Our methodology · Editorial

How we write and review every guide

Named contributors, four-step sign-off, sources cited inline, and a quarterly re-review of every guide. Distinct from how we vet the tradespeople who list on the platform.

See the four-step processMeet the editorial team
Last reviewed 4 June 2026
Who writes the guides

A small named editorial team

NI Trades runs a four-person editorial team. Each contributor owns a topic cluster matching their training and background.

Mark Crawford
Digital Content Editor
Bangor, Northern Ireland
BSc (Hons) Communication, Advertising and Marketing (CAM), Ulster University
Editor: every guide
Aoife Donnelly
Trade Operations Contributor
Belfast, Northern Ireland
BSc (Hons) Business Management, Queen’s University Belfast
Trade platforms, registration, operations
Conor Hamilton
Building & Renovation Contributor
Newtownards, Northern Ireland
BEng (Hons) Civil Engineering, Queen’s University Belfast
NI building and renovation costs
Sinéad Quinn
Consumer Protection Contributor
Derry/Londonderry, Northern Ireland
LLB (Hons) Law, Ulster University
Consumer protection and homeowner due diligence
How a guide gets to publish

The four-step process

Research
The contributor pulls primary sources for the topic: UK and NI regulators (Gas Safe, NICEIC, NAPIT, OFTEC, FENSA, HETAS, FMB), NI-specific Building Control guidance, and live quotes from working NI tradespeople where the topic touches price or scope. We preserve the source list inline so readers can audit it.
Draft against working-trade input
Cost figures are sanity-checked against quotes from at least three NI tradespeople holding the relevant registration. Process descriptions are checked against the regulator's own guidance, not third-party summaries. We do not generate cost figures from UK averages and stamp them as NI, the NI market differs.
Editor sign-off
Mark Crawford, digital content editor, reviews the draft against four criteria: every claim sourced or attributable, every figure current to the stated review date, language safe for a homeowner under stress, and the guide names the limitations of its own advice. Drafts that fail any criterion go back to the contributor.
Publish and re-review
Every guide goes live with a visible Last Reviewed date. Guides are re-reviewed every quarter and any time a regulator changes a rule, a platform changes a price, or a contributor spots a market shift in NI quotes.
Sources

What we cite, inline, in every guide

  • Gas Safe Register, the only legal register for gas work in NI
  • NICEIC and NAPIT, the two competent-person schemes for electrical work
  • OFTEC, oil-firing technical association covering boilers and tanks
  • FENSA and CERTASS, replacement-windows competent-person schemes
  • HETAS, solid-fuel heating competent-person scheme
  • FMB, Federation of Master Builders, the main trade body for NI builders
  • NI Department for Communities, landlord and tenant guidance applicable in NI
  • HSENI, Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland (gas safety enforcement)
  • Local Building Control offices at the eleven NI councils, for council-specific procedural detail
  • Live quotes from working NI tradespeople holding the relevant registration, refreshed every quarter
Keeping guides current

How we re-review every guide

Every editorial guide stores two dates in the codebase, a published date (immutable) and a reviewed date (bumped whenever the guide is re-read end to end). The reviewed date is the date shown in the byline. If a guide says “Reviewed 28 May 2026”, that means a member of the editorial team actually re-read it on that date and confirmed every figure, rule and link.

We re-review on a quarterly cadence at minimum, and out of cycle when:

  • A regulator (Gas Safe, NICEIC, NAPIT, OFTEC, FENSA, HETAS) changes a rule, fee or process.
  • A major platform (Bark, Checkatrade, MyBuilder, Rated People) changes pricing.
  • NI cost ranges shift more than 10% based on incoming trade quotes.
  • A reader flags a factual issue.
Found a mistake?

How to flag a correction

If you spot a figure, a date, a procedure or a link that is wrong, please tell us. Email hello@nitrades.co.uk with the page URL and what you think is wrong. Corrections we accept are made within five working days, and a short note is added to the page with the date of the change.

Scope

What this methodology does not cover

This page describes how the editorial guides are written. It does not describe how we vet the tradespeople who list on NI Trades, which is a separate process with its own page. It also does not describe how we handle complaints about a tradesperson, which is covered in our complaints process.

Nothing on this site, including the editorial guides, constitutes legal advice. If a job involves statutory compliance you are uncertain about, consult the relevant regulator directly or take professional advice.