How many homes are still waiting for unsafe cladding to be removed?

The memory of the Grenfell tragedy still looms over the housing market, and the numbers released by the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) show that the clean‑up is far from finished. As of March 2026 the government estimates that between 5,900 and 7,400 residential blocks in England – roughly 8 % to 14 % of all towers taller than 11 metres – still carry cladding that failed the BS8414 fire tests. The split is almost even, with about 2,800 to 3,700 mid‑rise blocks (11‑18 metres) and 3,100 to 3,700 high‑rise structures (over 18 metres) on the remediation list.

The financial picture is equally daunting. MHCLG’s latest cost forecast, dated March 2025, puts the total bill for removing unsafe cladding between £11.8 billion and £22.7 billion. The government expects to shoulder between £6.7 billion and £15.2 billion of that sum, leaving private owners, housing associations and other non‑government actors to fund the remaining £5.2 billion to £7.4 billion. Those figures are labelled as “current best estimates” and will likely shift as more buildings are identified.

Progress is being tracked month by month. By the end of August 2026 MHCLG was monitoring 4,724 residential blocks with unsafe cladding – a figure that represents between 65 % and 81 % of all buildings over 11 metres slated for work. Of those, 38 % had completed remediation (including works awaiting building‑control sign‑off), 18 % had started the process, while a worrying 45 % had not yet begun any work. In total the programme covers around 65,000 dwellings in mid‑rise blocks and about 185,000 homes in high‑rise towers.

Tenure makes a difference to the speed of progress. Sixty per cent of the monitored buildings are privately owned, 38 % are social housing and the remaining 2 % fall under “other” categories such as student accommodation or hotels. Private owners have completed remediation on 35 % of their blocks, with 17 % already underway, whereas social landlords are slightly ahead – 42 % completed and 13 % started. Almost every building in the “other” group (99 %) has either started or finished the work, reflecting the tighter timelines often imposed on public‑sector premises.

Geographically, London dominates the picture, accounting for just over half of all identified buildings and also boasting the highest completion rate – 54 % of the capital’s monitored blocks are finished. The North East lags far behind, contributing only about one per cent of the total. The five government schemes that underpin the remediation effort show varied success: the Aluminium Composite Material (ACM) programme, launched in 2018/19, has a 93 % completion rate across its 516 buildings, while the newer Cladding Safety Scheme (CSS) lags with only 9 % finished.

For renters, landlords and prospective buyers the data underline a continued risk of disruption and unexpected costs. Tenants in buildings that have not yet started remediation may face delays, safety inspections and possible temporary relocations. Landlords, especially those with private blocks, should be preparing for substantial out‑of‑pocket expenses as government funding caps are reached. Buyers are advised to request up‑to‑date cladding safety certificates and to factor potential remediation costs into their budgeting. In short, while the pace of work is picking up, the scale of the problem means that the housing market will be feeling the effects of cladding remediation for years to come.