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BSR approves more than 12,000 new homes as latest data shows ‘significantly faster decision times’
The Building Safety Regulator (BSR) has approved over 12,000 housing units via its Gateway 2 process in the past 12 weeks, with an approval rate of 71%.
BSR approves more than 12,000 new homes as latest data shows ‘significantly faster decision times’ #UKhousingThe regulator said its new building control application data showed positive improvements in the number of approvals for new build and remediation cases, as well as “significantly faster decision times”.
In the 12 weeks to 1 May, 323 Gateway 2 decisions were made by the BSR, comprising 17,046 housing units, of which 12,299 were approvals.
The BSR’s innovation unit, a dedicated team of registered building inspectors and technical engineers, has also seen a “growing number of decisions and a rising approval rate”.
It approved 24 applications in the past 12 weeks, out of a total of 33, and the 14 approvals in London represented a 100% approval rate in the capital.
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The regulator has also reduced the number of long-term legacy cases to eight, down from 29 as of January this year.
On external remediation, the BSR said 20 legacy applications from 2024 now remain, down from 42 at the start of 2026, and a further 12 applications are on track to be determined by mid-May.
The regulator said “operational improvements and intensive work to improve applications” saw approval rates rising to just under the minimum 65% target for the year.
It also pointed to the recently published external remediation improvement plan, which introduced a new dedicated multidisciplinary team as well as a recruitment drive to cut individual caseloads from around 25 to 10.
“We also continue to work closely with the sector to help applicants improve the quality of applications, and data shows that applications submitted in 2026 are progressing through the system much more rapidly than earlier applications,” the BSR added.
The average approval time for external remediation within the rolling 12-week period was 25 weeks.
Decisions for London applications continued to comprise the majority of all closed cases in the past 12 weeks. Almost two-thirds of decisions across all Gateway 2 categories were for projects in the capital.
The BSR also said its batching process, whereby applications are bundled to specialised external suppliers for accelerated assessment, is “proving effective in speeding up early assessment and decision”.
Its latest data showed that 254 new build cases have been issued through batching, and 43 out of 87 decisions returned to date were reached at a median time of nine weeks.
The regulator said that since rejections are often early decisions, it is seeing a “relatively high proportion of rejections from the batching process”.
Charlie Pugsley, acting chief executive of the BSR, said: “We are continuing to see positive improvements in the number of approvals for both new build and existing building remediation cases, as well as significantly faster decision times.”
Responding to the progress on external remediation approval rates, Mr Pugsley said the regulator is “not being complacent” and recognises that “people living in unremediated buildings want them to be fixed, safely and at pace”.
He continued: “We are working to accelerate our assessments, decisions and approvals, ensuring industry can construct safe buildings so that thousands of residents see the essential safety improvements they deserve.
“But we remain steadfastly committed to ensuring that accelerated decision-making must never come at the cost of building safety.”
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