The government has set target dates for making buildings safe and is introducing tougher penalties for refusing to act.

By the end of 2029, all 18m+ (high-rise) buildings with unsafe cladding in a government-funded scheme will have been remediated.; and by the end of 2029, every 11m+ building with unsafe cladding will either have been remediated, have a date for completion, or the landlords will be liable for severe penalties.  

The government has also published a joint action plan with developers to accelerate their work to fix buildings for which they are responsible. At least 29 developers, covering over 95% of the buildings which developers are remediating themselves, have committed to more than doubling the rate at which they have been assessing and starting to fix unsafe buildings, meaning work on all their buildings will start by summer 2027.   

Since the 2017 Grenfell Tower tragedy, 95% of buildings with the same type of cladding used on Grenfell have been remediated. However, only 30% of identified buildings in England have been remediated, with potentially thousands more buildings yet to be identified. 

The Grenfell Tower Inquiry report in September highlighted catastrophic and systemic failures in keeping people safe. The government is considering the Phase 2 report of the Inquiry and has committed to providing an update on our progress by March 2025. 

The new Remediation Acceleration Plan will speed up the process of making homes safe by focusing on three key objectives:    

• Fix buildings faster: Expedite remediation of high-risk buildings with clear deadlines and penalties for non-compliance;

• Identify all unsafe buildings: Identify all buildings with unsafe cladding through advanced data assessments and the creation of a comprehensive building register.;

• Support residents: Protect residents from the financial burdens of remediation and improve their experience throughout the process.    

Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner says:   “More than seven years on from the Grenfell tragedy, thousands of people have been left living in homes across this country with dangerous cladding. The pace of remediation has been far too slow for far too long. We are taking decisive action to right this wrong and make homes safe. 

“Our Remediation Acceleration Plan will ensure those responsible for making buildings safe deliver the change residents need and deserve.”

And Building Safety Minister Alex Norris adds: “By setting a clear timeline and firm deadlines, today’s announcement is a major step towards ensuring every building is made safe. Our Remediation Acceleration plan will fix buildings faster, identify all buildings with unsafe cladding and support vulnerable residents.

“This underscores our unwavering commitment to safeguarding residents and holding those responsible to account. We will not hesitate to actively pursue the owners of buildings who refuse to act.”