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Building Compliance in Crawley
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Crawley Homes alterations need a separate consent trail
Crawley council tenants and leaseholders need written permission before improving or altering their homes. The council specifically includes heating upgrades, window replacement, layout changes and changes to services. Its permissions guidance asks for drawings or sketches, materials, contractor details and photographs. For a fabric upgrade, assemble these alongside any U-value calculations so the proposed construction is clearly identified.
The same Crawley Homes guidance says landlord consent does not replace planning permission or building control approval. Keep these decisions separate in the project record. Where heating or windows change, a retrofit assessment can help consider the dwelling as a whole before the permission request fixes individual measures. Supply the council with the actual proposed work, rather than assuming permission for one element covers every related alteration.
Crawley’s adopted SDC1 policy links carbon and summer comfort
The Crawley Borough Local Plan 2023 to 2040 was adopted on 16 October 2024. Policy SDC1 sets a fabric-first energy hierarchy and requires sustainability statements to consider embodied carbon and reuse. For a new dwelling, use SAP calculations to support the energy design and explain the wider planning response through a sustainability statement. Keep the planning policy comparison distinct from the applicable Building Regulations calculation.
SDC1 also requires new dwellings, other new buildings and material changes of use to address future temperature extremes. Its cooling hierarchy starts with reducing internal gains and summer heat entry, then passive ventilation, before mechanical ventilation and active cooling. An overheating assessment should therefore test the proposed glazing, shading and ventilation together. Do not leave summer comfort until the heating specification and window design have already been agreed.
Crawley’s March 2025 validation list shapes the report brief
The National and Local List of Validation Requirements, adopted 12 March 2025, requires a sustainability statement for one or more new dwellings, including conversions, more than 100 square metres of new-build floorspace, and extensions to buildings already comprising at least 1,000 square metres. These triggers mean a small conversion can need planning evidence even without a large new building. Scope the sustainability statement against the proposal rather than its headline construction value.
There is a wording difference worth checking: SDC1 uses 100 square metres or more and also lists specified changes of use, while the validation list says more than 100 square metres of new build. Seek confirmation for a proposal exactly at that threshold. The checklist also requires noise impact assessments for major residential applications and other noise-sensitive proposals exposed to significant or unacceptable noise. Arrange noise surveys early enough to inform the layout.
The Crawley checklist identifies proposed dwellings within 200 metres of the London-Brighton main line or 50 metres of the Three Bridges-Horsham branch line as railway noise cases. It also flags aviation and busy roads. For affected homes, coordinate acoustic design with the overheating strategy: a ventilation assumption relying on open windows needs checking against the noise assessment, not treating as an unrelated design choice.
Sussex North water neutrality changes the Crawley specification
Policy SDC3 sets a residential water-efficiency standard of no more than 110 litres per person per day, but SDC4 sets a tighter 85-litre mains-water target for new residential development within the Sussex North Water Resource Zone. SDC4 also requires offsetting of remaining additional mains demand. Establish which policy geography applies before fixing sanitaryware; water calculations can quantify demand but do not, alone, demonstrate neutrality.
The 2025 validation list requires a water neutrality statement for mains-water development in that zone, while identifying screened-out householder and minor development exceptions. It calls for an existing-use baseline, proposed demand calculations, fixture specifications and deliverable offsetting where needed. Keep historic bills and evidence of existing use. A Part G calculation should feed this wider statement rather than being presented as a substitute for the baseline and offsetting evidence.
Crawley Building Control replaced the former partnership service
The council’s 23 October 2025 announcement confirms that Crawley Building Control now directly manages the borough’s local authority building control applications. Sussex Building Control previously provided that service. The new service assesses applications, inspects work and issues completion certificates for compliant completed works. Check the current submission route rather than relying on an older project folder that names the former provider.
For a Crawley new-build brief, agree the supporting calculations and completion evidence with the current building control service. The council announcement distinguishes application assessment, inspections and completion certification. Programme air tightness testing and, where applicable, sound insulation testing as project evidence, not as replacements for the council’s inspections or completion decision.
Services in Crawley
New homes and conversions
- Air tightness testing in Crawley
On-site testing that measures how much air leaks through a building's envelope, with a certificate for Building Control.
- Sound insulation testing in Crawley
Pre-completion testing of separating walls and floors between homes, reported in the form Building Control expects.
- Ventilation testing in Crawley
Airflow measurement of extract fans and ventilation systems, recorded for the Building Control completion file.
- MVHR commissioning in Crawley
Setting up and measuring a mechanical ventilation with heat recovery system, with commissioning records for handover.
