Building Regulations Part P
Electrical Safety in Dwellings

Part P (Approved Document P: Electrical Safety — Dwellings) is the section of the Building Regulations that governs electrical installation work in homes in England. It exists to protect homeowners, tenants, and the public from the risks of unsafe electrical work — fire, electric shock, and burns.

Part P was introduced on 1 January 2005 following a series of fatal incidents attributed to defective electrical installations in dwellings. Before Part P, there was no building control oversight of domestic electrical work — any person could carry out any electrical work without restriction. Part P changed this by requiring that most domestic electrical work is either carried out by a registered competent person or inspected by building control.

The regulation applies to dwellings, which includes houses, flats, maisonettes, and the common parts of blocks of flats. It applies to new builds, extensions, alterations, and additions. Commercial premises, industrial installations, and agricultural buildings are not covered by Part P (they have separate regulatory frameworks).

The key principle: all electrical installation work in dwellings must comply with BS 7671 (the IET Wiring Regulations). Most work must also be notified to building control or self-certified by a registered competent person. Some lower-risk work is exempt from notification but must still comply with BS 7671.

Self-certification is the process by which a registered electrician certifies that their own work complies with the Building Regulations and notifies building control electronically. Only persons registered with an approved competent person scheme can self-certify.

The approved competent person schemes for electrical work in England are:

• NICEIC — National Inspection Council for Electrical Installation Contracting. The largest scheme with over 40,000 registered contractors. NICEIC registration guide.
• NAPIT — National Association of Professional Inspectors and Testers. A growing scheme with competitive fees. NAPIT registration guide.
• ELECSA — Electrical Contractors Association. ELECSA registration guide.
• Stroma — offers electrical competent person scheme registration alongside building energy and gas registration.

When a registered person completes notifiable work, they issue the appropriate certificate ( EIC or Minor Works), notify the scheme electronically, and the scheme notifies building control on their behalf. A Building Regulations Compliance Certificate is then issued to the homeowner.

The following types of electrical work in dwellings are notifiable under Part P:

For a complete list of work that does not need notification, see the non-notifiable work guide.

There are two routes for building control notification of electrical work:

For professional electricians carrying out notifiable work regularly, competent person scheme registration is overwhelmingly the preferred route. The annual registration fee pays for itself within a few jobs compared to paying building notice fees.

Special locations are areas within dwellings where the risk of electric shock is heightened due to reduced body resistance or confined conductive spaces. Electrical work in these locations — other than like-for-like replacement — is always notifiable under Part P.

Failure to comply with Part P can have serious consequences for both electricians and homeowners:

Part P as described above applies specifically to England. The devolved nations have their own regulatory frameworks for domestic electrical work:

• Wales — uses Approved Document P (Wales) under the Building Regulations 2010 (Wales). Requirements are very similar to England but administered by Welsh local authorities.
• Scotland — uses the Building (Scotland) Regulations 2004 under the Building (Scotland) Act 2003. Electrical installations must comply with BS 7671 but the notification process differs.
• Northern Ireland — uses the Building Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2012. Electrical work must comply with BS 7671.

In all jurisdictions, BS 7671 is the technical standard for electrical installation work. The differences lie in the administrative framework. If you work across multiple jurisdictions, familiarise yourself with each region's specific requirements.

The documentation required for electrical work depends on the type of work:

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