Since October 2023, the BSR has acted as building control for ‘higher-risk’ buildings, which include residential buildings and hospitals taller than 18m.

Although the body aims to process Gateway 2 applications within 12 weeks, it took almost triple that time (an average of 36 weeks) in the period up until March 2o25, according to official data.

Now, new Freedom of Information (FOI) data exclusively obtained by the AJ shows there are 72 Gateway 2 applications – covering a combined 18,436 homes – still waiting to be approved more than 12 weeks after being submitted (see full list below).

It is further understood that around 30,000 homes are at some point on their journey through the BSR process.

Cartwright Pickard is the practice linked to the largest number of outstanding Gateway 2 applications. The BSR has yet to rule on six applications for blocks at Aire Park in Leeds, a 9.7ha mixed-use regeneration it has designed for the former Tetley brewery site. 

The applications on behalf of developer Vastint cover a total of 401 homes, although the principal designer that submitted the Gateway 2 applications is consultant Safer Sphere, rather than Cartwright Pickard. 

Architects with multiple schemes held up

Cartwright Pickard
6

Wilmore Iles Architects
4

Berkeley Homes
3

dMFK
3

EPR Architects
3

Child Graddon Lewis
2

CODA Architecture
2

Corstophine & Wright
2

Fraser Brown Mackenna
2

Patel Taylor
2

Pollard Thomas Edwards
2

PRP
2

Sheppard Robson
2

Weedon Architects
2

White Ink Architects
2

Elsewhere, Wilmore Iles Architects is the architect and principal designer behind four under-consideration Gateway 2 applications covering 144 homes. Each application relates to blocks at West Park, a student housing scheme for the University of Exeter. 

dMFK is linked to three outstanding Gateway 2 applications – part of Barratt London’s Bell Green Homes scheme in Lewisham – while EPR is linked to three separate high-risk schemes awaiting sign-off – in Blackfriars, Fulham and the Isle of Dogs. 

Leeds City Council is the local authority with the most delayed applications. It has eight schemes held up at Gateway 2 – twice the number of any other council. Four councils, including three in London, are waiting for four applications to be signed off. 

Of the 72 applications, 37 are for sites in London. More than half (18) of London’s boroughs have a site with a delayed Gateway 2 application, while outside the capital, the areas with the most applications are Leeds, Exeter, Manchester, Reading and Bristol. 

Local authorities with outstanding Gateway 2 applications

Non-London
London

Local Authority
No. schemes
Local authority
No. Scheme

Leeds City Council
8
Brent
4

Exeter City Council
4
Ealing
4

Manchester City Council
3
Southwark
4

Reading Borough Council
3
Barnett
3

Bristol City Council
3
Lewisham
3

Newcastle City Council
2
Greenwich
3

Birmingham City Council
2
Haringey
2

Luton Borough Council
2
Newham
2

Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead
1
Tower Hamlets
2

Elmbridge Borough Council
1
Sutton
2

Liverpool City Council
1
Camden
1

Salford City Council
1
Croydon
1

Sheffield City Council
1
Enfield
1

Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council
1
Hammersmith & Fulham
1

Worthing Borough Council
1
Waltham Forest
1

Charnwood Borough Council
1
Wandsworth
1

Chelsea and Kensington
1

Lambeth
1

Total
35
Total
37

At the end of June, the government acknowledged that the BSR was holding up housebuilding and unveiled ‘a new package of reforms’ to the regulator ‘to unblock delays and boost sector confidence’. An additional £2.1 million has been promised to improve the regulator’s services.

The government said the BSR would no longer be overseen by the Health and Safety Executive, new investment would support the recruitment of 100 new staff ,and a ‘new fast track process’ would ‘enhance the view of new build applications’. 

In its FOI response, the BSR accepted that the enforcement of building control standards had delayed some higher-risk building approvals.

But it said that ‘not enforcing the law risks the safety of residents in high-rise buildings’ and that the purpose of the Building Safety Act 2022 was ‘to prevent the failures that led to the Grenfell tragedy ever happening again’.

The regulator added that a ‘backlog of complex in-flight higher risk projects’ had come to the BSR after the collapse of a private registered building control approver, AIS Surveyors. This, it said, had initially driven up processing times.

The BSR claimed there had also been a ‘handful of very complex cases that have taken 11 months’, but that 90 per cent of these had now been cleared. It said a significant factor in the hold-ups had been the quality of information supplied, prompting repeated information requests.

The regulator said that the biggest cause of delays remained the quality of the applications made by developers.

It claimed that around 70 per cent of applications failed to comply with building regulations and ‘are therefore rejected’.

It said a new internal innovation unit would focus on fast-tracking new-build applications through the system. This would ‘streamline and speed up’ the process for new homes in high-rise buildings by introducing a new operating model with in-house multi-disciplinary teams (MDTs).

A new Remediation Enforcement Unit (REU) is being established by the end of 2025 with the specific purpose of quickly assessing cladding risks for registered higher-risk buildings.

Architect’s view: Q&A with SimpsonHaugh 

Have Gateway 2 delays impacted project delivery timelines?

