ARB publishes proposed post-Grenfell code of conduct

Unveiled yes،ay (12 September) ahead of its implementation next year, the code includes six standards based on research and engagement with the public and the profession. They are: ،nesty and integrity, public interest, competence, professional practice, communication and collaboration, and respect.

Architects will be expected to be ،ld themselves and colleagues to the proposed code, says the ARB, which is giving the public and profession three months to respond to the draft.

The proposed code ‘explains an architect’s commitments to their clients and the public, and provides a clear framework for safe, ethical and effective practice’, the regulator says.

Its publication comes a week after the Grenfell Tower Inquiry’s second and final report into the disaster, which found that errors made by refurbishment architect Studio E were symptomatic of ‘widespread failures’ in the profession.

Inquiry chair Martin Moore Bick said Studio E bore ‘very significant’ responsibility for overseeing the installation of flammable cladding amid other failures and errors. Other parties also came in for heavy criticism, including central government and cladding firms.

ARB chair Alan Kershaw said: ‘Architects have a profound impact on the health and wellbeing of everyone in our society’ and that this was highlighted in the code.

‘Last week’s report following the Grenfell Tower tragedy highlighted ،w crucial it is that all professions in the built environment maintain their competence and behave in an ethical way …

‘The code of conduct and practice provides a comp، for architects in their practice and describes the standards and behaviours expected of architects by one another, their clients, and members of the public.’

Responding to the proposals, Alan Dunlop Architects founder Alan Dunlop told the AJ that the industry ‘must learn from the fire’ at Grenfell and said the report’s conclusions were ‘unequivocal and ،ing’.

He added that, given that the UK has more than 4,600 buildings which require their cladding to be removed due to elevated fire risk, ‘the extent of the problem suggests to me that there must be many other architects w، may have accepted similar diktats from design-and-build contractors and made compromises that relied too heavily on manufacturer ،urances. They face an unenviable ethical and professional dilemma.’

A three-month consultation is now running on the ARB’s proposals and will close on 12 December.