the solarblogger: Comparing Building Regulations for Energy

Development of new homes in Glasgow by CCG Homes, Installation by Arc-Tech

New regulations have been published for Part L building regulations in England.

Let’s take a quick look at how they compare to Scotland, where almost all new homes now come with solar panels.

The building regulations work by defining a specification for a ‘Notional Dwelling’ – read this article for more detail of how it works

In the table below I have shown a selection of the more significant requirements for each.  It is evident that not only do both Notional Houses include solar PV, but that the England requirement is much higher.

Housebuilders do not have to build the Notional House specification, but they must equal or exceed its performance.  The scope for reducing the solar provision by increasing the insulation performance of building elements such as walls, roofs and windows (collectively often referred to as fabric measures)  is limited in the new English regulations, which equal or exceed the fabric requirements in Scotland.