Building standards - operating and performance frameworks for verifiers: research summary

2. Research aims, objectives and methodology

2.1 Aims and objectives

The aim for Pye Tait Consulting as part of the wider review was to undertake independent research and development work to examine the continued fitness for purpose of the PF and OF, then recommend changes to strengthen the frameworks. This involved ensuring that the frameworks would continue to reflect current practice and priorities for the building standards system in Scotland, in particular outcomes emanating from the Futures Board workstreams.

A cross-cutting consideration for this work was to ensure strong buy-in to the proposed changes, ensure that the refined frameworks and constituent KPOs can be effectively implemented, measured and monitored.

Specific objectives of this research were to:

1. Explore – how and the extent to which the current frameworks support proposed Futures Board outcomes.

2. Examine – identify through desk research and consultation with key stakeholders the content and components of the frameworks (including, but not limited to, targets and criteria) that need to be added, changed or removed, including potential barriers/operational implications and how those could be overcome.

3. Recommend – propose appropriate changes to the frameworks that respond to the needs of the system and any operational changes that may be needed to enable effective implementation.

All proposed amendments will be subject to further consultation with all 32 local authorities and Ministerial approval before final implementation. The revised frameworks will also be shared with LABSS, COSLA and SOLACE colleagues to ensure alignment with the Verity House Agreement.^[1]

2.2 Methodology

The methodology involved the following three main stages:

Stage 1: Scoping, desk research, stakeholder engagement and proposals for frameworks (September-October 2024):

• Scoping discussions with BSD internal stakeholders.
• Review of relevant documents, including those from the Review Group.
• Seventeen in-depth interviews with BSD internal stakeholders and Review Group members.
• Online feedback tool circulated by BSD to all 32 local authority building standards teams (19 responses received of which five were anonymous).
• Interim summary report and forward considerations for the frameworks.

Stage 2: Workshops with local authority verifiers (x2) and iterative development work (November 2024):

• In-person workshops inviting participation from all 32 local authority building standards verifiers (split over two workshops).
• Development of a clear set of proposals for changes to the frameworks.

Stage 3: Workshop with the Review Group and further iterative development:

• Hybrid (in-person/remote) workshop with Review Group members to discuss the emerging proposals and hone/ refine the draft framework revisions.
• Further iterative development work to the framework documents, along with supplementary considerations for matters not firmly agreed upon.
• Reporting (this document).

2.3 Structure of this report

This report sets out the factors influencing framework priorities, followed by a summary of the PF’s main strengths. It then moves through each KPO of the PF in turn, setting out the starting position and issues, followed by forward considerations emerging from stage 1, key takeaways from stage 2, and proposed changes to feed into the Review Group workshop at stage 3.

A similar approach then follows for a proposed new KPO, the core perspectives and cross-cutting themes of the PF, as well as the OF.

Chapter 10 of this report lists the documents that build on the evidence base from the workshops and have been worked on separately to this report. These include various draft iterations of the OF, PF, a new KPO and a supporting document containing forward considerations for points not fully agreed upon during this research.

The final outputs are included as separate Annexes to this report.