On 13 January 2022, the Construction Leadership Council (CLC) released version 9 of its Site Operating Procedures (SOP).  The new version has been published in direct response to the emergence of the Omicron variant and sets out up-to-date guidance on the health and safety measures that should be implemented on construction sites across the UK.

Version 9 recognises that dealing with COVID-19 on construction sites is part of the "new normal". Construction sites have largely remained open since the start of the pandemic and therefore the construction industry has now been dealing with health and safety issues associated with COVID-19 for some time.  In particular, the updated guidance refers to "minimising contact" and "managing" (rather than "reducing" or "restricting") the number of people in certain areas of the site.

It will be interesting to see how this latest version of the SOP affects the drafting of construction documentation going forward.  Many building contracts have, since the start of the pandemic, been drafted so that a contractor may claim an extension of time (but not additional money) in the event that more onerous or restrictive procedures are required or recommended by the CLC than those set out in the latest version of the SOP.  It remains to be seen whether the legal industry will now start to make reference to the new version of the SOP in building contracts for upcoming construction works given the more relaxed approach that the CLC has adopted for version 9.