The HSE is recruiting a new Building Safety Regulator with the partial retirement of Philip White.
White, who has been in the role as the head of the Building Safety Regulator, will step down in September.
The Health and Safety Executive described the move as a partial retirement, since he will continue in his other role as the Chief Inspector of Buildings at the HSE.
The HSE said it was now searching for a replacement to take up the critical industry role.
A spokesman for the HSE said: “Philip White has served as interim director of building safety at the Building Safety Regulator since December 2023.
“Mr White’s decision to only partially retire means that BSR will continue to benefit from his extensive experience as it enters its second year of operation.
“The BSR is in the process of recruiting a permanent director of building safety. We look forward to working with his replacement on improving building safety and delivering safe and secure homes for residents.”
Challenging times
He is the second chief Building Safety Regulator to retire following first BSR chief Peter Baker, who suddenly announced his retirement just days after the launch of its new regulatory regime in April 2023.
White steps down at a challenging time for the industry, with developers and contractors warning that the new Building Safety Regime has become the most significant block to progressing housing in city areas.
According to fresh figures provided through a Freedom of Information request from cost consultant and project manager Cast, just 10.8% of Gateway 2 new project applications have been approved to date.
Just 20 new project applications out of 187 submitted have gained approval over a pivotal period characterised with long assessment delays and shortages of suitably qualified assessors.
Fees on average for these approved gateway 2 projects averaged at around £28,000, the highest costing just over £83,000 after 550 hours of assessment, according to Cast’s calculations.
