Electrical Safety
There are two alternative routes to achieving compliance with Part P:
Use of the competent persons self certification scheme (recommended Route)
This is a government approved scheme where electricians become registered with an approved self certification organisation. There is also a 'Defined Scope Scheme' for other trades who carry out a limited amount of electrical work in connection with their main work activity such as gas fitters or kitchen and bathroom installers.
Submitting plans or a building notice to Carlisle City Council
You must submit either full plans or a building notice in respect of each individual job carried out, and pay the relevant charges.
When work starts you should tell us and we will inspect the installation (if part of a building scheme, at the same time as other inspections).
In either case, when work is finished you must provide us with an Electrical Installation Certificate signed by a competent person. Until we receive this certificate we cannot issue a Completion Certificate for the whole of the works. A Completion Certificate is a very important document that will be needed should you ever sell your house.
Notifiable Work
Unless the installer is a member of a Competent Persons Self Certification Scheme, the following categories of work are notifiable to Carlisle City Council:
- Electrical work in new dwellings and extensions to existing dwellings
- Rewiring of existing dwellings
- The provision of new electrical circuits in existing dwellings, including garages, sheds, porches, & conservatories
- Fixed wiring for garden ponds & security gates
- Any electrical work in special locations or installations e.g. kitchens, bathrooms, shower rooms, swimming pools, paddling pools, hot air saunas, electric floor or ceiling heating systems, garden lighting or power installations, solar photovoltaic (PV) power supply systems, small scale generators such as micro combined heat and power units (Micro CHP) & extra low voltage lighting installations, unless they are pre-assembled, CE-marked lighting sets.
Non Notifiable Work
The following work must still comply with BS 7671 but need not be notified to the Council:
- Replacing accessories such as socket outlets, control switches and ceiling roses
- Replacing the cable for a single circuit only, where damaged, for example, by fire, rodent or impact
- Re-fixing or replacing the enclosures of existing installation components
- Providing mechanical protection to existing fixed installations
Work that is not in a kitchen or special location and does not involve a special installation and consists of:
- Adding lighting points (light fittings and switches) to an existing circuit
- Adding socket outlets and fused spurs to an existing ring or radial circuit
- Installing or upgrading main or supplementary equipotential bonding
If you are unsure about Part P compliance, please email [email protected] or telephone 01228 817184.
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