On the 29th June 2004 in the House of Commons, Phil Hope MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the ODPM (and Minister responsible for Building Regulations) announced the Government?s latest Competent Persons Scheme in the House of Commons. The Scheme brings all domestic electrical installations under Building Regulations control in England and Wales and have given approval for five self-certification schemes.

BRE Certification, British Standards Institution, ELECSA, NICEIC and Zurich Certification have all been approved to operate the schemes.

Contractors or individuals wishing to self-certify their work have six months to achieve 'Competent Person' status. Those who do not will have to notify Local Authority Building Control before work commences and work may also be subject to an inspection.

NICEIC, applicants who can demonstrate they have carried out domestic installations in accordance with BS7671, have public liability insurance, and hold a City and Guilds 2381, will gain registration on its Domestic Installer Scheme in a matter of weeks.

Application for Competent Person status from BRE Certification, ECA and IEE will cost £540 excluding VAT.

The NICEIC says the cost to become a competent person will be similar to that of joining its Roll of Approved Contractors. Currently, the annual fee is £325 and includes publications worth £150.

None of the schemes are allowed to make a profit.

For further information on the NICEIC?s Part P programme, see: http://www.niceic.org.uk/partp/partpindex.html

The BRE Certification scheme http://www.partp.co.uk

ELECSA's scheme http://www.elecsa.org.uk