Fast tracking building safety

A central plank of the Building Safety Act 2022, introduced in response to the Grenfell Tower fire, was the introduction of the office of Building Safety Regulator (BSR).

The BSR sits within the Health and Safety Executive with powers as to how building safety is managed, setting safety standards, overseeing building control bodies, and ensuring construction industry compliance.

A key role of the regulator relates to the development of higher risk buildings (HRBs), buildings over 18 metres or at least seven storeys, including two or more residential units. At present, the regulator signs off each HRB development stage, known as gateways, from planning, to construction and eventual occupation. Each gateway amounts to a hard stop to be completed, before further progress can be undertaken.

However, the slow progress in signing off HRB gateway applications has given rise to frustrations in the development sector. That has now led to a major overhaul of how the BSR works.

The aim is to speed up housebuilding and the achievement of the government’s ambitious targets for new homes. The proposal is designed to give developers the comfort that they can take schemes forward, while the application process is ongoing.

In June 2025, the government announced reforms to how the regulator operates:

• There will be a new fast track process aimed at reducing delays in applications and remediation decisions, achieved by introducing additional inspector and engineer capacity
• New leadership is being introduced including Andy Roe, the former Commissioner of the London Fire Brigade in a role as non-executive chair of the BSR
• There are to be an additional 100 new staff members introduced to give added resource
• The government’s Grenfell Tower fire inquiries called for the introduction of a cross construction sector regulator. This move to create a single unified office is seen as important in speeding up building safety administration.

This comes alongside the House of Lords Industry and Regulators Committee undertaking its own review as to the role of the Building Safety Regulator. The review will hear from a cross section of the construction industry including professionals and residents’ groups. A primary focus for the review will be whether the BSR is achieving what it was set up to do and how effective it is in the delivery of its aims.