On 2 December 2024, the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government (MHCLG) published its "Remediation Acceleration Plan" (the Plan). This articulates its intended approach for tackling the slow pace of remediation of buildings with unsafe cladding in England.

The Plan sets out the Government's aim that, by the end of 2029:

  • all buildings over 18 metres in height with unsafe cladding which are in a government-funded scheme will have been remediated; and
  • all building over 11 metres in height with unsafe cladding will "either have been remediated, have a date for completion or the landlords will be liable for severe penalties".

In the same week, MHCLG also announced a fundamental review of how building regulations guidance – also known as "Approved Documents" (ADs) – is produced, updated and communicated to the construction industry.

We examine some of the key points arising out of these developments and consider their implications for the construction industry below.

What does the Remediation Acceleration Plan tell us?

The Plan follows the Government response to the National Audit Office (NAO) report on dangerous cladding[1] published in November 2024 (which we explored in our previous insight - Cladding and fire safety risks: new report highlights slow pace of remediation), in which it committed to take action to speed up remediation.

The three key objectives set out in the Plan are to:

  1. fix buildings faster;
  2. identify all buildings with unsafe cladding; and
  3. support residents.

Fixing buildings faster

The Plan notes that while progress has been made in remediating the most unsafe buildings, it is unacceptable that seven years after the Grenfell tragedy, many of those who are responsible for remediating their buildings are yet to do so. In particular, it notes that "32% of buildings we were aware of in 2020 that were eligible for remediation…are still yet to start remediation".

The key actions set out in the Plan to achieve this first objective include:

  • the introduction of new legislation to "create a clear and legal duty on those responsible for buildings 11m and over to take the necessary steps to fix their buildings within clear timescales", which will be underpinned by "significant financial consequences for inaction and a new criminal offence for those who ultimately fail to remove unsafe cladding";
  • "robust new powers" for local authorities, fire and rescue authorities and the Building Safety Regulator (BSR) to enforce remediation. This will include working with the BSR to "ensure they have the capacity" to take a more prominent role in monitoring, enforcement and accelerating the pace of remediation. It will also include the launch of a new remediation enforcement support fund for local authorities and fire and rescue authorities;
  • further new legislation to provide the Secretary of State and regulators with "powers to compel entities to disclose their beneficial ownership chains". This is intended to tackle the difficulty of identifying beneficial owner – which often sits, obscured, behind the legal owner of a building – yet frequently makes key decisions in respect of the building and benefits financially;
  • Publication of a Joint Plan between the Government and a number of major developers – which all signatories of the Developer Remediation Contract have been invited to sign (we explore this further in our insight - Building Safety: Government publishes details of the Responsible Actors Scheme). This is separate from and does not replace the Developer Remediation Contract. It sets out a number of commitments relating to remediation work, including that signatories will finish assessing all of their buildings by end of July 2025, and will start or complete remedial works on all of their buildings by end of July 2027.

Identifying all buildings with unsafe cladding

The Plan notes that there is a gap in knowledge in relation to residential buildings between 11-18m in height. These are not currently classed as "higher-risk buildings" (HRBs), which are defined as buildings over 18 metres in height or with at least seven storeys, and with at least two residential units.

Accordingly, unlike HRBs which are subject to mandatory registration with the Building Safety Regulator (BSR) under the Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA) – and with criminal penalties for failure to register – many 11-18m tall buildings remain unidentified. On current estimates, the Plan notes that there are between 4000-7000 buildings at least 11 metres in height with unsafe cladding in England that are yet to be identified.

In order to address this issue, and implementing one of the recommendations from the recent NAO Report, the Plan proposes further new legislation which will:

  • Require mandatory registration of all residential buildings between 11-18m in height. Once complete this will mean that there is a "complete register" of all residential buildings above 11m;
  • Ensure the "strongest possible penalties" for those that do not comply.

This will have significant implications for developers, owners, landlords and residents of buildings between 11-18 metres in height. While the proposals seem to be limited to requiring registration of these buildings, it remains to be seen when the draft legislation is published whether any of the ongoing safety management and reporting requirements in respect of HRBs will also apply to 11-18m buildings.

Supporting residents

The Plan sets out a multi-pronged approach to achieving this third objective, including:

  • amending the Landlord and Tenant Act 1987 to make it clear that a court-appointed manager can also be responsible for building safety duties, which will allow remediation funds to be provided to court-appointed managers who can then progress remediation;
  • publication of a new consultation on introducing permitted insurance fees for landlords, freeholders and property managing agents. This seeks views on proposals to prevent freeholders, property managing agents and landlords from imposing opaque and excessive charges on leaseholders related to building insurance;
  • Amendments to the BSA under the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 (which have already come into force and are described in our earlier insight - Building Safety Act 2022 – Key amendments coming into force in October 2024). These amendments clarify that residents can recoup costs from landlords that have been paid in connection with remediation, including for interim measures such as waking watches or simultaneous evacuation alarms, the cost of expert reports and alternative accommodation; and
  • Extension of the Waking Watch Replacement Fund until the end of March 2026.

Introduction of Building Safety Levy confirmed

The Plan also confirms the intention for the Building Safety Levy to come into effect in Autumn 2025 (which was foreshadowed in the NAO Report). It confirms some of the details set out in the most recent consultation on the levy[2], including that:

  • the Levy will be charged on all new residential developments in England that require building control approval, irrespective of their height; and
  • the Levy will be collected by Local Authorities.

Further operational details of the levy remain unclear at this stage, such as how the levy will be calculated, whether there will be any grace period, and which developments will be in scope and which will be exempt. The consultation envisaged various proposed exclusions such as affordable homes, small developments of under 10 units, NHS hospitals, medical centres and GP practices, as well as supported housing, residential care homes, refuges, criminal justice accommodation and military establishments. Whether the Build to Rent, purpose-built student accommodation and senior housing sectors will be in or out of scope of the levy remains to be seen when further details emerge in 2025.

Changes to Building Regulations Guidance (Approved Documents)

In a recent Commons debate on the Grenfell Tower Inquiry phase 2 report (which we reported on in our insight regarding the Grenfell Phase 2 Report), it was announced that the BSR will be undertaking a fundamental review of the Approved Documents (ADs). This is in response to criticisms of the ADs in both Dame Judith Hackitt's 2018 Independent Review of Building Regulations and Fire Safety (which called them "complex, ambiguous and not user-friendly") and the Grenfell Phase 2 Report.

There is currently limited detail on what this review will comprise save that the BSR will establish a review panel in early 2025. We will be monitoring further developments in this area.

What does this mean for you?

The industry has spent the last two and a half years familiarising itself with, and adjusting to, the BSA – which was arguably the biggest legislative change to building safety regulation in a generation.

However, both the Remediation Acceleration Plan, and the review of building regulations guidance that the BSR is to undertake, indicate that further change, and new legislation, should be expected in 2025.

Our leading Building Safety team, which advises on a myriad of issues relating to building safety and has expertise drawn from a specialist cross-discipline team, continues to monitor developments in this area and advise our clients on the impacts for their business.

If you have any questions about the issues raised in this article, please get in touch with Gemma Whittaker, Sean Garbutt or Emma Knight.

Footnotes

[1] National Audit Office - Dangerous cladding: the government's remediation portfolio

[2] Building Safety Act 2022: second consultation launched on expanded Building Safety Levy