Hendon Town Hall lit up green for Grenfell
Cllr Ross Houston, Cabinet Member for Homes & Regeneration and Deputy Leader of Barnet Council, said:
“The report into the Grenfell fire has highlighted how systemic failures led to a disaster that should have never happened. Our thoughts remain with the family and friends of everyone affected.
“Straight after the Grenfell fire in 2017, Barnet Council started a £62m remediation programme to remove and replace ACM cladding on three high-rise blocks and develop a comprehensive programme of safety improvements across its stock. Barnet is one of the few London local authorities to have retrofitted integrated alarm and sprinkler systems in its most at-risk properties. We have now set aside additional funding for remediating buildings under 18m in height.
“Within the private housing sector, we have also been proactive in ensuring that minimum fire safety standards are met in high rise blocks. For example, we served the owners of one block of flats with more than 450 enforcement notices for various breaches, which included removal of flammable cladding and compartmentation issues. All necessary works have now been completed so that it meets the necessary minimum standards and the several hundred residents can occupy the block safely.
“We are also taking a ‘safety-first’ approach to resolving the low-rise cladding issues we have locally. We have identified nearly 600 council or privately owned timber-frame houses in our borough with flammable UPVC cladding. We are due to start an inspection programme to assess what remediation they require and supporting residents in ensuring that if necessary works are identified it is undertaken. We will invest £13m to improve the fire safety of our council-owned houses. We are also calling on government to allow homeowners in timber-frame buildings below 11m with cladding issues to have access to cladding remediation funds just as their neighbours in tall buildings do.
“We are doing all we can with the funding available to ensure the homes in our borough are safe. It is now time for government and the private sector to follow suit. Collectively, we cannot say ‘never again’, while playing the blame game and failing to take action. The Grenfell report is a belated wake-up call for all developers and building owners to face up to the responsibility they have to fire safety.”