Back in 2022, the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) confirmed that 95% of “all identified high-rise residential and publicly owned buildings in England” have either completed or started remediation work to remove and replace unsafe cladding.
With remediation for residential buildings over 18m now well underway, The Cladding Safety Scheme (CSS) opened last year to allow building owners to apply for funding for buildings within the 11-18m range, good news for the future safety of buildings and standards.
Remediation continues to progress at a pace
According to more recent data from the DLUHC, at the end of February 2024 there had been 4,092 11m+ residential buildings with unsafe cladding identified in England, an increase of 120 since the end of January.
Although positive data, the DLUHC acknowledges there are further buildings, particularly in the 11-18m range, that still need to apply for the CSS, which opened in July 2023. The scheme supports applications for buildings where the applicant cannot afford to carry out the work themselves or feels it is not their responsibility to do so.
Buildings that are over 18m have been entitled to apply to the Building Safety Fund (BSF) since 2020, which is now covered under the Building Remediation Hub , a new route to access grant funding from the CSS and BSF. Overall, the total number of buildings reported to have started or completed remediation works has more than doubled since the end of February 2023.
Regardless of the height of the buildings, regulators are encouraging all relevant building owners to come forward and enter into a scheme voluntarily, otherwise enforcement action may be taken.
How has the landscape changed for developers?
A landmark cladding remediation bill was passed in Scotland in May 2024 – giving ministers the authority to order the removal of dangerous cladding without owners’ permission. Developers in Scotland must join a ‘responsible developers’ scheme, similar to the ‘Responsible Actors’ introduced in England last year.
The Responsible Actors Scheme (RAS) for residential developers came into effect under the Building Safety Act in July 2023, and aims to improve the safety and standard of buildings by requiring that any member of the scheme must:
- Identify 11m+ residential buildings they developed or refurbished over the past 30 years and any of those buildings known to have life-critical fire safety defects.
- Remediate and/or mitigate, or pay for the remediation/mitigation of, life-critical fire safety defects in those buildings; and
- Reimburse government schemes for taxpayer-funded work to remediate and/or mitigate defects in those buildings, thereby assisting government to be able to pay for and implement remediation schemes designed to make buildings safe.
RAS is eligible for residential buildings that are at least 11m high, located in England, and developed or refurbished between 5th April 1992 and 4th April 2022. The scheme creates an incentive for developers to remediate unsafe defects and is supported by building and planning control prohibitions.
There could be detrimental implications for developers who meet the criteria, but are not part of RAS, as the government will ensure that developers taking on the cost of remediation are not disadvantaged in the market. In addition, there is a possibility that being a member of RAS could soon become a tendering requirement.
How has the landscape changed for subcontractors?
“We have obviously seen a huge increase in the number of cladding remediation projects over the last couple of years,” Tony Hill, Managing Director at Eden Facades explains, “which is why it’s crucial for our clients to partner with a company that not only understands the complexities of the process, but also has a proven track record of delivering high-quality services.
“Eden Facades is uniquely positioned to meet these needs, with our extensive expertise, commitment to safety, and a history of successful cladding remediation projects. Some of our recent projects include Orwell Quay in Ipswich, working with main contractor RG Carter on a two-phase scheme, and Renaissance and Baroque Court in West London, where we were brought on board by United Living to remove the existing insulated render system and sheathing boards, and replace them with an A-rated sheathing board and Wetherby’s mineral fibre insulated render system.
“Working with us means reliability and peace of mind for our clients, something we are very proud to deliver.”
To find out more about our recent cladding remediation projects, visit our services page, or contact the team on office@edenfacades.co.uk
