The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has announced a series of changes to the Cladding Safety Scheme and building assessment certificates (BACs) issued by the Building Safety Regulator (BSR).
In a joint statement, MHCLG, Rachel Blake MP and Samantha Dixon MP said funding would be made available to protect leaseholders from costs in buildings under 11 metres, with support prioritised for those facing the greatest risk.
Applications open on 17 August, for eight weeks.
Serious cladding problems are less common in lower-rise buildings and are not covered by existing leaseholder protections, leaving leaseholders facing large bills to fix safety issues they did not cause.
The funding is part of a wider change to how buildings are prioritised for remediation. Instead of focusing mainly on building height, the government will prioritise buildings based on the risk they pose to residents, ensuring those with the most serious safety concerns are addressed first.
The announcement delivers on commitments set out in the Remediation Acceleration Plan and builds on work to address the failings set out in the Grenfell Inquiry. The upcoming Remediation Bill will go further to ensure landlords deliver on their responsibility to fix unsafe buildings, the statement said.
Building safety minister Samantha Dixon added: “Residents shouldn’t be left worrying about living in homes with dangerous, flammable cladding, just because their building isn’t tall enough to qualify for funding.
“That’s why we’re taking action so that buildings posing the greatest risk to life are prioritised, as well as streamlining processes to minimise delays and make responsibilities clear.
“To further support leaseholders, the government has welcomed a new review by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) into how insurance premiums for buildings with fire safety risks have changed since the FCA brought in new rules in 2023.
“The review will look at how insurers’ pricing approaches have changed over time, how firms are considering leaseholders’ interests when assessing whether their products deliver fair value, and how building remediation work is being taken into account in insurers’ risk assessments.”
Speaking in the House of Commons last week, Dixon said the government is committed to making sure there is an effective building safety regime in place so people can be confident their homes are safe.
“In line with calls from industry, residents and campaigners, we are enabling new applications to the Cladding Safety Scheme to be prioritised according to risk to life, rather than solely by building height. This will ensure buildings assessed as presenting the highest risk to life are prioritised for remediation,” she explained.
The minister continued: “From autumn 2026, the National Remediation Database, delivered by Homes England, will provide a single view of remediation activity across relevant buildings, improving information sharing and supporting oversight across partner organisations.
“The government continues to drive reform across the wider building safety system. Our objective is to ensure that the system established after the Grenfell Tower Fire tragedy is protecting residents, supporting responsible development and operating in a clear, proportionate and effective way.”
The campaign group End Our Cladding Scandal said the measures are “a small step forward”, but warned they would not be sufficient to “put an end to the building crisis any time soon”.
“Over four years since the ‘case by case’ approach was introduced for buildings under 11 metres, and nearly a year since funding was announced, the recognition that leaseholders and residents in these buildings have faced prolonged uncertainty is welcome. But with limited funding, it risks becoming another narrow, bureaucratic scheme: giving people hope only to lock them into more years of delay.
“A risk-based approach is sensible only if it speeds up remediation and actually protects leaseholders and residents. It must not be used to ration justice, downgrade real concerns, or force costs onto leaseholders in buildings deemed a ‘lower priority’. The government must ensure proper oversight that doesn’t leave leaseholders and resident management companies alone in attritional battles with freeholders, housing associations, developers and managing agents.”
The campaign group added: “Sadly, Labour’s approach only continues the pattern of the previous government. It is all still piecemeal and will do nothing to resolve the range of issues and gaps they have known for years. Labour recognised this as a building safety crisis in its manifesto but is now choosing to focus on cladding alone.
“All leaseholders deserve to know when they will be able to move on with their life. This must mean all external and internal defects are fixed to a consistent national standard and no leaseholder- all of whom are equally blameless- pays for a crisis caused by successive governments and industry.”
The government has also set out a range of changes to improve building safety regulation while reducing unnecessary delays. A new Single Construction Regulator will bring together different parts of the building regulation system and make it easier to navigate; it will be made simpler for the BSR to issue BACs and providing clearer guidance for building owners; a new consultation will be launched to make it easier for emergency works to take place, and two consultation responses will be published detailing telecommunications work and ensuring existing buildings can move through the regulatory process more swiftly while maintaining safety standards.
The BSR’s updated approach to BACs will provide greater support for duty holders while maintaining high standards of building safety, it said.
“The proposed new approach will be more proportionate and targeted. It will also offer greater support to resident-led principal accountable persons (PAPs).”
The BAC foundation plan responds to feedback from PAPs, financial institutions and other stakeholders to address the implementation of requirements for occupied higher-risk buildings (HRBs) introduced in the Building Safety Act 2022.
Building safety legal duties remain in place for more than 6,000 legally responsible PAPs and accountable persons (APs) of HRBs across England while the plan is developed.
“Significant progress” has been made with the regime, BSR said, with streamlined processes and increased engagement. However, it continues to face challenges, with assessment processing times twice as long as initially expected. So far this year, 66% of applications have been refused.
BSR found that refusals often occur because applications focus on process compliance rather than effective management of safety, and said it recognises many volunteer-led resident management companies, commonhold and Right to Manage organisations have struggled to navigate new legal requirements.
A new intelligence-led and risk-based approach aims to address the challenges and BSR is working closely with MHCLG to review the impact of the regime, including the cost to leaseholders, before agreeing a new system and timescales for future assessments.
Work is already underway to introduce measures to help duty holders to submit high-quality evidence of how they are meeting their ongoing fire and structural safety duties. Initial updated resources are expected to be available from September 2026.
While BSR is resetting the assessment process, the legal duties under the act remain in place.
Charlie Pugsley, acting CEO of BSR, said: “Speed cannot come at the cost of safety, but neither can unnecessary complexity. We are committed to a new proportionate approach to assessments as well as providing updated guidance, resources and support.
“This is so duty holders, especially those in resident-managed buildings, are ready to demonstrate compliance whenever asked.
“Meeting these standards will ensure residents in thousands of high-rise buildings across England feel safe and are safe in their homes.”
Nathan Emerson, CEO of Propertymark, welcomed the government’s plans. He said: “No resident should have to live with uncertainty over their safety or face barriers to resolving these issues.
“For many, cladding problems have led to years of anxiety, costly remediation work and stalled property sales, preventing people from moving when they need or want to.”
