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1. Summary of key findings

During the review, from August 2004 to August 2007, Manukau City Council (the Council) improved some building control practices. The Department acknowledges work is continuing as the Council prepares for accreditation as a building consent authority under the Building Act 2004.

Further improvements are still required to ensure that the Council is able to consistently meet its obligations under the Building Act 2004. The Department has had to reiterate some recommendations, which had not been fully resolved and implemented (see terms of reference 3, 4.1, 4.2, 4.4, 4.9, 9, 10, 11 and 16 under section 5 of this report).

During the review the Council restructured its building control unit. It now uses three external contractors to undertake the majority of consent processing and inspection work. The Department's findings and recommendations refer to this structural arrangement.

The Council needs to give particular attention to the following issues:

Policies and processes underpinning the Council's building control operations

Policies, processes and procedures underpinning some of the Council's building control functions need strengthening in a number of areas. The Council needs to:

  • ensure clear communication of performance expectations to staff and contractors, and ensure these requirements are followed. Examples include ensuring:
  • - applications are rigorously vetted (and rejected if they lack sufficient detail)
  • - guidance is provided to Council contractors regarding minimum information required for assessing compliance and making decisions
  • - the Council's contractors are given guidance on peer review required during processing and inspection (particularly accessibility compliance)
  • - the use of consent conditions and notations is appropriate
  • strengthen project information memorandum (PIM) processing; so site-specific information is consistently produced and owners are informed of any requirement to obtain an approved fire evacuation scheme
  • improve building consent processing and inspection by:
  • - improving processing and inspection checklists
  • - ensuring contractors document their systems for peer review, internal auditing and other quality control measures

Improving the Council's quality assurance system

The Council needs to undertake technical auditing and performance reviews of Council contractors, focusing on:

  • the assessment and acceptance of producer statement authors
  • consent conditions and notations
  • inspection of building work.

The Council needs a system to ensure contractors formally record requests made to consent applicants for additional information (to identify common deficiencies in applications). This information should be providedto the Council so it can be used to improve consent vetting and lodgement procedures.

Compliance with statutory obligations

The Council is not always achieving a consistent level of compliance with the Building Code. Non-compliance is occurring in fire, weathertightness and accessibility requirements. These areas need to be reviewed by the Council.

The Council needs to ensure consent applications are processed within 20 working days. Clearing a backlog of outstanding code compliance certificates and overdue building warrants of fitness is also an issue.

Resourcing of the Council's building control operations

Capacity and capability limitations need to be addressed by the Council to fulfil Building Act responsibilities. While some initiatives have been implemented, systems still need strengthening to ensure:

  • reasonable grounds exist (that the Building Code will be met) prior to issuing building consents
  • reasonable grounds exist (that the building consent has been complied with) prior to issuing code compliance certificates.

The Council retains responsibility for issuing these documents regardless of any contracting arrangements.

The Council needs a strategy for recruiting and retaining building control staff.

The Council needs a better system to assess technical skills, competencies and experience, which needs to cover both Council contractors and Council staff. The system should inform how the Council allocates consent processing and approval work. The system should also help to identify skill gaps and strategies to address them. The Council's building control operations are considered to be under-resourced for the type and volume of work in Manukau City.