The cladding on thousands of building across the UK in all local authority and housing association owned tower blocks is to be checked to try to allay the fears of residents in similar properties after the Grenfell fire in London last week.
It comes as the Government has admitted that it will be some time before it is known why the fire, which is thought to have started in the kitchen of a flat, spread so quickly and whether the cladding was involved in that process.
Every council and housing association has been ordered to make an urgent lists of buildings that have type of aluminium cladding suspected of speeding up the Grenfell Tower fire in which at least 79 people, including whole families, died. The Government wants a list of all residential buildings with aluminium composite panels and a separate list of all buildings over 18 metres high.
‘The Grenfell Tower police led investigation is underway. We know that in the meantime there is significant anxiety amongst residents about whether their own blocks are safe. There has been much public concern and comment about potential flaws in the cladding that was on Grenfell Tower,’ said a statement from Melanie Dawes, Permanent Secretary for the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG).
‘While the exact reasons for the speed of the spread of fire have yet to be determined, we have concluded that there are additional tests that can be undertaken with regard to the cladding,’ she explained. ‘We are therefore asking local authorities and other registered providers of social housing to identify whether any panels used in new build or refurbishment are a particular type of cladding made of Aluminium Composite Material (ACM),’ she added.
The technical details of the cladding have been sent to all tower block owners and the Homes and Communities Agency is offering expert support in surveying properties if necessary. The statement from Dawes suggests that the cladding is safe if the right type is used. The testing facilities are also being made available to private landlords.
‘It is important to stress that ACM cladding is not of itself dangerous, but it is important that the right type is used. If you identify that cladding on any of your buildings is made of ACM, then a sample will need to be tested. We have put in place a testing process for any samples, which will be at no cost to local authorities and housing associations,’ her statement continued.
‘We are making this testing facility available to any other residential landlords. I would remind local authorities that they should be well advanced in checking they have robust fire assessments for their stock. I should point out that assessments carried out to comply with the Fire Safety Order are unlikely to have considered the building’s cladding,’ Dawes added.
The DCLG said that the Local Government Association’s Fire safety in purpose built blocks of flats remains the most comprehensive guidance on ensuring fire safety in these types of buildings.
Once the safety inspections are completed and necessary work identified, the DCLG said it will work with housing associations and local authorities to identify the most appropriate options for supporting funding.
