London is seeing a sharp improvement in building safety approval rates, with 97% of new higher-risk building applications approved over the latest 12-week period and 96% of existing building remediation applications receiving the green light. The Building Safety Regulator said the latest figures show continued improvements in processing times while more than 11,800 new residential units in London and 4,600 remediation units cleared key regulatory stages.
Gateway 2 and remediation approvals
The Building Safety Regulator’s (BSR) latest transparency data for the 12-week rolling period to 5 October 2026 shows overall gateway 2 application approvals rising to 87%, up from the previous release (84%), with 20,471 residential units clearing the gateway.
Over the same period, existing building remediation approvals also climbed to 87% nationally (up from 32% 12 months prior) and 96% in London.
Highlights to 5 October 2026 (12 week rolling period)
- Overall decisions: Over the last 12 weeks, BSR made 378 building control decisions across all higher-risk building (HRB) categories, with an overall national approval rate of 87% (330 cases approved). These equate to 20,471 residential units.
- New HRBs and conversions: For new HRBs and conversions, the approval rate (not including invalidations and withdrawals) has risen to 96% (55 approvals out of 57 decisions) with a median approval time of 23 weeks for 11,822 units. In London, approvals stood at 97% with a 22-week median approval time for 6,855 units.
- Existing building remediation: Existing building remediation approvals stood at 87%, significantly exceeding BSR’s annual target of 65% and equating to 8,649 units. In London, approvals stood at 96% (52 approvals and 4,643 units).
- NHS applications: Approvals for NHS applications reached 81% nationally with 21 approvals from 26 decisions.
- National picture: Recent housing supply indicators from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government show significant quarterly starts in Q4 2025, as well as Q1 and Q2 of 2026, driven by BSR’s operational reforms.
- Increased applications received: The Building Safety Regulator has activated contingency plans to deal with an expected surge of applications in advance of the introduction of the Building Safety Levy, which came into force on 1 October.
- These contingency plans introduce additional levels of scrutiny prior to rejection, alongside a triage mechanism that will ensure that applications are progressed appropriately.
New-build, conversion and complex projects
BSR’s Innovation Unit has accelerated the assessment of applications for new high-rise residential buildings and major conversions.
Over the latest 12-week period, BSR made 57 decisions on new-build projects, approving 96% of applications (55). These approved schemes represent 11,822 new residential units.
For comparison, in August 2025, the median approval time was 43 weeks, and the approval rate was 39%.
Most new-build activity continues to take place in London, which accounted for 37 of the 57 national decisions made. BSR approved 36 of these 37 projects in London, representing an approval rate of 97% in the capital and unlocking 6,855 residential units. The median determination time in the capital was 22 weeks for non-complex cases.
While BSR continues drive internal improvements, BSR is also actively engaged with the wider sector to improve consistency, as well as to improve application quality.
London currently represents 60% of all in-progress new-build applications and 55% of the total residential units under active assessment (111 live applications representing 22,204 units).
Nationally, BSR is managing 186 live new-build and conversion applications, representing 40,644 individual units.
To manage resources efficiently, BSR tracks highly complex designs separately. Nationally, there are 30 live complex cases under active management, with a median determination time of 34 weeks.
London is managing 19 of these complex proposals, with a median determination time of 35 weeks.
Regional gateway 2 distribution
While London remains the primary hub for higher-risk building activity, managing 1,040 total live gateway 2 applications the rest of England accounts for 560 active gateway 2 applications.
Outside the capital, regional workloads are mainly concentrated in major urban development corridors across England including:
- south-west – 114 live gateway 2 applications
- north-west – 109
- south-east – 84
- east of England – 63
Housing supply: indicators of new supply, England
Recent Housing supply: indicators of new supply, England: April to June 2026 from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government also showed that the higher number of starts in 2025 Q4, 2026 Q1 and 2026 Q2 is in part due to BSR reporting 7,089 total starts in 2025 Q4, 6,276 total starts in 2026 Q1 and 5,758 total starts in 2026 Q2.
Previously, the maximum number of starts BSR had reported in a quarter was 1,206 in 2025 Q3. For context, MHCLG added that this followed reforms at BSR to accelerate housebuilding announced in June 2025.
Increased numbers of applications
In the period leading up to the introduction of the Building Safety Levy, BSR experienced a notable increase in higher-risk building applications. September submissions rose to 64 in comparison to 34 in August, 17 in July and 12 in June.
While application volumes can be influenced by a range of factors, we anticipated the potential for increased demand ahead of the levy coming into force and put contingency arrangements in place to manage this.
Those measures have now been deployed and build on the significant improvements made over the past year to strengthen operational performance and reduce application processing times.
Our messaging in August and September highlighted to the sector that, in accordance with our normal practice, we would move to reject clearly sub-standard applications which demonstrated significant gaps in compliance.
Whilst that remains our position, we are acutely aware of the impact that a rejection may have on the viability of a project.
We have therefore deployed additional scrutiny for this transitional period while the Levy comes into force to ensure that any invalidation or rejection of an application is subject to second- and third-line assurance checks before a final decision is communicated to the applicant.
Applications that are rejected will be those where we see no realistic path to an approval within a reasonable time period.
Whilst we have bolstered resources to deal with the surge, an increase of 2-3 times the typical intake will mean that we will need to apply a triage and demand management process to avoid unduly impacting applications that are already in train.
We will be in touch with applicants on an individual basis to discuss timelines for their projects.
New build inspection regime
Our growing inspection programme has uncovered a small number of examples where building work has not conformed with agreed designs and required some remedial work.
