A survey conducted by Bosch Power Tools has revealed that undertaking home improvements is a top priority for 56% of Brits, followed by dieting and taking up a new hobby.

Painting and decorating is high on the agenda for 2012, alongside upgrading kitchens and bathrooms or fitting new flooring. The arrival of a new year signals for many a fresh start, and other home improvement measures, such as installing uPVC double glazing or building an extension tend to be popular choices with homeowners.

Considering the state of the economy, job instability, low incomes and a general lack of security as we head further into 2012, the survey would seem to suggest that homeowners favour implementing home improvements over moving home.

In December 2008 Kate Theophilus and her partner Stephen Playfor instructed Neil Hancox – owner of  NDH Construction in Dudley – to undertake some work on their semi-detached in Kings Heath, Birmingham, reports the Birmingham Mail. At a cost of £50,000, work included the erection of a new garage and an extension to the ground and second floor.

In a scenario right out of the TV show Homes From Hell, Hancox failed to finish the job, leaving behind a catalogue of defects that put the lives of the couple and their two young daughters at serious risk.

Three years on, the Technology and Construction Court at Birmingham Civil Justice Centre has ordered Hancox – who failed to attend the hearing – to pay Ms Theophilus, 37, and 44-year-old Mr Playfor damages totalling £43,925, plus £29,419 in legal costs.

Almost 50 building defects – including a burglar alarm hanging off a wall with water dripping off live wires and kitchen units damaged beyond repair – were highlighted in a survey by an independent chartered surveyor. Even now the house remains unfinished and the couple have had to pay £36,000 to new builders to fix the botched work.

“The last three years have been a living hell. Hancox is the definition of a cowboy builder and I hope people read our story and make sure they do their research when it comes to hiring tradespeople,” warned Ms Theophilus.

Hosted by Kevin McCloud – the face of the popular TV show – Grand Designs Live returned to Birmingham’s NEC to see TV’s design guru McCloud, who was on hand to open the show and give expert home improvement advice.

Grand Designs Live is the must-attend consumer show exhibition for designs, interiors and self-build, whether you’re planning a building project – or even if you’re just in need of some fresh home decorating ideas.

Attendees also had the opportunity to catch talks by George Clarke, from TV’s Restoration Man and 60 Minute Makeover presenter Alison Cork.

Grand Designs Live 2011 also saw in excess of 500 exhibitors showcasing their products and services to thousands of prospective buyers, including renewable energy installers and landscape designers.

Other highlights included the ‘house of the future’ – which incorporated the latest gadgets and home entertainment innovations – and live cookery demonstrations from a host of chefs, including Something for the Weekend celebrity chef Simon Rimmer.

Grand Designs Live will return next year, with the first event scheduled to take place in London from 5-13 May 2012.

For more information, or to book tickets, go to www.granddesignslive.com

The Gas Safety Trust has agreed to fund a series of ‘free’ seminars delivered by CORGI Technical Services Limited. These will be aimed at a wide range of gas/fossil fuel associations and organisations, including housing professionals working with the elderly, the infirm, vulnerable people plus ethnic minority groups.

The national programme of seminars is designed to reduce carbon monoxide poisoning in the UK, and will include a focus on the additional risk faced by those suffering from social deprivation, those on low incomes and single parents. The seminars will provide all-round gas/fossil fuel safety awareness and will also equip delegates with tools and advice so that possible dangerous issues are spotted before they arise and cause serious or fatal incidents.

Nigel Dumbrell, head of charitable operations for the Gas Safety Trust said: “The Gas Safety Trust’s Hotspot Report 2010 and our latest Downstream Incident Data Report for 2009/10 both show how important such education is. But it is difficult to reach certain audiences. So when we had the opportunity to work in partnership with a professional body like CORGI Technical services, and support these seminars, it seemed a perfect opportunity.

“Bringing these ‘free’ seminars to such a focused and influential group means that particularly vulnerable consumers will have a further defence against exposure to carbon monoxide from all fossil fuels including: gas, oil, coal, smokeless fuel and wood, as well as the newer bio fuels.”

