As of 6 May, it has been 69 days since the British Board of Agrément (BBA) had all of its accreditations suspended by United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS). This process is ongoing, but we have set out a summary below to support clarity and understanding.

The current suspension across all schemes is unprecedented in the organisation’s history and represents a significant operational, regulatory and communications challenge. The BBA is doing its utmost to minimise the impact on our clients and the construction industry.

We have set out below:

• Historic role of the BBA in certification
• Corporate structure change and modernisation
• Engagement with UKAS during transition
• Emergence of concerns and suspension
• Actions taken by the BBA
• Current key issues
• Conclusion

Historic role of the BBA in certification

The BBA is a certification body providing independent assessment of products, systems, and processes within the construction industry. These activities are undertaken under accreditation from UKAS against internationally recognised standards, including:

• Product Certification (BS EN ISO/IEC 17065:2012)
• Inspection (BS EN ISO/IEC 17020:2012)
• Management Systems Certification (BS EN ISO/IEC 17021:2015)
• Testing Laboratory Operations (BS EN ISO/IEC 17025:2017)

The BBA has a long-standing history of operating under these schemes:

• Product Certification (17065) since July 2000
• Inspection (17020) since April 2009
• Management Systems Certification (17021) since July 2002
• Testing (17025) since February 1987

Corporate structure change and modernisation

The suspension relates, in essence, to a change in the BBA’s corporate structure. Historically, the organisation operated as a company limited by guarantee (referred to as OldCo). In July 2025, this was restructured to a company limited by shares (NewCo), which became the trading entity. OldCo continued to hold the UKAS accreditation pending transfer.

This formed part of a wider strategic transformation to enable external investment to support future growth and infrastructure renewal. This includes investment beyond current reserves to ensure that the BBA offers state of the art services.

The transition was undertaken with support from professional advisors: consultants, auditors, legal counsel, and other professional advisers. Stakeholders, including clients, were informed of the corporate change as part of this process.

Engagement with UKAS during transition

UKAS was engaged by the BBA throughout the process of transition from OldCo to NewCo. Key stages included:

• March 2025: BBA discussed the intended changes with UKAS
• May 2025: Written notification provided
• June 2025: Request for transfer of accreditation (and formal notification) submitted
• July 2025: Contracts executed between BBA NewCo and UKAS, signed at CEO level
• August 2025: CEO-level update call held
• September 2025: Desktop assessment undertaken to evaluate readiness of NewCo; this recommended that the transfer of legal entity for the accredited activities was granted, subject to the independent review within the UKAS decision process.
• October 2025: Operational-level meeting between UKAS and BBA teams.

Emergence of concerns and suspension

On 8 December 2025, UKAS rejected the BBA’s application for transfer of accreditation to NewCo.

In February 2026, UKAS conducted an unannounced assessment focussed on the BBA’s corporate structure. The same UKAS team in engineering, construction and physics who carried out the assessment for the BBA in September also carried out the review of the corporate structure in February. They recommended in September that the transfer proceeded. No changes were made within the BBA’s corporate structure between July 2025 and February 2026. None have been made since.

Following the February assessment, UKAS proceeded to suspend all BBA accreditations.

Actions taken by the BBA

Since the suspension, the BBA has taken several formal and operational steps:

• 8 January 2026: lodged appeal against the 8 December UKAS decision to refuse the transfer of accreditation from OldCo to NewCo, which UKAS rejected on 6 February 2026.
• 16 March 2026: BBA lodged second appeal in relation to transfer.
• 26 March 2026: lodged appeal against the decision to suspend all accreditations.
• 8 April 2026: BBA provided submissions in support of its appeal in relation to transfer; and also some submissions in relation to the suspension.
• 7 May 2026: BBA to provide further submissions in relation to suspension.
• 12 May 2026: date by which BBA must confirm approval of the appeal review panel to UKAS, notified to the BBA by UKAS on 5 May.
• The BBA has prioritised responding to all findings raised by UKAS throughout.
• The BBA have indicated that we would welcome meeting with the UKAS at all points during the process and that remains the case.

Current key issues

At present, the following matters remain of particular importance:

• The BBA continues to believe that direct engagement would be beneficial in progressing resolution. UKAS explained that the BBA is not entitled to such a meeting and UKAS considers it would be inappropriate.
• The BBA remains open to addressing any issues raised and is committed to full transparency and cooperation.

Conclusion

The BBA fully recognises the impact that the continued uncertainty of this situation has on clients and the wider industry. We remain committed to working constructively with UKAS, resolving outstanding matters, and restoring accredited services as promptly as possible.

We will provide updates as further information becomes available.

In the meantime, should you have any queries, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us via [email protected]