- SAP calculations in Crawley
The energy calculation for new homes and conversions, from design stage figures to the as-built result.
- Home energy model in Crawley
Assessment under the Home Energy Model, the government's planned replacement for SAP.
- U-value calculations in Crawley
Calculated U-values for walls, floors and roofs, set out in a document Building Control can check against the limits.
- Thermal bridging calculations in Crawley
Calculated psi-values for junctions, replacing default values in SAP and SBEM with measured detail.
- Condensation risk analysis in Crawley
Analysis of how moisture moves through a wall, roof or floor build-up, showing whether condensation risk is acceptable.
- Water calculations in Crawley
The water efficiency calculation for new homes, showing estimated daily use per person against the target.
- Background ventilation calculations in Crawley
Calculations that size trickle vents and background ventilation for each room, ready for Building Control.
- Overheating assessments in Crawley
Overheating assessment for new homes, using the simplified method where it applies.
- CIBSE TM59 and TM52 assessments in Crawley
Dynamic thermal modelling of overheating risk, assessed against CIBSE TM59 for homes and TM52 for other buildings.
- Party wall and ceiling design in Crawley
Design review of separating wall constructions between homes, so they are built to pass sound testing.
- Party floor design in Crawley
Design review of separating floor constructions between flats, so they are built to pass sound testing.
- Regulation 25A reports in Crawley
The report on high-efficiency alternative energy systems required for new buildings under Regulation 25A.
Commercial and public buildings
- SBEM calculations in Crawley
The energy calculation for new and altered non-domestic buildings, with the BRUKL output Building Control asks for.
- Display energy certificates in Crawley
Display Energy Certificates showing the actual energy use of public buildings, with the advisory report.
- Smoke shaft and AOV testing in Crawley
Testing of smoke shafts and automatic opening vents to confirm they operate as designed.
- Fire risk assessments in Crawley
A written assessment of fire risk in a building's common or work areas, with the actions needed to reduce it.
- Legionella risk assessments in Crawley
An assessment of a building's water systems that identifies legionella risk and the controls needed.
- Commercial and industrial noise surveys in Crawley
Assessment of sound from commercial and industrial sources under BS 4142.
- Entertainment and night club noise surveys in Crawley
Noise assessment for bars, clubs and venues, and for homes planned near them.
Existing buildings and refurbishment
- Asbestos surveys in Crawley
Surveys that find and record asbestos-containing materials, and explain which survey type a building needs.
- Management asbestos survey in Crawley
A survey of the accessible parts of an occupied building so the dutyholder can manage asbestos during normal use.
- Refurbishment and demolition survey in Crawley
An intrusive survey of the areas affected by planned refurbishment or demolition, carried out before work starts.
- Pre-purchase asbestos survey in Crawley
An asbestos survey arranged before buying a property, so the buyer knows what is present and where.
- Retrofit assessments in Crawley
A whole-house assessment of a home's condition and energy use, used to plan retrofit measures.
- Borescope inspections in Crawley
Camera inspection of cavities and voids through small holes, without opening up the structure.
- EPC in Crawley
Energy Performance Certificates for homes and commercial buildings that are built, sold or let.
Planning applications
- Energy statements in Crawley
Energy statements written for planning applications, setting out how a scheme meets the council's energy policy.
- Sustainability statements in Crawley
Sustainability statements for planning applications, covering the topics the council's policies ask for.
- Acoustic design in Crawley
Acoustic design advice from the early stages of a project, so construction details meet sound requirements.
- Noise surveys in Crawley
Noise impact assessment for planning applications, and the starting point for the specific noise surveys below.
- Environmental noise survey in Crawley
Measurement of existing noise levels at a site, used to inform design and planning submissions.
- Residential noise surveys in Crawley
Noise assessment for new homes, showing that internal and external noise levels will be acceptable.
- Road and rail noise surveys in Crawley
Assessment of road and railway noise affecting a proposed development.
Building compliance questions in Crawley
Who handles ordinary residential planning applications in Crawley?
Crawley Borough Council is the borough planning authority. The West Sussex County Council validation list directs household, commercial and residential applications to the district council, reserving minerals, waste and county development to the county.
Does one converted Crawley dwelling need a sustainability statement?
Yes. The adopted March 2025 validation list includes creation of one or more dwellings, including by conversion. Address the scheme’s energy, water and overheating approach in that statement.
Is Sussex Building Control still Crawley’s council service?
No. The council’s October 2025 announcement says the borough introduced Crawley Building Control and directly manages local authority building control applications from 23 October 2025.
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