For developers, businesses and owners commissioning a building
RIBA Stages Explained: What You Decide at Each
Sviatoslav JerdetchiiCEO & Founder of Craftex. Updated , 6 min read
The short answer
The RIBA Plan of Work 2020 splits a building project into eight stages, 0 to 7. Each stage ends with an outcome the client signs off before the next one starts.
- Stages 0 and 1 define the need and the brief. No design team is needed yet.
- Stages 2 and 3 produce the concept and a coordinated design. Planning usually goes in at the end of Stage 3.
- Stage 4 completes the technical design. The build price is fixed from it.
- Stages 5 to 7 cover construction, handover and the building in use.
The RIBA stages are the eight steps of the RIBA Plan of Work 2020, numbered 0 to 7. They run from deciding whether you need a building at all to the building in use. Architects, engineers and builders across the UK use the same names, so a fee proposal or a programme reads the same whichever firm wrote it.
Each stage ends with an outcome you approve. That sign-off is your control point: what you agree at the end of a stage is what the next stage builds on.
This guide explains each stage from the client's side: what you receive, what you decide, and where planning and the build price fit. Our commercial architects service runs every stage with the build team beside the designers. Have a project already? Book a free design consultation and we will tell you which stage it has reached.
The RIBA stages and what the client decides at each
Most projects run from Stage 1 to Stage 6. Stage 0 may simply confirm that a new building is the right answer. Stage 7 lasts for the life of the building.
| Stage | Name | Outcome at the end of the stage |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | Strategic Definition | The best way to meet your requirements is confirmed |
| 1 | Preparation and Briefing | The project brief is approved and shown to fit the site |
| 2 | Concept Design | The architectural concept is approved and matches the brief |
| 3 | Spatial Coordination | Architecture, structure and services are coordinated |
| 4 | Technical Design | All information needed to build is complete |
| 5 | Manufacturing and Construction | The building is built and commissioned |
| 6 | Handover | Building handed over and the building contract concluded |
| 7 | Use | The building is used, run and maintained well |
Stages 0 to 4 generally run one after another. Stages 4 and 5 overlap on most projects, because some packages are still being detailed as the site opens.
Stages 0 and 1: the need and the brief
Stage 0 asks whether a building is the right answer at all. A refit, a different building or a better lease may serve you better. If a building is the answer, you move on to Stage 1.
Stage 1 turns your needs into a written brief. It covers the use, the area, the budget, the programme and what you know about the site. Surveys belong here, before anyone draws.
- What you decide: the brief, the budget and the date you are working to.
- What you receive: the project brief, site information and a first programme.
The RIBA says no design team is needed for Stages 0 and 1. In practice a short feasibility study helps here. At Allitsen Road in St John's Wood we issued four options with cost plans in four weeks. The owner chose on real numbers, not on hope.
Stage 2: concept design
Stage 2 is the first real design. The architect turns the brief into a concept: the massing, the layout and the look of the building. A cost plan and an outline specification sit beside it.
The design team must be appointed before Stage 2 starts, whatever the procurement route. This is also when pre-application advice from the council starts to shape the scheme.
- What you decide: which concept goes forward, and whether the budget still holds.
- What you receive: concept drawings, an outline specification and a cost plan.
This is the cheapest moment to change your mind, before structure and services are drawn around the concept. Medusa, a Knightsbridge salon, reached us at Stage 2 with a concept and a few visuals. Our team completed the design and built it.
Stage 3: spatial coordination and planning
Stage 3 makes the concept work as a building. Structure, mechanical and electrical services and the fire strategy are fitted into the plans. Ducts, beams and risers find their places before planning, not on site.
Planning applications are generally submitted at the end of Stage 3. The RIBA warns that an earlier submission brings project risks. Make one only when the design has enough information behind it.
- What you decide: the coordinated design and the planning submission.
- What you receive: coordinated drawings, an updated cost plan and the planning application.
Under some procurement routes, Stage 3 drawings are used to tender the work. The RIBA notes they are not detailed enough for a robust tender. That is why the build price is best fixed at Stage 4.
Stage 4: technical design and the build price
Stage 4 completes the design. By its end, all the information needed to manufacture and construct the building exists: construction drawings, specifications and the work of specialist subcontractors.
The Building Regulations application is submitted during this stage. On most projects Stage 4 runs on into Stage 5, as some packages are detailed while the site starts.
- What you decide: the final specification and the construction price.
- What you receive: a full technical package and the Building Regulations application.
Stage 4 protects your money. A price taken from a complete technical package leaves little room for extras later.
Design and build or traditional at Stage 4
The RIBA Plan of Work is procurement neutral: the stages stay the same whichever route you choose. The route decides when the builder joins, and who carries the design risk.
| Route | When the contractor joins | Who holds the design |
|---|---|---|
| Traditional | Tenders once the technical design is complete | Your design team, appointed by you |
| Design and build, single stage | Prices your Employer's Requirements with its own proposals | The contractor, from the contract |
| Design and build, two stage | Joins early under a pre-contract services agreement | The contractor, after the second stage |
On the traditional route you hold a separate contract with the architect and learn the build price at tender. Under design and build one company holds both, so the price is known while the drawings can still move. The trade-offs are set out in design and build vs traditional procurement.
Our own work runs as design and build: the design team sits beside the construction team and prices each stage as it is drawn. The same applies to homes through our residential architects service.
Stages 5 and 6: construction and handover
Stage 5 starts when the contractor takes possession of the site and ends at Practical Completion. There is no design work in it other than answers to site queries.
Stage 6 starts straight after Practical Completion and ends with the Defects Liability Period. The defects list is closed out and the building contract is concluded.
- What you decide: the change requests, and when the building is complete.
- What you receive: site reports, the Practical Completion certificate and, at the end, the Final Certificate.
I worked perfectly with Sviat and Joe, with their architect they came up with a very smart design for our office to fit more desks and optimise the space to its maximum capacity. They also did excellent value engineering on the MEP design proposed by others, allowing us to save around £50K. The quality and speed were outstanding we finished two weeks ahead of schedule. Highly recommend these guys.
The documents you should hold at handover
A building without its paperwork is hard to insure, let or sell. The RIBA lists the information that should change hands at Stage 6.
Ask for these before the final payment:
- Practical Completion certificate: with the defects list attached.
- Building Manual: with the health and safety file.
- Fire safety information: for the building and its systems.
- Final Certificate: at the end of the defects period.
On many commercial buildings the fire safety information is also a legal duty. Regulation 38 of the Building Regulations requires it to go to the responsible person by completion.
Stage 7: the building in use
Stage 7 starts with Stage 6 and lasts for the life of the building. It covers how the building is run and maintained, and whether it performs as planned.
A short review after the first months shows what works and what to adjust. Feedback from one project improves the brief for the next, which takes you back to Stage 0.
Starting a project, or holding a design at one of these stages? Book a free design consultation. We will tell you where it stands and what it should cost to build, and reply the same working day.
