The government's latest monthly figures, published on 28 October, track 4,732 residential buildings of 11 metres and over with unsafe cladding in England. As at the end of September, 2,621 of them (55%) had started or completed remediation, and 1,878 (40%) had finished. That leaves 2,111 buildings, 45%, where works had not started.
Behind those buildings sit about 101,000 homes. Another 37,000 are in buildings where works are under way.
Two weeks before those figures came out, on 14 October, the government introduced the Building Safety (Remediation of Unsafe Cladding etc.) Bill. It is not law yet, and it may change as it goes through Parliament. But it shows where the duty is heading, and most of what it asks for is a record you could start keeping today.
What the figures say
The picture differs by height. Of the 2,592 monitored buildings of 18 metres and over, 63% have started or completed works. For the 2,140 buildings between 11 and 18 metres, the figure is 47%. Over half of the mid-rise stock has not started.
The government's stated aim, set out in the Remediation Acceleration Plan, is that by the end of 2029 every 11m+ building with unsafe cladding has either been remediated or has a date for completion. The next monthly release is due on 25 November.
What the bill would add
As introduced, the bill puts duties on the "responsible entity", broadly whoever holds the repairing obligation for the external walls. That can be a freeholder, a superior leaseholder, a resident management company or a right to manage company. It covers multi-occupied residential buildings in England of 11 metres or five storeys and over, completed before 28 June 2022, in both the private and social sectors.
The duties, as summarised by DAC Beachcroft, run in a sequence:
- Assess. A fire risk assessment of the external wall (FRAEW) where a fire risk assessment recommends one, with a deadline of 12 months after Royal Assent. The standard is left to regulations, and PAS 9980 is the likely reference.
- Mitigate. Interim measures where the risk calls for them, while remediation is arranged.
- Remediate. Where the FRAEW recommends works, carry them out as soon as reasonably practicable.
- Tell residents. A Remediation Compliance Plan setting out the steps and the timetable, published and shared with residents and leaseholders within 15 months of Royal Assent, and revised when the recommendations change.
Failing to assess, mitigate or remediate without reasonable excuse would be a criminal offence. Regulators could instead impose civil penalties of up to £500,000, and Homes England or a local authority could step in and carry out the works at the duty holder's cost. Royal Assent is expected in the first half of 2027.
What to have in order now
None of this needs the bill to pass before you act. The useful questions are the ones a regulator, a lender or a leaseholder will ask anyway.
- Do you know what is on each wall? Not the design intent, the as-built record: the cladding, insulation, cavity barriers and fixings, with the evidence for each. Where you do not know, that is the gap to close first.
- Is there a current FRAEW, and who has read it? Note its date, its author, its standard and what it recommends. If the recommendation is works, that is the start of the clock under the bill.
- What interim measures are in place, and are they still being checked? Waking watch, alarm upgrades, changes to the evacuation strategy. Each needs an owner and a dated record that it is still running.
- Could you hand residents a plan tomorrow? Steps, timetable, who is responsible. If writing one would take weeks, start now.
- Is the funding route clear? Building Safety Fund, Cladding Safety Scheme, developer-led, or none. Each has its own paperwork and its own milestones.
The common thread is dates. When the assessment was done, when the interim measure was last checked, when residents were told, when works will start. A record that cannot be dated is hard to defend.
Where SAMRISK puts it
The wall build-up and its evidence sit in the building's materials register, with surveys, FRAEWs and certificates filed and versioned in documents. For higher-risk buildings, the safety case holds the remediation record alongside the golden thread.
Interim measures become dated tasks with owners, reassessment dates sit on the compliance calendar, and the wider picture lives in fire safety. When someone asks what is on the wall and what you are doing about it, the answer is already written down.
Sources: MHCLG, Building Safety Remediation monthly data release, September 2026, published 28 October 2026; MHCLG, Remediation Acceleration Plan, December 2024; Building Safety (Remediation of Unsafe Cladding etc.) Bill, introduced 14 October 2026; DAC Beachcroft, analysis of the bill, 21 October 2026.
General information as at November 2026. Not legal advice; check the regulation or ask a competent person.