The slow pace of remediation has been considered unacceptable, as highlighted by Deputy Prime Minister, Angela Rayner:

“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.”

In a determined bid to tackle this, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) announced the Remediation Acceleration Plan (RAP) to ensure buildings are fixed quicker, freeholders are held accountable, and years of uncertainty around building safety are ended.

But what are targets, and are they achievable? In this article, we’ll address the government’s targets and whether sufficient resources exist to make them a reality.

How we got here

In the seven years since Grenfell, the government has taken various steps to encourage and compel building owners to identify and remediate life-critical fire safety defects in the external wall systems of their buildings. Schemes such as the government-backed Building Safety Fund (BSF) in 2020 and the Cladding Safety Scheme (CSS) in 2023 were introduced to kickstart remediation and make buildings safe. The latest scheme to be introduced to this list is RAP, which includes ambitious new target dates for making buildings safe and a joint action plan with developers to accelerate their work to fix buildings they are responsible for.

The targets

The RAP sets clear and ambitious milestones to address unsafe cladding, focusing on high-rise and mid-rise buildings. The plan prioritises the most critical safety issues while ensuring accountability among building owners and developers.

RAP’s ambitious new target dates for making buildings safe:

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

Barriers: The skills shortage and regulatory challenges

Despite the ambitious targets, one of the significant obstacles to meeting RAP’s goals is the ongoing skills shortage within the construction industry. The supply chain of skilled professionals needed for cladding remediation is already fragile, and a sudden increase in demand could exacerbate existing issues. Tony Hill, Managing Director at Eden Facades, highlights a key issue surrounding the Construction Skills Certificate Scheme (CSCS) cards and their potential impact on these targets:

“The UK Government has quite rightly put in place the requirement for operatives to prove competency in installing their chosen work element, but have made it impossible for some to gain the qualifications that do that. The left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing. There’s no coordination.”

Whilst these changes are essential for ensuring quality tradespeople are carrying out the work and ultimately leading to safer buildings, this lack of coordination is particularly evident with recent changes to the CSCS card system, which may create significant barriers. From January 2025, a trade-specific NVQ or SVQ qualification will be required for operatives to obtain a CSCS card to work on construction sites. By 2026, all workers must hold a trade-specific NVQ to be eligible to work. Tony explains further:

“Obtaining a CSCS card is relatively easy as the health & safety tests can be conducted in a number of different languages, making it easier for non-English speakers to qualify and work on-site.”

“However, the new trade-specific NVQ requirements that rolled out from January 2025 and the full implementation by 2026 introduce complications. These qualifications demand a working knowledge of English, creating barriers for many non-UK nationals who currently form a vital part of the workforce.”

As a result, a significant portion of the labour pool may leave, further exacerbating the skills shortage. Without sufficient tradespeople, the ability to meet the volume of remediation work required to ensure building safety will be severely hampered, putting the government’s ambitious targets at risk.

Ambitious but achievable?

RAP sets ambitious targets that could finally provide a clear path to resolving the cladding crisis. However, the skills shortages threaten its success. Achieving these goals will require a coordinated effort between the government, developers, and industry professionals, alongside robust enforcement mechanisms to hold freeholders accountable.

While RAP has the potential to be a turning point, its success will ultimately depend on addressing these systemic challenges and delivering tangible results for the thousands of residents still living in unsafe buildings.

Putting our best foot forward

At Eden Façades we recognise the challenges ahead for RAP, and we’ve taken the necessary steps to be as prepared as possible. Tony comments:

“We’ve been upskilling our team ahead of the CSCS card changes and have a highly skilled team ready to take on the next wave of cladding remediation.”

“We fully support the ambition to make buildings safe as quickly as possible and can only hope that we are proved wrong and that all unsafe cladding will be stripped and replaced with fire-compliant cladding by the 2029 deadline.”

If you want to know more about how we work or would like our help with an upcoming project, contact us at 01268 744 199 or office@edenfacades.com.