Gavin Lawler
speaker
55 appearances
1 recordings
1 series
first heard Jul 2026
last heard 24 Jul
Gavin Lawler’s voice in public audio — every appearance, attributed to the second.
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recordings per month · last 12 monthsRecordings per month over the last 12 months — 1 in all, peaking in Jul 2026 with 1.
Appearances
Today with David McCullagh · Beds in sheds - who will regulate building compliance? · 24 Jul 2026
podcast
And some of the operators, as Orla have said, are stating that they're mortgageable because they're fully building reg compliant.
But building regs aren't just about the structure itself.
As Orla has said, there are other issues in terms of distance to boundaries, disability access.
In the same way, if you build something to minimum specifications under the regulations, so 25 square metres and 600 mil from your party walls, you're going to be in trouble if you're that tight.
So the rule there would be you should be looking at a smaller structure.
And in some cases, people unfortunately will have back gardens that are too small to fit these structures in because there's a minimum size as well that you can't build below in terms of one of these structures.
Why are you not worried, Gavin, about the 60 centimetres?
Well, I have seen multiple examples in back gardens of people sharing party walls by way of agreement and building an extension out.
And obviously there's no windows between them in that instance.
Generally speaking, as a rule of thumb under the previous regulations of an extension, you had to be a metre away from your neighbour's boundary.
So, there are fire treatments that you can get that you can deal with these issues, but you have to have proper advice.
And I share Earl's concern.
If you don't have proper advice and you don't have somebody to sign off on the structure that is installed in the correct location, that it complies with building regulations, well, then buyer beware.
And where that comes to roost is not in the tragedy situation where there's a fire and so on.
It's if the property is going to be conveyed in future so that in the future when you go to sell your house or if you die and you pass on your house and in a probate sale it's sold, that's when the issue resurrects itself and when it becomes a significant concern and you're not able to sell the house and people's not able to get a mortgage on the house.
No, I don't agree with that concern.
The health and safety regulations are the health and safety regulations.
They're independent of planning regulations and they don't have to cross-refer.
They're the law.
People, the average person, won't be aware because they're not in construction of these issues.
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