CORGI Technical Services Limited is one of the industry’s key providers of technical advice, support and training. Trevor Batt, the company’s technical safety manager will manage the programme.

Mr Batt commented: “As a qualified carbon monoxide incident investigator I know only too well the devastating consequences that carbon monoxide poisoning from fossil fuels can have. Gas Safety Trust’s funding will allow us to educate those who interact with some of the high-risk groups identified in the Downstream Incident Data Report for 2009/10. It’s great to see such a positive, practical step being taken by the Gas Safety Trust in response to the findings of its report.”

To find out details of the seminar programme, contact Trevor Batt, CORGI Technical services Limited on 07740 062067.

The Association of Plumbling and Heating Contractors (APHC’s) has appointed a new CEO.

The former deputy CEO and technical manager John Thompson has been named as the Association’s new chief executive officer.

Mr Thompson brings a wealth of industry knowledge and experience to the role. He began working for APHC in the early 1990s, having already worked as an engineer in the industry and a tutor in a college. Mr Thompson took his apprenticeship and qualified as a plumber and building services design engineer with the family business, whose roots in the industry stretch back to the mid-18th century.

Mr Thompson has worked on numerous education and training qualifications with organisations such as BPEC and City & Guilds. He managed APHC’s successful undertaking to run a Government-approved Water Regulations Approved Contractor Scheme and Building Regulations Competent Persons Scheme. He has written a number of current publications that support new entrant learning in plumbing and heating.

He commented: “This is a new challenge, which I am looking forward to tackling. The Association’s new chairman has already outlined the way in which the Association is re-focusing its development of membership support services and tackling members’ everyday issues; it will be my job to take this forward and make it happen.”

A Surrey roofing company has been fined after two workers were spotted working on a roof almost 30 feet high without using any safety equipment.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted BRC Industrial Roofing Specialists Ltd and its managing director, Lee Berbridge, after an inspector saw the men while driving past the scene.

Crawley Magistrates’ Court heard BRC had been contracted to ‘oversheet’ a roof at Independent Business Park in East Grinstead.  Oversheeting is when a metal grid system is fixed to a roof and insulation fibre is rolled out on top of the grid, after which a metal sheet is fixed on top.

On January 5 this year, HSE Inspector Russell Beckett was driving past the site when he saw two BRC employees standing on the asbestos roof.

The men had no means to stop them falling from the eight and a half metre fragile roof and nothing to break their fall if they had tripped over the edge or fell through the roof.

Though they had been issued with lightweight staging boards, they were not using these to walk on as intended, and one man was spotted walking on the metal grid while the other was standing on the asbestos.

The inspector instantly issued a Prohibition Notice stopping any further work. An Improvement Notice was then issued to ensure a risk assessment and correct procedures were in place before work could commence again.

The HSE investigation showed that work by the firm was not properly planned or appropriately supervised and it was not carried out in a manner that was reasonably safe.

HSE’s inspector Russell Beckett said: “Working on roofs is a high-risk activity. Nearly a quarter of all roofers are killed in falls from height. Falls through fragile materials, such as rooflights and asbestos cement roofing sheets, account for more of these deaths than anything else.

“Employees who work on fragile roofs without the right equipment risk not knowing if their next step could be their last. It is sheer luck that in this case the two men were not severely injured or killed.”

BRC Industrial Roofing Specialists Limited of Kings Yard, Kings Road, Long Ditton Surrey, pleaded guilty to Regulation 4 of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. The firm was fined a total of £2,500 and ordered to pay costs of £1,000.

The company’s managing director, Lee Berbridge, pleaded guilty to Regulation 4 of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. He was fined a total of £3,500 and ordered to pay costs of £1,653.

NICEIC has welcomed the recent announcement by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) on the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI).

The DECC claims the RHI will provide an incentive to increase the number of industrial, commercial and public sector installations by seven times to 2020.

The announcement promises to deliver £860 million to increase green capital investment by £4.5 billion up to 2020, stimulating a new market in renewable heat.

A full system of RHI payments will be available to households from October 2012 and before that more than a quarter of the first year’s budget is to be guaranteed for up to 25,000 household installations through a ‘RHI Premium Payment’ to encourage take-up.

