Further to our last fire update, the Building Safety Bill is expected to be passed in early 2022.
As confirmed in previous updates, properties, where fire safety issues have been identified as a result of revisions to fire safety regulations, are as follows:
- Premier House, Edgware
- Picture Works, Nottingham
- Vista Towers, Stevenage
- The Heights, West Bromwich
- Hamilton House, Liverpool
- Vantage Building, Hayes
- Sherringham Court, Hayes
Please see below for the latest updates. The next update will be given on 31 March 2022, unless there is significant development before then.
Premier House, Edgware updates
Picture Works, Nottingham updates
Vista Tower, Stevenage updates
Previous update 30/09/2021
The long-awaited Building Safety Bill (draft Bill) was introduced to Parliament on 5 July 2021. The draft Bill sets out the future of how residential buildings should be constructed and maintained. The Bill will bolster changes to the Architects Act, the Housing Act 1996, and provisions to establish a National Regulator for Construction Products and a New Homes Ombudsman. It also incorporates changes to the Fire Safety Order.
The objectives of the Bill are to learn lessons from the Grenfell Tower fire and to remedy the systemic issues identified by Dame Judith Hackitt, strengthening the whole regulatory system for building safety. This will be achieved by ensuring there is greater accountability and responsibility for fire and structural safety issues throughout the lifecycle of buildings within the scope of the new regulatory regime. This involves: –
- establishing a new Building Safety Regulator in England to oversee a new, more stringent regime for higher-risk buildings and drive improvements in building safety and performance standards in all buildings;
- ensuring residents have a stronger voice in the system, and establishing additional protections for leaseholders in relation to financing remediation works;
- increasing access to redress through the Defective Premises Act 1972;
- driving industry culture change and incentivising compliance;
- strengthening the Fire Safety Order; and
- providing a stronger and clearer framework for national oversight of construction products.
As confirmed in previous updates, properties, where fire safety issues have been identified as a result of revisions to fire safety regulations, are as follows:
- Premier House, Edgware
- Picture Works, Nottingham
- Vista Towers, Stevenage
- The Heights, West Bromwich
- Hamilton House, Liverpool
- Vantage Building, Hayes
- Sherringham Court, Hayes
Please see below for the latest updates. The next update will be given on 17 December 2021, unless there is significant development before then.
Premier House, Edgware updates
Picture Works, Nottingham updates
Vista Tower, Stevenage updates
Previous update 30/06/2021
The Fire Safety Act received Royal Assent on 29 April 2021. It is intended to be followed by further primary and secondary legislation including the Building Safety Bill. The intention of the Fire Safety Act is to allow fire and rescue services to enforce the Fire Safety Order against building owners who have not remedied unsafe building materials in their properties. The Act also clarifies the responsibilities of building owners and managers to minimise fire risks on the external parts of domestic premises. Leaseholders and tenants will therefore have to wait to see what legislative protection will be given to them, most likely through the Building Safety Bill.
As confirmed in previous updates, properties where fire safety issues have been identified as a result of revisions to fire safety regulations are as follows. Click below for the latest updates:
Premier House, Edgware updates
Picture Works, Nottingham updates
Vista Tower, Stevenage updates
The next update will be given on 30 September 2021, unless there is significant development before then.
Previous update March 2021
The Fire Safety Bill passed the House of Commons stage without amendment on 7 September 2020. The House of Lords consideration of the Bill was completed on 24 November 2020 and the Bill was passed back to the Commons with five amendments. One of these amendments seeks to restrict the passing on of remediation costs to leaseholders, together with further proposed amendments in the Commons on the same issue, known as the ‘McPartland Smith’ amendments. This relates to ongoing concerns about the cost to leaseholders of cladding removal from high-rise residential buildings.
The Commons accepted two Government amendments when the Bill returned to the Commons on 24 February 2021, but did not accept the other amendments including the one relating to remediation costs. Further consideration of the Bill took place in the Lords on 17 March and the Bill was returned to the Commons with amendments relating to remediation costs. The Commons considered the Bill again on 22 March 2021.
The progress of this Bill and the Building Safety Bill appear to be linked to the ongoing issue of cladding remediation costs; on 10 February 2021, the Government announced additional funding to support the removal of dangerous cladding from tall buildings. The new £3.5bn of funding is in addition to the existing Building Safety Fund of £1.6bn, bringing the total available to £5bn. As the Fund is only available for cladding works on buildings over 18 metres in height, the Government also announced that it would be providing financial support for residents of buildings between four and six storeys high by developing a long-term, low-interest loan scheme. As part of the scheme, leaseholders will not pay more than £50 a month towards the removal of unsafe cladding.
To help fund these measures, the Government is planning to introduce a developer levy that will apply where developers seek permission to construct certain types of high rise buildings in England, and a new tax for the UK residential property development sector.
Further changes to fire safety law are expected to follow. The Government responded to the consultation on changes to the Fire Safety Order on 17 March 2021, which can be found here.
Previous update December 2020
The draft Fire Safety Bill continues undergoing consultation and has not yet been finalised. The Government announced on 17 December 2020 that the deadline for building owners to complete their applications to the Building Safety Fund has been extended to 30 June 2021 (from 31 December 2020). In order to qualify for funding, the remedial works must start onsite by 30 September 2021.
The Government has also announced a £30 million ‘Waking Watch Relief Fund’ to cover the costs of upgrades to fire alarms in high rise buildings in order to remove or reduce the high costs of interim safety measures such as ‘waking watch’ fire marshalls. This fund will open in January 2021. Whilst we do not believe that any of our properties will benefit materially from this new fund, it is not clear whether costs already incurred in connection with interim safety measures may be claimed. It does, however, reflect the increasing pressure that the Government is under to go further in resolving the issues that have come to light since the Grenfell Tower tragedy.
