Building safety remediation of residential buildings

A 90-minute Westminster Hall debate on building safety remediation of residential buildings is scheduled for 15 September. The debate will be opened by Dr Pinkerton MP.

The government described “the problem” of building safety remediation in its introduction to the Remediation Acceleration Plan (2 December 2024):

There are far too many residential buildings today still with unsafe cladding and the speed with which this is being addressed is far too slow. Affected residents face distress and higher bills while they wait for action. This is unacceptable.

This briefing covers building safety remediation in England.

Legislation, policy and support

The statutory requirements for building safety, remediation and fire risk management are set out in the Building Safety Act 2022 and the Fire Safety Order (as amended by the Fire Safety Act 2021).

The government’s Remediation Acceleration Plan (RAP) was published on 2 December 2024 and set out building and fire safety measures, addressing the Grenfell Tower Inquiry recommendations. The objectives of the RAP are to:

• fix buildings faster
• identify all buildings with unsafe cladding
• support residents

It provided a framework for the identification and remediation of residential buildings with unsafe cladding.

The RAP update, July 2025 (latest update June 2026) outlined the progress made against the objectives set out in the original RAP and set out a range of additional measures including identifying buildings over 11 metres with unsafe cladding and providing support for residents. The RAP update explained:

These measures will help to overcome the barriers to remediation so that residents feel safe and are safe in their homes.

There are a range of support measures for cladding remediation and associated costs including:

• Developer remediation contract (January 2023), also known as the “developers pledge”. Established by the government to formalise an agreement for developers to remediate unsafe buildings which they developed. The leasehold advisory service, LEASE, has further details and lists the developers who have signed the contract.
• Fire Safety Reinsurance facility. Details of the facility are set out in the RAP update, July 2025 under objective 3: support for residents. It enables residents of high-risk buildings with fire safety issues to secure insurance.
• Cladding Safety Scheme (CCS). A fund that “addresses fire risks associated with cladding on residential buildings”. The CCS was extended in July 2026 to include buildings under 11 metres, with funding prioritised for high-risk buildings with the most serious cladding fire safety defects.

Statistics on building safety remediation 

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) publishes a monthly data release on building safety remediation. The most recent release has figures for July 2026. 

The data release only covers residential buildings over 11 metres whose remediation progress is being monitored by the department. This includes buildings whose remediation is being funded through central schemes, as well as those remediated through developer funding and by social housing providers. 

As of the end of July 2026, MHCLG is monitoring progress on 4,697 buildings. Of these, 39% have completed remediation (1,833 buildings), 15% have started remediation (718 buildings) and 46% have not yet started remediation (2,146 buildings).  

Within this total, 516 buildings were high-rise (18 metres or over) with aluminium composite material (ACM) (‘Grenfell-style’) cladding. 93% of these buildings (478 buildings) have completed remediation or are awaiting building control sign-off. 

Not all tall buildings with unsafe cladding are being monitored by MHCLG. MHCLG estimates that in March 2026, there were between 5,800 and 7,300 buildings over 11 metres in height with potentially unsafe cladding, meaning that it is currently monitoring progress on between 64% and 81% of the total. These figures include those buildings which have now had their unsafe cladding remediated through MHCLG’s programmes. 

The release also does not cover residential buildings under 11 metres, and MHCLG does not publish estimates of how many of these smaller buildings require remediation. 

The July 2026 release is accompanied by a dashboard and a data download (.ODS file). These include more detailed data including local authority breakdowns. 

Background information and an archive of all releases is also available from MHCLG. 

Ongoing concerns

Leaseholders and freeholders face ongoing issues for buildings with fire safety risks, out of date or invalid EWS1 (external wall systems incorporating cladding) forms, challenges with selling their homes, securing a mortgage or re-mortgage, and higher insurance costs.

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors has an FAQ page on Cladding External Wall Systems (EWS) (last updated June 2026) which addresses some of these concerns.

Future reforms

The Remediation Bill is one of the commitments in the RAP update, and was formally announced in the 2026 King’s Speech. It has not yet been introduced.

The government has said the purpose of the bill is “to speed up remediation for people living in homes with unsafe cladding”. The bill will introduce a new legal duty to remediate; that is, to compel those responsible for building safety “to identify, assess and fix buildings without delay”.

The bill will also include measures to mandate how external wall assessments are carried out using the PAS:9980 standards, an industry framework which provides a methodology for fire risk assessments. There has been a mixed reaction to the adoption of the PAS:9980 standards. Inside Housing’s article on PAS:9980 (23 February 2026) reported:

To its supporters, it allows competent fire engineers to offer pragmatic solutions to complex questions of fire engineering. To its critics, it offers developers a route to game the system, by paying for a report which deems serious risks to be tolerable.

The Building Safety Levy (England) Regulations 2025 also comes into force in October 2026. The levy is “a tax on new residential buildings” and will be collected by local authorities, according to government guidance. A March 2025 Written Ministerial Statement, explained the levy will be used to “raise revenue for the purpose of building safety expenditure”.

Further resources on building safety remediation

• Commons Library briefing, Fire safety in houses and flats (May 2024) provides information on fire safety requirements introduced after the Grenfell Tower fire.
• Commons Library briefing, Building regulations and safety (July 2024) sets out building regulations and standards for building safety as well as the government’s response to the Grenfell Tower fire.
• Commons Library briefing, Remediating cladding on blocks of flats under 11 metres (September 2025) summarises how and why buildings under 11 metres are treated differently and what leaseholders can do if they have concerns.
• Commons Library briefing, Grenfell Tower fire anniversary: adjournment debate (June 2026)
• Commons Library briefing, Building Safety Bill (July 2021).
• Commons Library briefing, Fire Safety Bill (April 2021).