Fresh figures covering December to 25 February show the long-running pile of historic applications has all but cleared.

At the start of December there were 60 legacy cases sitting in the system.

That number has now fallen to three standard cases, with 18 high-risk or technically intricate schemes moved into a dedicated complex case category for closer account management.

After a bruising first year of the new regime, the data suggests the system is beginning to stabilise.

Over the past 12 weeks, 108 new build applications have been determined. Schemes covering 23,197 homes were decided, with 10,514 homes securing Gateway 2 approval.

During the same period, 82 new applications were lodged, representing 15,178 homes. There are currently 31,191 residential units in live Gateway 2 cases.

Within the regulator’s Innovation Unit, which handles complex new build projects, 27 decisions were issued in the latest 12-week window.

Approval rates for validated applications have edged up to 33%, from 30% last month. A further 30% of cases are now under extended account management beyond 12 weeks as officials work through detailed technical issues.

Median approval time in the unit has increased to 18 weeks, reflecting older and more complicated cases finally reaching determination, says the latest progress update.

In total, 2,336 homes were approved through the Innovation Unit during the period, with 26,224 homes still progressing across 123 live complex cases.

Remediation approvals have also improved, with 48% of decisions resulting in approval and median decision times dropping from 34 to 31 weeks.