Emma McCarthy, chief executive officer for NICEIC said: “We are delighted that the Government has announced this major incentive for renewable heat.

“The DECC believes 150,000 existing manufacturing, supply chain and installer jobs will be supported by the incentives and NICEIC believes any boost to the trade through promises such as this are vital in the current economic climate.”

Secretary of State Chris Huhne said: “Renewable heat is a largely untapped resource and an important new green industry of the future.

“This incentive is the first of its kind in the world.  It’ll help the UK shift away from fossil fuel, reducing carbon emissions and encouraging innovation, jobs and growth in new advanced technologies.”

Emma added: “With householders now given the incentives to install renewable technologies, the opportunities for the electrical, heating and plumbing trades are significant and NICEIC will be at the forefront of this industry, providing certification, training and advice.”

Registration to enter the Housebuilder Awards is now open.

The Housebuilder Awards 2011 are the highlight of the housebuilding calendar, celebrating the very best of the industry and recognising the achievements of those leading the way in innovation.

This year the winners will be announced at a black tie event on Thursday, November 3 at the Millennium London Mayfair Hotel. People have until Thursday, April 28 to sign up and entry is free.

Now in its seventh year – the Housebuilder Awards bring together the best of innovation and excellence in the housebuilding industry.

Judges will be looking for examples of initiative, innovation and imagination in addressing the demands of each category. Entries are open to developers and suppliers/consultants, where appropriate. Third party testimonials in support of entries are strongly encouraged to establish the overall reputation of a particular project or initiative.

Judges will select the winners of the ‘housebuilder of the year’ awards from the entries submitted in other categories.

Entrants may submit as many individual entries as they wish in all categories. All entries will automatically be entered into the housebuilder of the year categories.

Winners may advertise their success in promotional literature and on stationery, stating the year in which they won.

In the lead up to The National Homebuilding and Renovating Show experts are sharing their tips and advice on building and home improvement works. One of the latest instructions is how to extend your home without the need for planning permission.

Sally Tagg, planning expert for The National Homebuilding and Renovating Show which takes place this month, is a charted town and transport planner, who has worked in the self-build industry throughout the UK. She’s been explaining about ‘permitted development rights’, which enables homeowners to make minor changes to their properties without having to go through a lengthy planning process.

In 2008 permitted development rights were clarified and extended to cover more household building projects.

Sally comments: “Projects under this banner now include extensions and conservatories, loft conversions, roof alterations and patios and driveways as long as they meet certain conditions for example the dimensions and positions of extensions.

“However, do keep in mind that permitted development rights do not apply to flats, maisonettes or other buildings and that in some areas of the country, known generally as ‘designated areas’, they are more restricted. If you live in a Conservation Area, a National Park, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty or the Norfolk or Suffolk Broads, you will need to apply for planning permission for certain types of work which do not need an application in other areas. Listed buildings too have different requirements.

“As with all building work, the owner of the property or land in question is ultimately responsible for complying with the relevant planning rules and building regulations. So it is always an extremely good idea to discuss your plans, whatever they are, with the relevant local planning authority and building control service (which depends on the region and environment you live in) before starting any work.

“If a person carrying out building work contravenes the building regulations, the local authority or another person may decide to take them to the magistrates’ court where they could be fined up to £5,000 for the contravention and up to £50 for each day the contravention continues after conviction (section 35 of the Building Act 1984). This action will usually be taken against the builder or main contractor, and proceedings must be taken within two years from the completion of the work. This cost of planning applications is not massive, but all applications are different and it is difficult to give hard and fast prices. However, an outline planning application to extend an ordinary house in England is likely to cost £135. The Government’s planning portal has an online charges calculator, which work out the cost of any particular planning application for householder developments.”

Sally will be at The National Homebuilding & Renovating Show, NEC Birmingham, from March 24-27, where she will be presenting seminars on the subject of planning permission, talking about how to get consent for your dream home, and how to make the system work for you.

For more information, visit www.homebuildingshow.co.uk