Building consents : Christchurch City Council

The Christchurch City Council is responsible for issuing building consents within Christchurch and Banks Peninsula.

Building consent processing delays

We want to let you know that we are currently receiving a high number of building consent applications, which is causing a severe delay in our processing times. This situation wasn’t predicted, with commentators expecting a downturn in building activity due to COVID, in fact the opposite has happened. This challenge isn’t unique to us either – consenting teams around the country are struggling to keep up with demand. There simply aren’t enough qualified people available to process consents and inspect building work.

Timeframes

We have a growing backlog of applications, which means processing times are extending well beyond the statutory timeframe of 20 working days, with some consents sitting at double that currently. We understand that people need certainty to move forward with their plans – we are sorry this situation is affecting all of us.

What are we doing?

We are maximising staff workload and redeploying resources where we can to try to get through the work.
We are recruiting new qualified building consent staff. We have new staff about to start who will be undergoing intensive training to bring them up to speed. This won’t be an immediate fix but will help ease pressure down the line as they’ll be able to help with the work.
We are currently using contractors to process applications, but this is limited as they are also at capacity.

What can you do to help?

Please plan ahead, you may need to allow more time than normal to complete your build.
When completing the application, please ensure you complete all fields thoroughly and provide any required supporting documents. There are application check sheets linked below that can assist with this.
At lodgement stage, please ensure you correctly load documents through our online services.
Provide prompt responses to any request for information letters (RFI) we send. In your response, please include a list of the changes you have made, relevant pages only and all changes marked with a cloud for easy identification.
We are also asking that you don’t block book inspections in advance or before you’re ready.

We know the delay is frustrating and challenging for you but we feel you also deserve to know how the nationwide situation is affecting us, and what impact it will have on your project. We are doing our best to keep up with what is a very busy time for everyone.

Thank you for your patience while we work through this backlog.

A building consent is a formal approval to undertake building work in accordance with approved plans and specifications. A building consent establishes that your proposed building work complies with the building code.

After we have issued the building consent we undertake inspections during construction and issue a code compliance certificate when the building work is all completed.