Transparency data

Building Safety Regulator Programme: SRO appointment letter

Updated 10 November 2023

To:	Angela Storey Senior Responsible Owner (SRO) for the Building Safety Regulator Programme
Date:	May 2022
From:	Peter Schofield, DWP Permanent Secretary Jeremy Pocklington DLUHC Permanent Secretary Sarah Albon, Chief Executive Health and Safety Executive Nick Smallwood, Chief Executive Officer of the Infrastructure and Projects Authority

Dear Angela

Appointment as Senior Responsible Owner (SRO) for the Building Safety Regulator Programme

We are writing to confirm your appointment as Senior Responsible Owner (SRO) of the Building Safety Regulator Programme with effect from 18 October 2021. This letter sets out your responsibilities and the support you can expect from Health and Safety Executive, Department for Work and Pensions, Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and the Infrastructure and Projects Authority.

As SRO, you are directly accountable to Sarah Albon (Building Safety Regulator Programme Senior Sponsor) Health and Safety Executive Chief Executive, under the oversight of the Permanent Secretaries for the Department for Work and Pensions, and Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities as accounting officers for those departments and Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, and Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.

Your Building Safety Regulator Programme forms part of the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Building Safety Programme, under the oversight of the Chair (Richard Goodman) of the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Safer and Greener Director General Delivery Board and is included in the Government Major Projects Portfolio (GMPP).

You have personal responsibility for the delivery of the Building Safety Regulator Programme and will be held accountable for the delivery of its objectives, with policy intent and outcomes expected. This encompasses securing and protecting its vision, ensuring that it is governed responsibly, reported on honestly, escalated appropriately and for influencing the context, culture, and operating environment of the Building Safety Regulator Programme. You are also responsible for ensuring the ongoing viability of the Building Safety Regulator Programme and recommending its pause or termination if appropriate. Where issues arise which you are unable to resolve, you are responsible for escalating these to Building Safety Regulator Programme Board and, where needed, the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Safer and Greener Director General Delivery Board as well as to the HSE Board.

You remain accountable to Ministers, as set out in the Civil Service Code, and should deliver the project in accordance with the objectives and policy intent as set by Ministers.

In addition to your internal accountabilities, SROs for GMPP projects and programmes are personally accountable to Parliamentary Select Committees. This means that, from the date of this letter, you will be held personally accountable to and could be called by Select Committees to account for and explain the decisions and actions you have taken to deliver the Building Safety Regulator Programme.

It is important to be clear that your accountability relates only to implementation, within the agreed terms in this letter; it will remain for the Minister to account for the relevant policy decisions and development.

More information on this is set out in Giving Evidence to Select Committees - Guidance for Civil Servants, sometimes known as the Osmotherly Rules. Information on the roles and responsibilities of the SRO are detailed in the Infrastructure and Project Authority’s guidance on the role of the senior responsible owner. You should also make yourself familiar with the Government Functional Standard for Project Delivery, the requirements of the Government Project Delivery Framework, and the guidance and requirements for project delivery as set by Department for Work and Pensions.

Time commitment and tenure

This role will require at least 50% of your time to enable effective delivery of the role and execute your responsibilities in full.

You are required to undertake this role until achievement of the establishment of the Building Safety Regulator within the Health and Safety Executive and Building Safety Regulator Programme closure planned for March 2025. Progress towards this will be reflected in your personal objectives. Any changes to the agreed time commitment or tenure of the role, as set out above, will require both departmental and Infrastructure & Projects Authority consent.

Objectives and performance criteria

The policy intent supported by this programme is to deliver a new Building Safety Regulator, which is at the heart of the Government’s radical reforms to the building safety regulatory system following the Grenfell Tower Fire. Although not part of the transition to Net Zero GHG emissions by 2050, through the Regulator’s oversight function, the horizon scanning and research role will identify new technologies and building methods as they start to be developed and ensure the standards applied and the building regulations are keeping pace to balance facilitating innovation whilst ensuring buildings remain safe.

Any proposed changes to scope which impacts on this intent or the realisation of benefits must be authorised by Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Safer and Greener Director General Delivery Board and may be subject to further levels of approval.

