How demolition works in the UK: the legal steps, in order

1. Survey the building and plan the job

Before anything else, the building is surveyed: how it was built, what it is made of, what services run into it, how close the neighbours are, and how machines and lorries will get in and out. That survey drives the method and the programme.

2. Asbestos comes first

Any building built before 2000 may contain asbestos. The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 require a refurbishment and demolition survey before demolition work starts. It is intrusive — it looks inside walls, floors and ceilings — and the building is usually empty when it is done.

Most asbestos found must be removed by an HSE-licensed contractor before demolition goes ahead. Some lower-risk work is non-licensed but still has to be notified and done by trained people.

3. Planning: prior approval and consents

Demolition of most buildings is permitted development, but before demolishing you normally have to apply to the council to find out whether its prior approval is needed for the method of demolition and how the site will be left. A site notice is usually required.

In a conservation area, demolishing a building larger than 115 m³ needs planning permission. Listed buildings need listed building consent. Buildings under 50 m³ are generally outside the prior-approval process.

• Check your project with our free planning checker: planning checker

4. The section 80 demolition notice

Separately from planning, section 80 of the Building Act 1984 requires notice to the council at least six weeks before demolition starts, with copies to the occupiers of adjacent buildings and to the gas and electricity suppliers.

The council can reply with a section 81 counter-notice setting conditions — for example shoring up neighbouring buildings, weatherproofing walls left exposed, removing rubbish, disconnecting services or making good the site.

The notice is not usually needed for buildings of 1,750 cubic feet (about 50 m³) or less, for internal demolition of a building that will stay standing and occupied, or for most agricultural buildings.

• Create the notice with our free generator: demolition notice

5. Disconnect the services

Gas, electricity, water and telecoms connections are disconnected by the providers before demolition. Some disconnections take weeks to book, so this is arranged early in the programme.

6. Health and safety: CDM 2015

The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 apply to every demolition. Where more than one contractor is involved, a principal designer and a principal contractor must be appointed, and the work is planned in a construction phase plan.

Larger projects must be notified to the Health and Safety Executive on an F10 form: those lasting more than 30 working days with more than 20 workers on site at the same time, or exceeding 500 person-days. For homeowners, the client duties normally pass to the contractor.

7. Taking it down

Most demolitions start with a soft strip — removing fixtures, fittings, ceilings and finishes — before the structure comes down in a planned sequence, usually from the top down, by hand, by machine or both.

Dust is controlled with water suppression, and noise and vibration are kept within any limits the council sets. Councils can also set working hours. Neighbours should know what is happening and when.

8. Waste: duty of care

Whoever produces waste must make sure it is passed only to an authorised carrier and disposed of legally. Waste transfer notes are kept for two years, and consignment notes for hazardous waste for three years.

Much demolition waste can be reused: crushed brick and concrete often go back into the ground as hardcore, and metals are recycled.

9. Leaving the site ready

The job ends with the site cleared and left as agreed — levelled, with old foundations removed or left in place depending on what comes next, and with the paperwork you need for your lender, your client or the council.