Under CDM 2015 and the Building Safety Act, the duty is yours. We carry it for you.
Take on a project with more than one contractor and CDM 2015 puts a legal duty on you, as the client, to appoint a Principal Designer in writing. Don't appoint one and you don't avoid the role. You become it. Spectra steps into that role, plans and manages health and safety through the design phase, and hands you the evidence that proves you met your duty.
What we do as Principal Designer.
The projects we work on and what we bring to them, in half a minute.
An APS-backed specialist carrying the Principal Designer duty under CDM 2015.
"Principal Designer" means two different things. Don't get them confused.
The Principal Designer role under CDM 2015 and the Principal Designer role under the Building Safety Act 2022 share a name, but they are separate legal duties, under different law, doing different jobs. This page is about the CDM 2015 role. If your project is a higher-risk building, you may need the Building Safety Act role instead — or as well.
Design out the risk before it ever reaches the site.
The Principal Designer is the dutyholder who plans, manages and coordinates health and safety during the pre-construction phase. That's the design and planning stage, before anyone is on site with a tool in their hand. The job is to remove or reduce hazards at the drawing-board stage, gather the pre-construction information, and pass it to the Principal Contractor so the build starts with its risks already understood. A decision made on a screen in an office is far cheaper, and far safer, than one forced on a site foreman at 7am.
If a second trade is on the job, the duty is live.
Under CDM 2015 the client must appoint a Principal Designer in writing on any project involving more than one contractor. That is almost every commercial project, and a great many domestic ones too.
The appointment must be made before the construction phase begins, and ideally at the start of design, when the Principal Designer can make the most difference.
Fail to appoint and the role doesn't disappear. The client takes it on by default, and every duty with it, whether or not you have the competence or the time. Non-compliance risks enforcement, delays and prosecution.
The design decisions that mattered most have already been made. If a contractor has asked who your Principal Designer is, that's the call to have early.
Two Principal Designer duties. One of very few firms that carries both.
There are now two separate Principal Designer duties in UK construction, and they share a name without sharing a job. The first sits under CDM 2015 and covers health and safety in the design phase. The second sits under the Building Safety Act 2022 and the Building Regulations, and covers compliance with the Building Regulations for the building work itself. Same title, different law, different responsibilities. Most SME-priced consultancies offer one or the other. We offer both, on the same project, from one point of contact.
Everything the role requires, handled by a named consultant.
When we take on the Principal Designer role, here's what lands on your project. You also get a consultant who has read your drawings, not a duty manager reading from a script.
Gathered, organised and issued to your design team and Principal Contractor, so everyone starts from the same understanding of the risks.
Where your project is notifiable, the formal HSE notification is submitted correctly and on time. We handle it.
Working through the design with your team to eliminate the hazards we can, and reduce the ones we can't.
Keeping every designer pulling in the same direction on health and safety, with a clear record of who decided what.
The project's safety record, assembled and handed over at the end, plus the golden-thread evidence the Building Safety Act expects.
Across the design team, as the Building Safety Act requires, so the people doing the work can prove they're qualified for it.
Your CDM team, led by Matthew.
Over 25 years in the construction sector, and a Corporate Member of the Association of Project Safety behind him. Matthew is the same name on your appointment from first call to handover, and on the next project after it. He carries the duty, reads your drawings, and picks up the phone himself.
“I've stood on the sites I write duty-holder advice for. The plan has to work when the job is running, not just on paper.”
Book a free CDM review
“As a senior CDM/Safety Consultant I look after our clients in the property sectors to ensure they are legally compliant from a Principal Designer and safety perspective. My role is far-reaching, from sitting in design workshops through to on-site safety audits and everything in between. Currently we are working on a wide range of projects including data centres, housing, refurbishment, student accommodation, civil projects and specialist projects.”
Book a free CDM reviewFrom first call to handover, no mystery.
The earlier we're appointed, the more risk we can design out. If a project is in front of you, that's the moment to call.
Common questions about CDM and the Principal Designer role
What is a Principal Designer?
When do I need to appoint a Principal Designer?
Is the Principal Designer the same as the Principal Contractor?
What's the difference between the CDM Principal Designer and the Building Safety Act Principal Designer?
What happens if I don't appoint a Principal Designer?
Can Spectra act as our Principal Designer, or do you just advise?
Do you cover projects outside the North West?
Rated excellent on Trustpilot.
Don't take our word for it. Rated 4.98 out of 5 by the businesses we support.
Alison always picks up the phone and quickly sorts whatever we throw at her. I cannot recommend her highly enough.
Marco expertly guided us through achieving our ISO 9001 certification. Our sincere thanks to the whole Spectra team.
From start to finish, Barrie was professional, knowledgeable and proactive as Principal Designer on our project.
Talk to us before the project starts.
Book a free duty-holder call with Matthew. Fifteen minutes, no cost, and you'll know exactly where your duty sits. If a contractor has already asked who your Principal Designer is, that's the moment to call. Nationwide support from our Altrincham base.