Review Building Safety Act higher-risk building definition
Grenfell Tower Inquiry · Grenfell Tower Inquiry: Phase 2 Report · Issued 4 September 2024 · Addressed to: UK Government
Source — verbatim from the inquiry
●Inquiry recommendation
That the definition of a higher-risk building for the purposes of the Building Safety Act be reviewed urgently. (113.7)
Grenfell Tower Inquiry, Grenfell Tower Inquiry: Phase 2 Report · 4 Sep 2024 Source PDF →
Published evidence summary
Publicly available evidence relating to this recommendation:
- The Building Safety Regulator published the results of its initial review of the higher-risk building definition on 17 December 2025, finding the current definition appropriately reflects available evidence on risk (Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 2 Recommendations Dashboard, MHCLG, December 2025).
- The government's dashboard states this recommendation is complete and has been fully discharged (Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 2 Recommendations Dashboard, MHCLG, updated March 2026).
Response — verbatim from government
●UK Government — initial response
The government accepts this recommendation. The Building Safety Regulator has conducted an initial review of the definition of a higher-risk building. Plans for an ongoing review, which will help strengthen the building system, reassure residents and identify whether the list of buildings which are subject to the enhanced regulatory oversight and requirements of the higher-risk regime should be amended in any way, will be set out in summer 2025.
UK Government · 16 Jan 2025 Written response →
●UK Government — follow-up
The government accepts this recommendation. The Building Safety Regulator has conducted an initial review of the definition of a higher-risk building. Plans for an ongoing review, which will help strengthen the building system, reassure residents and identify whether the list of buildings which are subject to the enhanced regulatory oversight and requirements of the higher-risk regime should be amended in any way, will be set out in summer 2025.
UK Government · 26 Feb 2025 Written response →
Evidence trail — what's actually happened since
- 1 Feb 2026 Building Safety Regulator completed initial review finding the current definition appropriately reflects the available evidence on the risks to individuals from the spread of fire or structural failure. No changes to regime scope recommended at present; ongoing review mechanism established ensuring regular assessment of risk data to determine future amendments to higher-risk building list. Recommendation fully discharged. Source →
Each entry above links to a primary source — gov.uk written statement, consultation response document, or inspection report. The Index does not characterise government intent; it tracks what has been published.
How this page is built
Source and Response are verbatim from primary documents. The Evidence trail records published activity since — written statements, consultation outcomes, inspection findings, parliamentary references. The Index does not paraphrase or characterise intent; it tracks what has been published. Where the evidence is the absence of action (a missed deadline, a slipped timetable), that absence is documented from primary sources rather than inferred.
This recommendation's data is verified periodically against primary sources. The Index is monitored for staleness weekly.