Caroline Gumble shares her take on this year’s Sir James Wates lecture, delivered by building regulations independent review author, Dame Judith Hackitt.
It’s the time of year when I reflect on what the institute and the wider construction community experienced in 2024 and what we should be taking forward into 2025.
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It’s clear that the lecture’s focus on safety in the built environment and the need for professionals in the industry to take the lead, regardless of whether or not they hold a formal leadership role, will be one of the dominant themes of 2025.
Many of the conversations on that theme will focus, quite rightly, on the need to evidence competence as a built environment professional and ensure we are encouraging a culture of ethical, responsible behaviour.
At CIOB we have been fortunate to hear from Dame Judith, who is an honorary CIOB fellow, at previous events. We’ve heard her message of taking our responsibilities as construction professionals and industry leaders seriously. As with last year’s talk from Paul Morrell, our audience was presented with questions which not everyone will be able to greet with a satisfactory answer.
Outcomes-based system
Dame Judith pointed out that “regulation is required when there’s a need to drive different behaviours”. She cited the example of the Health and Safety at Work Act, introduced 50 years ago, which helped to drive a “fundamental shift” from simply adhering to rules to more of an “outcomes-based” system. She did, however, also add that it was not an entirely easy shift in behaviour but it has influenced so much of how we work today.
It’s not a stretch to see that may be where we’re heading now – the shift in thinking required now on prioritising safety and quality in construction is similar to the significant culture change of a generation ago.
A new legislative regime is now in place, with a new regulator to hold people to account. However, further legislation and other prescriptive measures are not off the table – unless we accelerate the pace of change.
We need to see more leaders in the built environment sector set the example and drive culture change, showing the right moral and ethical behaviours and clearly evidencing their competence and experience. As Dame Judith said: “Compliance is the minimum we require.”
Caroline Gumble is CEO of CIOB.
