building Regulation changes
Housebuilders warned ventilation could
New Future Homes and Buildings Standards will tighten expectations around ventilation competence, ducting, commissioning, product performance and handover from March 2027. Ruth MacEachern, ventilation specialist at envirovent discusses the five changes housing providers need to know before 2027
H
ousing providers, developers, builders and consultants are being urged to review how ventilation is specified, installed and evidenced ahead of major Building Regulation
changes coming into force in 2027. The updated standards, introduced as part of the Future Homes and Buildings Standards, will affect new dwellings and relevant building work, rather than placing a blanket requirement on all existing rental stock. But for organisations commissioning new homes, major refurbishments, system upgrades or higher-risk building work, the changes could have a significant impact on project planning, contractor selection, design coordination and compliance records. In Wales, the updated requirements are due to take effect from 4th March 2027. In England, the new standards come into force on 24th March 2027 for most building work, with a later date of 24th September 2027 for higher-risk building work. For higher-risk buildings in England, relevant works will also need to go through the Building Safety Regulator process before they can proceed.
While some details are still being worked
through by the industry, ventilation specialists envirovent say the direction of travel is clear: ventilation can no longer be treated as a late-stage fit-out item, a simple product swap, or an area to value engineer once other costs have been absorbed. Instead, the changes put greater pressure on housebuilders, social housing providers, contractors, consultants and installers to prove that systems have been properly designed, installed, commissioned and handed over. A lot of the focus around the Future Homes and Buildings Standards has understandably been on heat pumps, solar and the move away from gas boilers in new homes. But ventilation is also going through a major shift. As homes become more airtight and energy
performance requirements tighten, ventilation must work harder in the background. If it is value engineered late in the process, installed by someone without the right competence, or commissioned without the right evidence, it creates risk for the contractor, the housing provider and ultimately the resident. These changes are especially important for anyone involved in new build, specification, social housing, distribution or major ventilation works. The organisations that start reviewing their designs, supply chains and competency routes now will be in a much better position when the regulations come into force.
Five building reg changes housing providers need to know before 2027:
• Competent installers will become central to compliance
One of the biggest changes is the stronger focus on competence. Approved Document L has introduced Regulation 11F in England and 11W in Wales, which place clear requirements on competence when carrying out building work or design work.
For ventilation, Approved Document F also makes clear that work should be carried out by someone suitably competent, either through self- certification by a registered competent person or certification by a Building Control Body. This moves competence from a nice-to-have to a key part of the compliance story. Ventilation is notifiable work, and housing providers need to know that whoever is designing, installing and certifying the system has the skills, knowledge and evidence to back it up. If a contractor is not part of a recognised
route, or the work is not being overseen correctly, it can create issues with certification, Building Control and handover. Installer competence needs to be considered at
procurement stage, not after the system has already been fitted. The guidance references registered competent person schemes including BESCA, Blue Flame Certification, Certsure and NAPIT. envirovent’s NICEIC-approved domestic ventilation course sits under the Certsure route, and more information can be found at: https://
www.envirovent.com/services/cpd-training/ niceic-training/
• Ducting and installation rules are becoming more prescriptive
The updated guidance introduces tighter requirements around ducting, installation design and static pressure, particularly for c-MEV and MVHR systems.
For c-MEV and MVHR, rigid or smooth semi- rigid ducts are expected to be used, with flexible ductwork limited to 200mm and only for final connections. This is also applicable to intermittent and d-MEV fans, with other ducting types capped at 2m where practical, with longer runs needing design calculations and drawings for Building Control.
This is a big change because it affects how ventilation is planned physically within a property.
The final wording is more practical than a hard 2m cap, but if you go beyond 2m, you need to justify it. The move away from flexible ducting is also significant because poorly installed flex can increase resistance and reduce performance. Project teams may need to think earlier about ceiling voids, duct routes and space planning, because fixing those issues late on site is much harder.
• Testing, commissioning and evidence trails will become harder to ignore
The changes also increase the emphasis on proof of performance. Airflow measurements for most systems should be carried out using a
26 BUILDING SERVICES & ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEER OCTOBER 2026
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