Up to 60% of Buildings Affected by Unsafe Cladding Are Yet to be Identified

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04 November 2024

A report from the National Audit Office says that up to 60 per cent of buildings affected by unsafe cladding are still yet to be identified.

Seven years after the Grenfell Tower fire, work has been completed on only 12–16 per cent of the buildings identified. 

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So far, 4,771 buildings have been identified as needing remediation, but it is taking “longer than expected” to identify the remainder. Potentially 7,200 buildings or more (up to 60%) still to be identified, leaving many residents unsure as to when their buildings will be made safe.

The report says incomplete building records, construction materials that differ from those on plans, and difficulties tracing owners is making identifying affected buildings difficult.

Gareth Davies, Head of the National Audit Office (NAO) said that “considerable uncertainty remains regarding the number of buildings needing remediation, costs, timelines and recouping public spending.”

It is estimated that it will cost £16.6 billion to fix unsafe cladding on all buildings over 11 metres in England. 

NAO Report Recommendations

The report recommends that the government publishes a target date for the completion of dangerous cladding remediation works, giving residents an idea of how long they’ll have to wait until their homes are safe. 

The NAO also suggests that there should be greater transparency on remediation performance, such as publishing data on the proportion of total buildings to be remediated, which remediation has started or completed, and a measure of whether the portfolio is on track to achieve a published target date.

If progress isn’t made before the end of 2024, the NAO urges the government to consider mandatory registration for buildings 11–18 metres (as it has for high-rise buildings over 18 metres).

Picture: a photograph of a high-rise building. Image Credit: Unsplash

Article written by Ella Tansley | Published 04 November 2024

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