Yes, we have found that clients want to first wait for clarity on the process and try to avoid any initial potential hiccups before submitting the application.

We submitted [for Heron’s Yard in Newcastle] after the BSR Gateway 2 scheme had been running for over six months. Initially, we had no correspondence, but after around 25 weeks post submission, in the last couple of weeks, we have had correspondence from the BSR case officer seeking clarifications and asking questions. This is a positive sign. We don’t have any idea how much longer the process will require before a determination will be made.

Do the BSR Gateway 2 delays make managing peaks and troughs of workloads more difficult?

Significantly. Projects have been delayed more than once as clients seek to navigate a route forward. Changes to guidance documents have also impacted the programmes. Different projects are affected in different ways. A residential scheme may be delayed by six months, which is frustrating. However, a student accommodation project delayed by six months means, in reality, it’s likely to be pushed back 12 months to tie in with the academic year.

Is there anything you can do to speed the process up, or are you just in the hands of the BSR or the principal designer?

Collectively, we have tried to be as proactive as possible in the way the information is presented and communicated. The BSR principal designer [Project Four Safety Solutions] has tried to chase and push the regulator to communicate and act. We can see nothing that we could do to speed the process up.

Are you in limbo, or do you have a timeline for when the applications might be processed?

There is no real understanding of how long applications will take. If we submitted a scheme tomorrow, I don’t think we could, with any confidence, tell a client when it might be determined. Also, one of the biggest concerns is lack of consistency. We are seeing different responses to the same design proposals on different applications. On large and complex projects, there are always different ways to achieve a safe and effective design. We need engagement to help this process, and it does feel like this is now beginning to happen.

Local authority view: statement from Ealing Council

Ealing Council is aware of delays in the Building Safety Regulator’s Gateway 2 approvals and shares concerns about the impact this is having on housing delivery

While we support the principles of the Building Safety Act and the need for strong oversight, the current pace of approvals is slowing down development, including affordable housing, at a time when delivery is urgently needed.

We will continue to support applicants where we can, and are working with partners to minimise disruption to local development programmes.

In the meantime, we welcome the government’s recent announcement of additional funding for the Building Safety Regulator to help increase capacity and speed up approvals. Ealing Council has been lobbying for this support, and we are pleased to see progress being made.

Full list of Gateway 2 applications not approved more than 12 weeks after submission

Name/location of development
Local authority
Number of residential units
Original/concept architect*
Principal Designer

Members Hill Development  Phase 1 Weybridge Surrey
Elmbridge Borough Council
107
MSMR Architects
MSMR Architects

Pollard Street, Manchester
Manchester City Council
62
Jennings Design Association
Jennings Design Association

Brindley Drive
Birmingham City Council
581
Weedon Architects
Weedon Architects

The Stage, Luton – Block A&B
Luton Borough Council
208
Child Graddon Lewis
Safer Sphere

86 Kirkstall Road, Leeds
Leeds City Council
205
Cunniff Design
Torsion Construction

Unite Freestone Island, Bristol
Bristol City Council
73
Alec French Architects
Hadfield Cawkwell Davidson

Fusion Student accommodation Lordship Lane London
London Borough of Haringey
521
Corstophine & Wright
Corstophine & Wright

Vastern Road, Reading – Block D
Reading Borough Council
55
Berkeley Homes
Orsa Projects

Vastern Road, Reading – Block B
Reading Borough Council
83
Berkeley Homes
Orsa Projects

Vastern Road, Reading – Block E
Reading Borough Council
27
Berkeley Homes
Orsa Projects

Apartment Scheme Stockport
Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council
148
Paddock Johnson
Paddock Johnson

FHN451 Chobham Farm
London Borough of Newham
73

Boon Brown

Lombard Road, Battersea
London Borough of Wandsworth
294
Hawkins\Brown
Hawkins\Brown

Unite Meridian Square
London Borough of Newham
165
BDP
Hadfield Cawkwell Davidson

The Biscuit Factory – Block W
London Borough of Southwark
69
AFK
5PA Architects

Building 3, Claremont Road, Cricklewood
London Borough of Barnet
158
Chase New Homes
Chase New Homes

The Biscuit Factory – Blocks OPQ
London Borough of Southwark
187

5PA Architects

30 Marsh Wall, London, EI4 9TP
London Borough of Tower Hamlets
1068
EPR
Tide Construction

The Hale
London Borough of Haringey
249
Tate Hindle
RG Group

Sawyers Close, Windsor
Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead
65
PRP
Hill Partnerships

Nursery Street Apartments
Sheffield City Council
267
CODA Architecture
Hadfield Cawkwell Davidson

Ravensbourne Wharf
Royal Borough of Greenwich
414
PRP Architects
ACA Studios

Bollo Lane, Acton, Block A Gateway 2
London Borough of Ealing
195
Allies & Morrison
Hunter & Partners

2 Moorfield Road EN3 5TU
London Borough of Enfield
100
HTA Design
Orsa Projects

40 – 46 Albert Road
Bristol City Council
454
AHMM
AHMM

Boord Street
Royal Borough of Greenwich
352
Frank Reynolds Architects
Frank Reynolds Architects

