Date: 28/04/2009
At Buxton Magistrates court on 24 April, Mr Lee Edwards of Candleford Place Offerton, who also trades as Marple Design & Build, was convicted of 19 breaches of the Building Regulations.
The work had been carried out to construct a dormer loft extension at a property in Brierley Green, Buxworth in High Peak, without an application having been submitted. The Council only became aware of the situation after the work had been completed.
Mr Edwards was fined a total of £15,200 by the magistrates: £4000 for failure to provide adequate fire safety to occupants of the new loft room; £6500 for providing an unsafe staircase and a further £4700 in relation to 14 other contraventions including lack of insulation, poor construction and workmanship.
Jeremy Toone, the Council's Building Control Manager said this case showed possibly the worst example of poor workmanship and inadequate safety he had experienced in his 20 years of surveying.
This comment was echoed by the Chair of the Bench at the court, who said the situation had resulted in an unacceptable level of stress being experienced, together with a significant health hazard posed to the occupants of the building. The work was described as a bungled piece of work that showed Mr Edwards not to be worthy of the title of builder or even as a competent DIYer.
Linda Baldry, Executive Councillor for Planning said: "I applaud the actions taken by the Council's Building Control team in bringing a case against this builder. This type of bad workmanship could have had disastrous consequences.
She continued: "The Council will always take firm action against such breaches to ensure the safety of High Peak residents."
Mr Toone, Building Control Manager advised that anyone proposing works to their property should get references to show the competency of the builder to do the work and also investigate whether the work requires notification to the council.
This can be done by either looking at the Council's website www.highpeak.gov.uk or by contacting the Building Control team on 0845 129 77 77 where a member of staff will be happy to help and advise on the Building Regulations. People should be aware that if they wish to sell their houses in the future, they need completion certificates from Building Control to show any work they have done has the necessary approval.