The vision of the Building Safety Regulator Programme is “High performing safe buildings that are built safely, enabled by a trusted, world-class regulatory regime” and its objectives are to:

• secure the safety of people in and around buildings, and build trust in safety and quality of buildings;
• improve building standards without disproportionately impacting industry and reducing supply;
• ensure residents of higher-risk buildings are safe;
• ensure performance of all buildings is high; and
• improve competence of the building control sector (including Building Control Authority, Building Control Bodies and Building Inspectors).

Your personal objectives and performance criteria which relate to the Building Safety Regulator Programme are:

• To visibly and actively lead the Building Safety Regulator Programme through to a structured closure, ensuring that all appropriate steps are taken to ensure that the benefits forecast by the programme are realised. In particular:
  • monitoring and controlling the progress of the programme at a strategic level, being honest and frank about its progress, risks and issues;
  • communicating effectively with senior stakeholders regarding programme progress and providing clear, appropriate and delivery- focused decisions and advice to the Programme Director;
  • escalating serious issues quickly and with confidence to senior management; and
  • ensuring a plan for both long term benefits realisation and on-going sustainability is agreed with key stakeholders as part of the process of transitioning the programme to “business as usual”.

You are expected to run your project in accordance with the Government Functional Standard for Project Delivery, the other Functional Standards as applicable to this Building Safety Regulator Programme and the requirements of the Government Project Delivery Framework.

Extent and limit of accountability

Finance and Controls

HM Treasury spending controls will apply on the basis set out within the department’s delegated authority letter. Where the Building Safety Regulator Programme exceeds the delegated authority set by HM Treasury, the Treasury Approval Point process will apply, and the details of each approval process must be agreed with your HM Treasury spending team. You should consult departmental finance colleagues on how to go about this.

You should note that where expenditure is considered novel, contentious, repercussive, or likely to result in costs to other parts of the public sector, HM Treasury approval will be required, regardless of whether the programme expenditure exceeds the delegated authority set by HM Treasury. If in doubt about whether approval is required you should, in the first instance, consult departmental finance colleagues before raising with the relevant HM Treasury spending team.

The overall estimated budget, resourcing requirements and tolerances for your project/programme will be agreed as part of the approval process. You will be expected to deliver within these tolerances and report quarterly on these as part of GMPP reporting.

You should operate at all times within the rules set out in Managing Public Money. In addition, you must be mindful of, and act in accordance with, the specific HM Treasury delegated limits and Cabinet Office controls relevant to Building Safety Regulator Programme. Information on these controls can be found here: Cabinet Office controls.

Delegated authority

You are authorised to:

• approve expenditure of up to the limits included in the Delegated Authority Letter to you from Sarah Albon in her role as Accounting Officer for Health and Safety Executive;
• agree project rescheduling within 6 months of agreed milestones, but rescheduling beyond that must be agreed with Sarah Albon (Building Safety Regulator Programme Senior Sponsor) Health and Safety Executive Chief Executive and Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Safer and Greener Director General Delivery Board; and
• recommend to Sarah Albon (Building Safety Regulator Programme Senior Sponsor) Health and Safety Executive Chief Executive and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Safer and Greener Director General Delivery Board the need to either pause or terminate the programme where necessary and in a timely manner.

These authority limits are subject to change and other conditions or tolerances may be set as part of the business case approval and ongoing monitoring processes which you should then operate within.

Where issues arise which take you outside of these authority limits which you are unable to resolve, you are responsible for escalating these issues to the Sarah Albon (Building Safety Regulator Programme Senior Sponsor) Health and Safety Executive Chief Executive and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Safer and Greener Director General Delivery Board.

Appointments

You should, and have, appointed a full time Building Safety Regulator Programme Director to support you in the management of this Building Safety Regulator Programme and you should make other appointments as required for the control and delivery of your programme within your delegated authority.

Governance and assurance

You should pay attention to ensuring effective governance for your Building Safety Regulator Programme, including the establishment of a Building Safety Regulator Programme Board with appropriate membership and clear terms of reference.

As primary owner, you must ensure that the Building Safety Regulator Programme secures business case approval from Health and Safety Executive Portfolio Board, Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Investment Sub-Committee and HM Treasury Approval Point. You should also ensure that the Building Safety Regulator Programme remains aligned to the strategic outcomes, costs, timescales, and benefits in line with the approved business case as well as monitoring the context within which the Building Safety Regulator Programme is being delivered to ensure it remains valid.

Where a change impacts the scope, costs, benefits, or planned delivery milestones agreed as part of an agreed business case, you are responsible for following the agreed change request approval process and setting a new, approved, business case baseline.

