England building safety funding to train inspectors and fire engineers
Iain Hoey
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Building safety funding for workforce gaps
A £70 million funding package has been announced to address shortages in building safety professions and support the delivery of 1.5 million homes.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and Samantha Dixon MBE MP published the announcement on 26 March 2026.
The funding is set to increase the number of Registered Building Inspectors (RBIs) by up to 700, including inspectors at Class 3H level who can inspect High-Risk Buildings.
It also includes funding to increase the number of fire engineers and expand the availability of Fire Engineering education.
The announcement states that shortages in building control and fire engineering are limiting housing supply and were highlighted as an area of concern in the Grenfell Tower Inquiry.
The three-year programme responds to recommendations from the House of Lords regulatory committee for the government to increase capacity in building control and fire engineering.
It also follows points raised by the Fire Engineers Advisory Panel and responses to the Building Control Independent Panel’s call for evidence on the need for suitably qualified and trained professionals.
How the funding will be allocated
The funding is split between Building Control, which will receive £55 million, and Fire Engineering, which will receive £15 million.
For Building Control, the funding will support local authorities’ building control teams in England to recruit new RBIs and train them to the required Class 2 standard.
It will also support local authorities’ building control teams in England to upskill existing RBIs, with many trained to the standard required to inspect High-Risk Buildings at Class 3H.
Further funding is intended for the training of new entrants in Registered Building Control Approvers and local authorities.
For Fire Engineering, the funding will support higher education provision through postgraduate bursaries as well as research and academic development.
Minister for Building Safety, Fire and Democracy Samantha Dixon said: “We’re boosting the building safety workforce to get more skilled building inspectors and fire engineers into the system quickly to keep people safe and unlock the new homes this country needs.
“This is a vital step in building 1.5 million safe homes and ensuring we continue to deliver on lessons from the Grenfell Tower tragedy.”
The mechanisms for applying for the funds are under development and more information will be published in the coming months.