BSR will monitor this closely and will take a robust position where appropriate, to help ensure that safe designs are translated into safe buildings.
Existing building remediation
Targeted operational measures under BSR’s external remediation plan, introduced in April 2026, have driven improvements in existing building remediation.
BSR determined 110 remediation applications over the 12-week rolling period, approving 96 projects (87% approval rate) representing 8,649 residential units.
In London, the regional remediation approval rate reached 96% (52 approved from 54 decisions), unlocking 4,643 units. Nationally, 2026 approval rates already exceed BSR’s annual target of 65%.
BSR has also reduced outstanding legacy applications in the system. The volume of remediation cases dating from 2024 has fallen from 42 at the start of the year to 6 in London and 1 outside the capital.
These older, more complex applications had an overall rolling 12-week median determination time of 32 weeks, as teams worked to resolve historic design and safety issues.
In November 2025, approval rates stood at 32% with a decision time of 44 weeks. Approval rates currently stand at 87% with a median decision time of 32 weeks.
However, newer applications submitted in 2026 are progressing in circa 22 weeks (with high approval rates) showing significant improvements.
BSR is currently managing 313 active remediation cases nationally, representing 26,259 residential units (180 cases in London representing 14,298 units).
NHS applications
Building control applications for NHS healthcare facilities, including hospital maintenance, expansions and structural upgrades, are tracked as a distinct regulatory category to reflect their national importance.
Over the rolling 12-week period, BSR made 26 determinations on NHS applications, approving 21 for an 81% national approval rate and a median approval determination time of 20 weeks.
BSR’s specialist healthcare teams work with NHS trusts to resolve design complexities early. For NHS applications submitted in 2026, the median determination time has fallen to 17 weeks, with some recent projects securing approval within the statutory 8-week timeline.
London accounted for a significant share of healthcare upgrades, achieving a 78% NHS approval rate with 7 projects approved from 9 determinations. The median determination time in the capital was 20 weeks, reflecting the complexity of urban hospital sites.
Nationally BSR is managing 32 active NHS building control cases (18 in London).
Refurbishments and early gateway 3 indicators
Category A and B internal refurbishments accounted for 185 decisions over the last 12 weeks, representing 49% of all gateway 2 decisions. These applications include all internal refurbishment works, except NHS projects.
BSR achieved an 85% approval rate (158 approvals) with a median approval determination time of 31 weeks. For refurbishment applications submitted in 2026, the median determination time has dropped to 21 weeks.
New applications were received at an average rate of 38 per week over the 12 weeks, though weekly submissions in September and early October dropped back to the pre-August baseline of 33 per week.
BSR is currently overseeing 1,109 active cases nationally for internal refurbishment works (749 in London).
While no new-build projects have yet transitioned to final occupation certificate assessments, a significant volume of internal refurbishments has entered the final regulatory stage.
Of the 361 gateway 3 applications received,274 are internal refurbishments with most of the remainder being transitional cases (42) and NHS internal refurbishments (27).
Over the last 12 weeks, BSR determined 9 gateway 3 applications, achieving a 100% approval rate with a median determination time of 20 weeks. The quickest approval was completed in 16 weeks.
Active in-progress cases at gateway 3 currently stand at 122 for internal works, 19 for NHS works and 8 for external remediation (972 units).
Live major change requests
To manage design modifications safely during construction, BSR is processing 208 live major change requests made up of:
- New HRBs and conversions – 85
- External remediation – 25
- HRB internal works – 71
- NHS applications – 24
- Transitional cases – 3
These reviews ensure that post-approval modifications undergo thorough safety assessments. Over the last 12 weeks, BSR has closed 142 major change requests.
For new-build developments, the median time to close a major change request is 7 weeks – one week over the statutory target of 6 weeks.
Technical capabilities and resources
To support the volume of building safety decisions, BSR has expanded its workforce. The current regulatory resource profile comprises:
181 internal BSR core staff members:
- 103 regulatory leads
- 18 principal regulatory leads
- 56 case officers
- 3 case officer managers
- 1 administrative officer
491 external technical specialists:
- 239 registered building inspectors
- 102 fire service professionals
- 116 structural engineers
- 34 specialists.
Of the 491 people sourced or seconded from external organisations, 62 are integrated into BSR’s Innovation Unit or external remediation teams (34 registered building inspectors, 6 fire service professionals and 22 structural engineers) to accelerate decision times.
Strong regulatory momentum
Charlie Pugsley, Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Building Safety Regulator, said:
“Our latest performance figures demonstrate strong regulatory momentum, with overall gateway 2 approvals reaching 87% and clearing more than 20,000 residential units alongside significant numbers of vital NHS healthcare facility improvements.
“Approval rates for safe designs are high, while determination times continue to reduce significantly across both new builds and remediation projects, reflecting the positive impact of our streamlined operational pathways.
“However, we are not complacent and continue to engage with the sector to improve performance and ensure safe outcomes.
“To manage application volumes, including additional applications received ahead of the introduction of the Building Safety Levy, we continue to expand our internal capacity and integrated specialist technical workforce.
“This increased resourcing is enabling us to process applications more efficiently while maintaining rigorous and essential safety assessments.
“As buildings progress through the inbuild phase to gateway 3, we will continue to enhance and refine systems and processes to ensure that safe designs are translated into safe buildings.
“Our core focus as always remains the same. The safety of residents and our communities remains at the very heart of what we do.”
More:
- Building control approval application data – Making Buildings Safer
- Transparency data – Building Safety Regulator building control approval application data – July to September 2026
Feature image by Nick Gorniok from Pexels
