Our strategies

Strategy: work with the sector to foster learning, enhance and support professional behaviour, skills and knowledge and facilitate greater ownership of this by the sector

What we will do

The Department is committed to collaborating and working in partnership with the sector to enhance our knowledge and understanding of the sector and issues affecting housing, building and construction. This ensures our work is informed by the views and ideas of those involved in design, construction and administration of regulation at the local level.

We will form and maintain strong relationships with sector groups to ensure:

• there is active consultation
• those groups in the sector who work with consumers are better informed and more aware of building- and housing-related matters
• there is a good understanding of the outcomes the Government is seeking for the sector.

We will promote the professional behaviour, skills and knowledge that are needed for a high-quality building and housing sector. This will contribute to improved design, construction and inspection of buildings and provide better housing that meets New Zealanders' needs in the New Zealand environment.

Why we will do it

Intermediate Outcome

- Buildings and homes that perform well in the New Zealand environment and contribute to sustainability
- A strong, well-performing sector with skilled building and housing professionals

The building and housing sector needs the capacity and capability to meet the requirements of the market. Regulators need the capacity and capability to develop and apply the building and housing regulatory regime.

We know we cannot effect positive change without working collaboratively with sector groups. Our actions will:

• help the sector access the right information to make good decisions
• reduce poor-quality construction, reduce disputes and lower transaction costs
• result in less government intervention (and its associated costs).

Skilled and capable people and organisations are necessary to achieve the Government's outcomes for the sector. We administer regulations that set standards for the skills and capabilities of building and housing professions, and those who administer the regulatory framework at the local level.

These regulations complement other elements of the regulatory framework to ensure buildings are safe and healthy, disputes are handled appropriately, and public confidence in the sector is maintained and enhanced.

To be effective, the building control regime requires:

• us to be effective at the central level
• relevant authorities to be effective at the local level
• the building and housing sector to be effective at applying the regime.

A major area of focus for us is implementing the licensed building practitioner provisions of the Building Act 2004. The Licensed Building Practitioner Scheme will lift the capability and accountability of building practitioners. Starting voluntarily in 2007, the scheme will apply to the following significant building projects.

• Construction of new buildings for occupation as workplaces or places of residence
• Projects to change the use of a building (eg, from an office to an apartment)
• Major alterations or extensions to an existing occupied building (for example, adding a bedroom or extra floor)

We will also undertake activities designed to improve the capability of territorial authorities in administering the building regulatory system.

How we will do it

This strategy involves the Department:

• working with professions and trades across the building and housing sector to set national standards for demonstrating competence and skill
• working with qualification providers and education providers to ensure there are appropriate qualifications and courses for building sector professionals, tradespeople and building officials
• developing, in consultation with the building and housing sector, resources that guide and advise them on their rights and obligations
• establishing, maintaining or participating in a range of forums and working groups that enable the participants to share information and address issues of mutual concern
• working with stakeholders to develop information in the best form and delivered in the best way to ensure the sector and consumers understand their rights and obligations, and can make decisions and undertake transactions with confidence
• monitoring and reporting on sector information (as well as developing our capability to monitor the sector, we will actively contribute to a better understanding of the significance of the building and housing sector to the Government's housing outcomes. This includes the sector's capacity to meet increasing demands for quality and affordable housing, and developing a better understanding of the factors that affect the supply and cost of housing).
• maintaining awareness of national and international research developments in relation to housing and building science design and promoting improved coordination of housing and building research in New Zealand.
• establishing and maintaining proactive and constructive relationships with key external stakeholders to ensure good feedback on and input to the work of the Department.

What we will deliver

To be successful, the Department must have a good knowledge of the sector as the basis of our engagement with it. To this end, we are developing our sector monitoring capability, and leading or participating in a number of collaborative forums.

Over the next 3 years we will:

• develop a sector monitoring strategy to improve understanding of the sector, including supply and demand in the housing market
• work with the local government sector through forums such as the Department/Local Government Governance Group, the Regional Authority Working Group, the Deputy Secretaries Group, and other advisory and working groups
• collect, analyse and disseminate industry and market (building and housing) performance data in consultation with Statistics New Zealand
• collect and disseminate recent local and international building research and performance information relevant to New Zealand conditions and buildings
• develop an evaluation strategy to ensure the Department's services and regulatory interventions are effectively contributing to the Government's outcomes and objectives for the sector
• influence, coordinate and commission research into the building and housing sector and develop a long-term building research plan
• monitor and report on performance, skills and competencies across the building and housing sector
• develop, implement and maintain registration and licensing regimes for building practitioners. In 2007/08 we will:
  • implement the operational procedures and processes for processing licence applications and managing the licensing scheme
  • process voluntary licence applications (for the design, site and carpentry licence classes) from 1 November 2007
  • implement information technology and business support systems
    for the licensing regime.
• implement and maintain new registration and licensing regimes for electrical workers, including transferring the contact centre and processing centre functions and the associated IT support for the Electrical Workers Registration Board from the Ministry of Economic Development and developing a database for the electrical workers register
• upskill building officials. In 2007/08 we will:
  • develop a strategy to enhance the capability and competency of building officials
  • implement the accreditation and registration systems for building consent authorities
  • provide additional assistance for territorial authorities to meet the requirements of the building consent authority accreditation and registration scheme
  • provide guidance and information to building practitioners and regulators
  • provide assurance of building consent authorities’ performance.
• upskill property owners and managers. In 2007/08 we will:
  • implement the Tenancy Community Education and Liaison Strategy to promote an informed and confident rental market by educating and working with market participants (this will include implementing strategies to improve the quality of business and property management practices of landlords)
  • provide information and advice to the housing industry aimed at raising the standards of property and property management.
• investigate and advise on barriers to institutional investment in rental housing.

How our outputs link to the strategy

Output Class	Output
Building Act 2004 Implementation	Sector Advice and Guidance
Building Regulation and Control	Building Regulation Advice and Guidance Resolve Disputes Building and Construction Monitoring, Research and Evaluation Public Information and Education Building Sector Education
Occupational Licensing	Develop and Implement Licensed Building Practitioner Scheme Licensing of Electrical Workers
Purchase and Monitoring Advice - Housing New Zealand Corporation	Monitoring and Purchase Advice on Housing New Zealand Corporation
Residential Tenancy Services	Residential Tenancy Advice and Guidance Compliance Residential Tenancy Public Information and Education
Sector and Regulatory Policy	Sector and Regulatory Policy Advice Sector, Industry and Market Monitoring Statutory Board Responsibilities