Andrew Orriss, Interim Chief executive Officer of the Structural timber Association explains why timber is the key to meeting the UK’s housing and climate goals
The UK Government’s recent recommitment to the Timber in Construction Policy Roadmap marks a significant milestone for our industry. This commitment couldn’t come at a more crucial time. With the ambitious target of building 1.5 million homes, structural timber offers one of the most effective solutions for rapid, high-quality housing delivery while simultaneously addressing our urgent decarbonisation obligations.
The STA, alongside Timber Development UK and the Confederation of Forest Industries, played an instrumental role in the creation of the original policy roadmap and we have continued to work together as Joint Secretariat of it, tasked with leading the development and implementation of its seven key priorities.
Among the projects that fall under the STA’s remit, we’re actively addressing fire safety concerns through our support of the Fire Safety Hub, developing best practices from demonstrator projects. Our work with insurers, lenders, and warranty providers is creating an asset register of anonymised data on mass timber buildings, facilitating greater dialogue between the insurance sector and developers.
The Time for Timber campaign continues to promote timber’s benefits, while our collaboration with academic institutions is enhancing skills, competency, and capacity across the supply chain. We’re mapping routes to competency for relevant timber occupations, reviewing curriculum requirements, and improving CPD offerings.
To support the transition to timber, we’ve also developed a guidance document titled ‘Structural Timber – Design and Construction Guidance’. Developed to follow the RIBA Plan of Work framework, the guide offers key insights into best practices, safety considerations and compliance requirements. Meanwhile, our STA Assure quality scheme continues to provide housebuilders and developers with the confidence to build with structural timber. This independently audited quality standard ensures our members meet or exceed current legislation and regulatory requirements. Recognised by all leading UK warranty providers, including NHBC, STA Assure validates that design, production, and site assembly processes maintain consistently high standards. Timber construction represents our best opportunity to meet the dual challenges of housing delivery and climate action – and the STA is committed to making this vision a reality.
