Egniol’s Practical Guide for the Principal Designer Role Under the Building Safety Act (2022)
Understand the new PD-BR role, what it means for your project, and how to get compliance right from day one.
This practical guide to the Principal Designer Building Safety Act role is written for developers, clients, contractors, architects and engineers navigating the new dutyholder framework. It breaks down the Building Regulations Principal Designer role (PD-BR), explains how it sits alongside CDM 2015, and gives you a clear, proportionate process for managing design compliance – from appointment through to handover.
Written by Emma Hackney, Technical Director Structural Engineering (BEng Hons, CEng, MIStructE, MICE), this is practical, expert guidance you can put to use on your next project.
Download the guide and speak with us if you’d like tailored support.
What This Guide Covers
The Building Safety Act (BSA) has fundamentally changed how design compliance is managed across England and Wales. A new Principal Designer role under Building Regulations (PD-BR) now sits alongside the familiar Principal Designer under CDM 2015, and applies to all projects requiring Building Regulations approval, not just high-risk buildings.
For many project teams, the question isn’t whether the new rules apply, it’s how to meet them proportionately, without adding unnecessary burden or risk.
This Principal Designer Building Safety Act guide shows you how.
What You’ll Learn from This Guide
- What the PD-BR role actually requires — and how it differs from PD-CDM
- Who the dutyholders are and what each one must do
- How to evidence competence under the SKEB framework and PAS 8671
- What good PD-BR looks like in practice, from initiation through to handover
- The nine most common pitfalls — and how to avoid them
- What non-HRB projects can borrow from High-Risk Building practice
- A 12-point checklist to keep your project on track
The Building Safety Act Principal Designer Role: Who It Applies To
The Building Safety Act is a system-wide response to the failings highlighted by Grenfell. Its requirements don’t just apply to high-rise buildings. Any project requiring Building Regulations approval, from a residential extension to a complex commercial refurbishment, now falls under the dutyholder model.
That means named dutyholders, evidenced competence, and a demonstrable compliance trail. Not more paperwork for its own sake — but the kind of structured, coordinated approach that leads to fewer surprises, smoother approvals, and buildings that perform as intended.
The challenge for most project teams is applying these requirements proportionately. This guide shows you how.
PD-CDM and PD-BR – Same Title, Different Duty
One of the most common sources of confusion on projects today is the relationship between the two Principal Designer roles.
PD-CDM manages health and safety risk during the pre-construction phase. PD-BR manages design compliance, coordinating all designers so that the proposed design, if built, meets the relevant Parts of the Building Regulations (Parts A–S).
On many projects, a single competent organisation can hold both roles. But they are distinct legal duties, and the consequences of not appointing a PD-BR in writing are significant: the designer in control of the design may be deemed to hold the role by default, rarely a desirable outcome.
This guide sets out exactly what each role requires, and what happens when either is missed.
What Good PD-BR Practice Looks Like
A capable PD-BR doesn’t create bureaucracy, it creates structure. The guide walks through a practical, scalable process that works for small refurbishments and large multi-disciplinary new builds alike:
- Handover & close-out: As-builts, test certificates, Regulation 38 fire safety information, PD-BR close-out statement
- Initiation & set-up: Written appointments, competence checks, responsibility matrix and compliance plan
- Design coordination & reviews: Live compliance matrix, decision log, structured milestone reviews, interface checks
- Change control: Written protocol, “no build before approval” rule, version control
- Building Control liaison: Coordinated submissions, tracked responses, whole-team visibility
- Construction phase support: Design query management, witness/hold points, value engineering review
The Nine Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them
The guide identifies the nine most common ways projects fall short under the new regime, from failing to appoint a PD-BR in writing, to assuming competence rather than evidencing it, to relying on Building Control to catch compliance issues that should have been resolved in design.
Each pitfall includes the likely impact and a clear, practical way to avoid it.
How Egniol Can Support Your Project
At Egniol, we work as civil and structural engineers across a wide range of projects. We support design teams, developers and clients in meeting their Building Safety Act obligations — clearly, proportionately and without adding unnecessary complexity.
We can:
- Support the design team with compliant civil and structural engineering input
- Work alongside your appointed Principal Designer to ensure clarity and coordination
- Provide practical insight into how Building Regulations are applied within design
- Help identify and resolve design challenges early to reduce risk later in the project
Whether you’re new to the dutyholder framework or looking to strengthen your existing approach, our team brings the technical depth and practical experience to make compliance manageable and defensible.
Download the guide and speak with us if you’d like tailored support.
Speak to Egniol
Ready to strengthen your project’s design and compliance approach?
Reach out to Egniol’s team for a conversation about how we can support your project — whether you’re a developer seeking end-to-end compliance support, an architect or engineer looking to understand your duties, or a contractor preparing for a more structured handover process.
The Building Safety Act has raised the bar for everyone. With the right support in place early, meeting that bar doesn’t have to be complicated.
Get in touch for a no-obligation conversation with our team.
Download the Full Guide
Download the guide and speak with us if you’d like tailored support.
