Building Practitioners Board

Record of meeting with the Building Practitioners Board The VCEC met with the Building Practitioners Board (BPB) on 9 February 2005. (click here to view ROA BPB meeting 9 Feb 2005 (pdf 90.1 KB) attendees). Robert Kerr, the presiding commissioner for this inquiry, provided a brief overview of the functions of VCEC and presented some information on the scope and timeline of the inquiry. The chair of the BPB, Carolyn Lloyd, delivered a presentation on the role and operation of the BPB, and issues it considers relevant to the VCEC inquiry. Below is a summary of the key points and issues that were raised by the BPB in its presentation. Roles of the BPB The BPB is an independent statutory body established under the Building Act 1993. It oversees the quality and standard of professional services in the Victorian building industry. In doing so, it administers a registration system and monitors the conduct and ability of registered building practitioners. The key purpose of the BPB is to deliver key benefits to the community and the building industry through: · providing consumer protection; · maintaining building quality standards; · maintaining minimum standards for building practitioners; and · protecting public safety and amenity. The BPB meets on a monthly basis to discuss matters relating to the conduct of practitioners. The BPB comprises of ten members who represent the various categories of building practitioners. There is also a legal representative, a consumer representative and an independent chairperson. Inquiries The BPB monitors 19500 registered building practitioners and 10500 domestic builders, through conducting inquiries into practitioner behaviour. The inquiries consider whether the suspension or cancellation of a practitioner’s licence is warranted. In the first six months of this financial year, there have been 41 inquiries. Of the 41 inquiries, 20 concerned domestic builders and 15 involved building surveyors. The inquiry process resulted in eight domestic builders and three building practitioners having their licences suspended or cancelled. The BPB is currently assessing whether the number of suspensions and cancellations resulting from their inquiries in line with the experience of other jurisdictions and statutory bodies. Key Achievements of the BPB Recent achievements of the BPB include: · A review of competency guidelines for all building practitioner categories; · A review of the classes and categories of building practitioners; · Increased number of practitioner inquiries. In 2002-03 there were 24 inquiries. There have been 41 in the first 6 months in the current financial year; · Implemented regional inquiries and communications program; · Introduced a voluntary CPD program in partnership with the Building Commission; · Supported the introduction of owner-builder reforms; · The addition of consumer and legal representation on the Board; · Production of a governance manual for the purposes of transparency and accountability associated with the ‘business’ of the Board; and · Introduced an annual Board Performance Review process in line with AICD recommendations. Future directions of focus for the BPB Improved consumer protection: · Influence building quality through monitoring and positively influencing practitioner behaviour; · Improve technical and business performance of registered building practitioners; · Expand the BPBs regional program; · Review minimum qualifications for registration as a building practitioner; · Address the information asymmetry between builder and consumer; and · Improve communications with consumers and the building industry. Practitioner Skills: · Review minimum qualifications for registration as a building practitioner; and · Support compulsory CPD. The BPB believe that many of problems that lead to poor building practices would be alleviated if CPD was to become mandatory for registered builders and building practitioners. Owner Builders: · Implement owner-builder legislative functions. Alison Graham VCEC Secretariat – Economist 9 February 2005