The issue was this: 

In iOS 18 the Homescreen layout configuration was applied to a couple of different iPhone deployments and there were apps listed in the config that didn’t exist on the current Config I was working with.  So iOS 26 was leaving these “Ghost App” spaces in been the deployed apps. So to resolve I build a brand new Homescreen layout that only had apps deployed to the Nurse Configuration and the spaces are gone in iOS26 now. 

Thanks for the update ​@JustinFincher. I was going to test upgrading one of our iPads that we are applying a Home Screen layout to, but now I can hold off on that. 

We are seeing the same behavior.  It’s a little annoying, especially if you deploying the the Home Screen layout profile and devices are only assigned certain apps within that profile.  I don’t know that I would want to go back and create new Home Screen layout profiles to fix it.  Seems like a lot of work that I don’t have time for.  Hoping for a future iOS fix.