Council Building Inspector is it a "fishing trip"

MichaelMichael

Dear Forum,
I hope all is well?
  Please I received a council inspection notice as they were asked to provide a "dangerous structures report" on the defects at my home.
I think my leaseholder has reported me to the council, as the front of the house is messy and the unfinished lightwell (2.7m by 1m) under my bay window is covered over with plywood sheets, timbers and marked with traffic cones, since 2018. The plywood covering is sound but weather beaten, it has withstood the weight of roofers, the house being pointed and the weight of scaffolding earlier in 2025.
  I have a private building control contractor managing the whole project, the underpinning, beam installation and lightwell construction of 2018 are completed. I still need to finish the project to make it habitable, such as floor insulation and screed, partition walls, boiler, kitchens and bathrooms etc. Hopefully with the same private building control contractor, who is trying to get me off of his books, the project is currently on hold with them and their last visit was in April 2024. Thus the structural work is completed in the lower ground floor and basement since 2018.
  So I want to tread lightly with the this impending council building control notice. Please advise how I should respond to the council building controls request to visit the site? Should I just offer full details my project, such as planning permission details, private building control info, drawings, specifications etc in a telephone call or email to avoid their "fishing" exercise? I think I have a low lying gas pipe in the front garden which is fully covered and boxed in  with timbers, until the garden is paved and landscapped in the near future.
  As previously mentioned, if my other leaseholder (I am the freeholder), has made the report, then they would have made such a big fuss, about hazards, great perils and personal danger. Many thanks for the opportunity to seek advice.

WIAWSNB

What about shielding it off using, say, Haras fencing panels? You'll probably even find some cheap on your local Facebook Marketplace. 

MichaelMichael

That is a solution but more stuff for me to get rid of. Much appreciated.

Section62

MichaelMichael said:

Dear Forum,
I hope all is well?
  Please I received a council inspection notice as they were asked to provide a "dangerous structures report" on the defects at my home.
I think my leaseholder has reported me to the council, as the front of the house is messy and the unfinished lightwell (2.7m by 1m) under my bay window is covered over with plywood sheets, timbers and marked with traffic cones, since 2018. The plywood covering is sound but weather beaten, it has withstood the weight of roofers, the house being pointed and the weight of scaffolding earlier in 2025.
  I have a private building control contractor managing the whole project, the underpinning, beam installation and lightwell construction of 2018 are completed. I still need to finish the project to make it habitable, such as floor insulation and screed, partition walls, boiler, kitchens and bathrooms etc. Hopefully with the same private building control contractor, who is trying to get me off of his books, the project is currently on hold with them and their last visit was in April 2024. Thus the structural work is completed in the lower ground floor and basement since 2018.
  So I want to tread lightly with the this impending council building control notice. Please advise how I should respond to the council building controls request to visit the site? Should I just offer full details my project, such as planning permission details, private building control info, drawings, specifications etc in a telephone call or email to avoid their "fishing" exercise? I think I have a low lying gas pipe in the front garden which is fully covered and boxed in  with timbers, until the garden is paved and landscapped in the near future.
  As previously mentioned, if my other leaseholder (I am the freeholder), has made the report, then they would have made such a big fuss, about hazards, great perils and personal danger. Many thanks for the opportunity to seek advice.

Can you not get the external works finished (or at least made safe) before doing the internal work?  What is holding up finishing the lightwell?

As the freeholder the state of the path to (what I assume is) the front door would be my immediate concern - if someone trips or falls on that then you could be having 'interesting' conversations with your insurers over liability - especially if it has been like that for some time and has been photographed by others and/or is on streetview.

Could it be the private BC who has been in touch with the council?  If he wants you "off of his books" and there is no sign of progess then an off-the-record conversation with the dangerous structures team at the council might have been seen as a strategy for getting things moving.

In terms of the visit, personally I'd do nothing in advance.  Have a chat with them when they turn up, and find out what (if anything) they want you to do to rectify the situation.

Also, if completion of the project will be delayed much longer I'd personally be inclined to get signoff of the 'structural' work done in 2018.  If the private BC quits or is unable to complete the paperwork for some reason, then you might be in a position of needing a new BC to sign off the 2018 work - and you may only be able to get that if you 'uncover' some of the work already done.  7 years after completing the work is a long time to be without full signoff.

Potentially - if the property has been uninhabited for that length of time - the greater risk may come from the council treating it as an 'empty/abandoned home' and giving you a deadline to get the work done before they take over and do it themselves.  The level of risk of that happening depends on where in the UK the property is located and how proactive the council are in dealing with homes which aren't being used.

Eldi_Dos

Those pieces of deteriorating sheets of plywood are they covering a void, when you say lightwell.If so I would think they are a bit of a booby trap and would suggest you replace them with  a suitable trench cover weighted down  with some sand bags.

gwynlas

If I had been subject to building works dragging on for 7 years I would also be questionning the competence and validity of any any works undertaken by yourself or your builder.

molerat

If where your feet are is the public footpath I would call that a dangerous construction site which needs fencing off. Along with the trip hazards on the pathway I am surprised that the postie or any courier actually delivers to you..  

WIAWSNB

MichaelMichael said:

That is a solution but more stuff for me to get rid of. Much appreciated.

Easy to sell on - buyer collects.