YourTribe Wembley North
London Borough of Brent
200
White Ink Architects
White Ink Architects

YourTribe Wembley South
London Borough of Brent
399
White Ink Architects
White Ink Architects

100 Chalk Farm Road
London Borough of Camden
294
Ryder Architecture
Ryder Architecture

FG Parkside Residential Development
Salford City Council
518
Denton Corker Marshall
Project Four Safety Solutions

Loughborough Student Accommodation
Charnwood Borough Council
541
Corstophine & Wright
Corstophine and Wright

Wyvil Road
London Borough of Lambeth
347
Stephen Davy Smith Architects
Safer Sphere

R2a Aire Park, Leeds
Leeds City Council
63
Cartwright Pickard
Safer Sphere

R2b Aire Park, Leeds
Leeds City Council
69
Cartwright Pickard
Safer Sphere

R2c Aire Park, Leeds
Leeds City Council
44
Cartwright Pickard
Safer Sphere

Smithfield – Plot One
Birmingham City Council
307
Bell Phillips and Intervention
Safer Sphere

Embassy Garden A01
Royal Borough Chelsea and Kensington
247
Weedon Architects
Weedon Architects

Millwright Street, Leeds
Leeds City Council
308
CODA Architecture
Safer Sphere

Herons Yard
Newcastle City Council
409
SimpsonHaugh
Project Four Safety Solutions

220 Blackfriars, Almshouse
London Borough of Southwark
65
EPR Architects
EPR Architects

Coronation Square Phase 2
London Borough of Waltham Forest
367
Pollard Thomas Edwards
Data not provided

The Stage – Block C
Luton Borough Council
84
Child Graddon Lewis
Safer Sphere

Bell Green Works Application 1 of 3 Block ABC
London Borough of Lewisham
114
dMFK
ATP Architects + Surveyors

Bell Green Works Application 2 of 3 Block D
London Borough of Lewisham
60
dMFK
ATP Architects + Surveyors

Bell Green Works Application 3 of 3 Block EF
London Borough of Lewisham
88
dMFK
BDW Trading

Castle Leazes Student Accommodation Phase 1
Newcastle City Council
792
NORR
NORR

Haymarket, Bristol
Bristol City Council
574
Hodder + Partners
RG Group

J222 WEA 2025
London Borough of Ealing
412
JTP
Tide Construction

High Road Wembley Building One
London Borough of Brent
361
Fraser Brown Mackenna
Fraser Brown Mackenna

High Road Wembley – Building 2
London Borough of Brent
639
Fraser Brown Mackenna
Fraser Brown Mackenna

R3a Aire Park, Leeds
Leeds City Council
88
Cartwright Pickard
Safer Sphere

R3d Aire Park, Leeds
Leeds City Council
58
Cartwright Pickard
Safer Sphere

Brent Cross Town Plot 15
London Borough of Barnet
276
dRMM
Midgard Group

The Biscuit Factory – Block V
London Borough of Southwark
82

5PA Architects

The Langley, Sutton – Building F
London Borough of Sutton
159
Patel Taylor
St George West London

The Langley, Sutton – Building G+H- Stage 1
London Borough of Sutton
137
Patel Taylor
St George West London

R3c – Aire Park, Leeds
Leeds City Council
79
Cartwright Pickard
Safer Sphere

1 KINGS DOCK STREET
Liverpool City Council
297
L7 Architects
L7 Architects

Worthing Gasworks
Worthing Borough Council
44
Grid Architects
Grid Architects

56-58 Marsh Wall
London Borough of Tower Hamlets
805
Rio Architects
RGCM

Upper Brook Street PBSA
Manchester City Council
737
Sheppard Robson
Project Four Safety Solutions

13 – 19 The Green Southall
London Borough of Ealing
424
Formation Architects
Tide Construction

Watford Way – New Build Student Accommodation
London Borough of Barnet
180
Innes Associates
HG Construction

Sherwood Close Phase 3 W13 9YJ
London Borough of Ealing
188
Sheppard Robson
BM3 Architecture

Woolwich Phase 3 Block D
Royal Borough of Greenwich
122
Formation Architects
Project Four Safety Solutions

West Park Block A-D (1 of 4 no. HRB’s)
Exeter City Council
40
Wilmore Iles Architects
Wilmore Iles Architects

West Park Block E-F (No. 2 of 4 new HRB’s)
Exeter City Council
24
Wilmore Iles Architects
Wilmore Iles Architects

West Park Block J-K (No. 3 of 4 new HRB’s)
Exeter City Council
33
Wilmore Iles Architects
Wilmore Iles Architects

West Park Block L-P (No. 4 of 4 new HRB’s)
Exeter City Council
47
Wilmore Iles Architects
Wilmore Iles Architects

Keeley Road
London Borough of Croydon
144
Pollard Thomas Edwards
Hunters

Vita Plot 9b
Manchester City Council
861
Tim Groom Architects
Project Four Safety Solutions

King’s Road Park – Building H1
London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham
129
EPR Architects
Design Delivery Unit

Total homes held up

18,436

*Architect names for this column were assembled by the AJ. The remaining data was provided by the Building Safety Regulator.