You should ensure that an accounting officer assessment is completed alongside the approval of the Outline Business Case and that this is published on GOV.UK as part of the government’s transparency requirements on major projects. You are responsible for bringing to the attention of the accounting officer any material changes in the Building Safety Regulator Programme which could require a new accounting officer assessment to be completed and published. Guidance on completing accounting officer assessments for major projects is available from HM Treasury.

Although you are directly accountable for this Building Safety Regulator Programme, you are also expected to support delivery of the department’s overall strategic objectives. This means that you are expected to work collaboratively with other SROs and project directors in adjacent projects and programmes in both Health and Safety Executive and with the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities as well as Health and Safety Executive Portfolio, Programme and Project Management Office and Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Safer and Greener Buildings Group portfolio management office and portfolio director to manage dependencies, resources, schedules, and funding to support delivery of the overall change the department needs to achieve its strategic objectives.

You should ensure that appropriate and proportionate assurance is in place and agree on the level and frequency of assurance reviews through the maintenance of an integrated assurance and approvals plan. You should develop this plan and its maintenance in collaboration with the Departmental Assurance Coordinator and the Infrastructure and Projects Authority.

Building Safety Regulator Programme status, reporting and transparency requirements

The Building Safety Regulator Programme status at the date of your appointment is reflected in the most recent quarterly return on the Building Safety Regulator Programme to the Infrastructure and Projects Authority and is the agreed position as you assume formal ownership of the programme. You are responsible for ensuring the honest and timely reporting on the position of the Building Safety Regulator Programme to the Infrastructure and Projects Authority while it remains on the GMPP and for providing reports and information to the Department of Work and Pensions Departmental Change Portfolio Office as required given Peter Schofield, DWP Permanent Secretary, is the Principal Accounting Officer. Reporting should include carbon measurement, and other sustainable development goals demonstrating evidence that the project contributes to an overarching environmental strategy and is aligned with defined Net Zero pathways. Information on the Building Safety Regulator Programme will be published annually by the Infrastructure and Projects Authority.

You are responsible for publishing on GOV.UK a summary of the accounting office assessment completed in line with the approval of the Outline Business Case and summaries of any subsequent assessments should they be required.

Development and support

Major Projects Leadership Academy (MPLA)

As SRO of a GMPP Building Safety Regulator Programme, you are required to complete the Major Projects Leadership Academy, and you have agreed to enrol on a cohort in the near future. The Head of Profession in Health and Safety Executive can provide further information on the application process.

To widen experience and understanding of the role, SROs are also expected to become accredited assurance reviewers and to lead or participate in such reviews for other government departments, the wider public sector, and other areas of the Health and Safety Executive as appropriate. Becoming an assurance reviewer and completing a review will form part of your time at the Major Projects Leadership Academy. To maintain your accreditation, you will be required to participate in a review at least once every 12 months.

The department will assist you in securing the necessary resources to support the Building Safety Regulator Programme, and will set clear guidance, requirements and standards, which align to the Government Functional Standard on Project Delivery, to enable good governance and effective delivery. You will be part of the department’s cohort of major project leaders who will be expected to support each other, share good practice and lessons learned and to collectively develop solutions. You should liaise with the department’s Head of Profession for project delivery to discuss the maintenance and development of your delivery and leadership skills.

The Infrastructure and Projects Authority will be available to you for support, advice, and assurance throughout the Building Safety Regulator Programme time on the GMPP.

Following approval of the business case and entry onto the Health and Safety Executive Change Portfolio, the Health and Safety Executive Portfolio Board and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Safer and Greener Director General Delivery Board will provide ongoing oversight and support and will take steps to help resolve and escalate risks, issues or constraints that are acting as a blocker to successful delivery.

We would like to take this opportunity to wish you every success in your role as SRO.

Yours sincerely,

Peter Schofield
Permanent Secretary
Department of Work and Pensions

Nick Smallwood
Chief Executive Officer
Infrastructure and Projects Authority

Jeremy Pocklington
Permanent Secretary
Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC)

Sarah Albon
Chief Executive Officer
Health and Safety Executive

Confirmation of acceptance of appointment

I confirm that I accept the appointment of Senior Responsible Owner for the Building Safety Regulator Programme, including my personal accountability for implementation, as set out in the letter above.

Angela Storey

9 September 2022