As confirmed in previous updates, properties where fire safety issues have been identified as a result of revisions to fire safety regulations are as follows:
- Premier House, Edgware
- Picture Works, Nottingham
- Vista Towers, Stevenage
- Fairchild House, Southampton
- The Heights, West Bromwich
- Sherringham Court, Hayes
Please see below for the latest updates. The next update will be given on 31 March 2021, unless there is a significant development before then.
Premier House, Edgware updates
Picture Works, Nottingham updates
Vista Tower, Stevenage updates
Previous update
As previously communicated to our investors, the Government has proposed a Fire Safety Bill due to come into force later this year. The Fire Safety Bill will build on action already taken to ensure that people feel safe in their homes and avoid another tragedy like the Grenfell Tower fire.
The bill will amend the Fire Safety Order 2005 to clarify that the responsible person or duty-holder for multi-occupied, residential buildings must manage and reduce the risk of fire for:
- the structure and external walls of the building, including cladding, balconies and windows
- entrance doors to individual flats that open into common parts
The bill will provide a foundation for secondary legislation to take forward recommendations from the Grenfell Tower Inquiry phase one report, which stated that building owners and managers of high-rise and multi-occupied residential buildings should be responsible for a number of areas including:
- regular inspections of lifts and the reporting of results to the local fire and rescue services
- ensuring evacuation plans are reviewed and regularly updated, and personal evacuation plans are in place for residents whose ability to evacuate may be compromised
- ensuring fire safety instructions are provided to residents in a form that they can reasonably be expected to understand
- ensuring, where required, individual flat entrance doors comply with current standards
The bill will also give the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government the powers to amend the list of qualifying premises that fall within the scope of the Fire Safety Order by way of secondary legislation, enabling the government to respond quickly to developments in the design and construction of buildings.
Alongside the Fire Safety Bill, a number of actions are being taken by Government to improve building and fire safety including:
- the announcement by the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government on 20 January 2020 of a new Building Safety Regulator
- introduction of the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government’s Building Safety Bill, which will provide clearer accountability and stronger duties on those responsible for high rise buildings
- £1 billion of grant funding to tackle unsafe cladding systems on high-rise residential buildings over 18 metres in both the private and social sectors, including non-ACM cladding systems
- a new Building Safety Bill to bring about further changes to building safety
- the relaunch of the government’s Fire Kills campaign
As confirmed in previous updates, properties where fire safety issues have been identified as a result of revisions to fire safety regulations are as follows:
- Premier House, Edgware
- Picture Works, Nottingham
- Vista Towers, Stevenage
- The Heights, West Bromwich
- Fairchild House, Southampton
Due to Covid-19, progress across all blocks have been delayed due to lockdown measures.
Please see below for the latest updates. The next update will be given on 18 December 2020, unless there is a significant development before then.
Previous update
Following the revisions to fire safety regulations as a result of the tragic Grenfell Tower Fire in June 2017, a full review was undertaken of all properties within our portfolio. At the time, it was found that Premier House, Edgware had the same cladding installed as that at Grenfell Tower. Updates regarding the fire safety position at Premier House can be found below.
It was also found that Picture Works, Nottingham had inappropriate cladding. Whilst the cladding does not use ACMs (the type installed at Grenfell Tower), neither the frame nor the insulation are fire rated and there are no requisite barriers. Updates regarding the fire safety position at Picture Works can be found below.
We have recently been advised by the freeholder’s managing agents at Vista Towers, Stevenage that their surveyor has confirmed that the cladding on the exterior of the property is not ACM cladding, however, the infill panels were found to be a UPVC facing panel backed on to a polystyrene core and timber panel. This is believed to be combustible. Updates regarding the fire safety position at Vista Towers can be found below.
With regard to the remainder of the portfolio, please see below.
Purpose Built Student Accommodation (PBSA) blocks:
We can confirm that all PBSA blocks within the portfolio have regular fire risk assessments undertaken by independent professional fire risk specialists. All blocks are below the 18 metre (6 storey) threshold requiring cladding to be tested for ACM cladding materials, however, we have undertaken an evaluation of all blocks with cladding regardless of the fact that they do not reach the threshold. Verney Street – Exeter, Pitt Street Studios – Newcastle and Terence House – Newcastle all have cladding installed on the exterior of the building, however, we have confirmation that the materials used are not ACM cladding materials and as the buildings fall below the 18 metre threshold no remediation works are required.
The fire safety concerns and remediation works required at Fairchild House, Southampton have been completed and we are in receipt of a clear fire risk assessment in relation to this property.
Residential Properties:
Whilst no other blocks within the portfolio have ACM cladding installed, Advice Note 14 was published by the Government in December 2018 which provides guidance for building owners with non-ACM materials in their external wall systems, including cladding and insulation.
While not a legal requirement, the note gives strong guidance to owners of buildings above 18m to take “general fire precautions” in their buildings and to make sure that external wall systems are “safe”.
The definition of “safe” in the Advice Note is two-fold. First, all materials must be safely installed and maintained. Second, the external wall systems (including cladding and insulation) must contain materials that are of limited combustibility or be a system that has achieved the Building Research Establishment’s BR 135 classification.
To achieve this classification, systems will need to go through a BS 8414 test, something that very few materials being used have gone through.
This means if the materials on an owner’s building are combustible and have not passed these specific tests, that property would be contravening the Advice Note and in need of remediation.
The Advice Note also requires the building owner, or responsible person, to have an up-to-date fire risk assessment for their building.
As a result of Advice Note 14, managing agents for each of our blocks are undertaking further reviews of fire safety.
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