SAP stands for "Standard Assessment Procedure", the Government’s approved procedure for energy rating domestic dwellings. Properties are awarded a rating between 1 to 100, although a dwelling may exceed 100 with the assistance of using renewable technology.

A SAP is required when new dwellings are constructed and existing homes are converted or extended under current Building Regulations

This is done by calculating the Target Carbon Dioxide Emission Rate (TER) for the property to be assessed by using the Standard Assessment Procedure. Once this has been done, the Design Carbon Dioxide Emission Rate (DER) can be calculated by entering the actual design specification. To meet the requirements of the Building Regulations, the DER must be lower than the TER. <br />
Once the property has been constructed, an additional assessment must be completed, and is called the As Built DER.

It is imperative to have the assessment carried out before any construction work commences in case any alterations are required to the design. This allows the greatest flexibility in materials and cost to our clients.

From 6th April 2008, all new build domestic dwellings completed after this date will automatically require an EPC for inclusion into a Home Information Pack (HIP). Only authorised On Construction Domestic Energy Assessors (OCDEA’s) are able to produce  EPC’s.

An OCEPC gives information on the buildings energy efficiency, and is displayed similar to the A-G ratings found on electrical appliances. This is a standard format that is defined by legislation. An example of the first page of an EPC is given to the right. You will require an EPC for all new build properties, change of use from commercial to residential properties or any residential property which has been made into greater or fewer numbers after 6th April 2008.<br />
EPC's for new build dwellings can only be produced by On Construction Domestic Energy Assessors (OCDEA's) who are accredited by a Government approved scheme.

A Predicted Energy Assessment is a certificate that is produced when the Design Final SAP calculation has been submitted. If you are marketing the property before the As Built Final calculation has been carried out (i.e selling off of plan) then you will need to incorporate the PEA into the HIP’s pack and then replace it with the EPC once it has been produced. PEA's can only be produced by On Construction Domestic Energy Assessors (OCDEA's) who are accredited by a Government approved scheme.

This checklist is produced by On Construction Domestic Energy Assessors (OCDEA's) and presented to the Building Control Body to demonstrate a property’s Part L1A compliance with the Building Regulations. The Building Control Body will accept these submissions from an OCDEA without question.

The energy use of a Nursing Home will be very different from the standard domestic pattern and as such precludes the use of SAP.

It depends on how you are considering to sell the flats. If you are selling the flats individually then you can have SAP assessments on each flat and the common parts are ignored. If you are selling the entire block as one and require an energy assessment for the entire building then the common parts will need to be assessed using SBEM – which isn’t SAP

Feel free to contact Colin Padwick of SapCode on 01604 875005 for an informal chat or use the contact form to send an email.

The Code for Sustainable Homes (CSH) is an environmental assessment rating method for new homes which assesses the environmental performance in a two stage process using objective criteria and verification. The results of the Code Assessment are recorded on a certificate assigned to the dwelling.

A dwelling is assessed at Design stage (the first stage) and then reassessed once the dwelling has been constructed (Post Construction Review).

The dwelling is assessed over nine categories, some of which have mandatory criteria (shown with an asterisk *). The categories are:-

• Energy and CO2 emissions *
• Water *
• Materials *
• Surface Water Run Off *
• Waste *
• Pollution
• Health and Well Being (* only if wanting to obtain level 6)
• Management
• Ecology

Depending on the scores you achieve on each of the categories the property will attain one of six levels.

Code Level	Min Score	Comparison with other standards
1	36	Above regulatory standards, similar to EcoHomes “Pass” and EST Good Practice for energy efficiency.
2	48	Similar to EcoHomes “Good”
3	57	Broadly similar to Ecohomes “Very Good”, Similar to EST Best Practice for energy efficiency.
4	68	Current exemplary performance.
5	84	Current exemplary performance with high levels of energy and water efficiency.
6	90	Aspirational standard based on zero carbon emissions for the dwelling and high performance across environmental categories.

It depends on which level you wish to achieve. The mandatory categories will always need to be assessed, the other categories can be brought into place to achieve a higher score as needed.

It is imperative to have the assessment carried out before any construction work commences in case any alterations are required to the design. This allows the greatest flexibility in materials and cost to our clients.

It is unwise just to scratch into a level at design stage. If something occurs during the build that affects the score (e.g. some materials could not be obtained from a suitably green source) the post construction review will pick it up and the revised score may mean that you drop to a lower level. This could mean that you are in contravention of a planning condition on your project. If you start with a score above the minimum for the required level then even with the unexpected issue you may still achieve the required level.

Only a licenced assessor can carry out and certify a property for Code for Sustainable Homes. SapCode is licensed for CSH.

Feel free to contact Colin Padwick of SapCode on 01604 875005 for an informal chat or use the contact form to send an email.