It has been proposed that the government will seek to introduce a £4bn fund to pay for cladding remediation on buildings between 11 and 18 metres tall.
Developers will be expected to make financial contributions, and the government has said they may make it a legal requirement if the developers fail to do so.
This will replace a previously proposed low-interest loan scheme that would have seen leaseholders paying up to £50 a month towards the cost of cladding remediation.
The Consolidated Advice Note, which required that external walls be assessed on all blocks regardless of their height, has been withdrawn with immediate effect.
It has also been suggested that a £27m fire alarm fund could be introduced to reduce the use of waking watches.
The Government is also proposing to make changes to the Fire Safety Act, which it is hoped, will ensure that statutory protection is extended to cover all the work required to make buildings safe.
We are seeking more clarity on the government’s views on buildings below 11 metres which requires cladding removal and remediation.
You can read the full press release about this announcement on the gov.uk website.
What action we have taken
We have already spent large sums of money, which has been partly assisted by government contributions, to remediate our leasehold properties over 18m. A number of safety measures have also been put in place, including building inspections, a waking watch and heat-detecting fire alarm systems. To date, none of these costs has been passed on to our leaseholders.
We are reviewing our fire and safety programme and existing work in light of the changes in government guidance. This will ensure we meet the new building regulations to make homes safe.
Next steps
These proposals are at the early stages and we will need time to find out more and consider the practical implications for our customers. We understand the importance of this announcement to you and will keep you up to date with our progress.
Support for you – health and wellbeing
Customer safety and wellbeing are important to us and we recognise that many of you have been hugely impacted by this issue. We want to support you as much as possible.
With this in mind, we have arranged an independent health and wellbeing programme. The service is free to use and includes counselling and emotional support and financial, legal and medical information. You can use it any time of day or night. Visit our dedicated page for more information.