Grenfell residents moving up
SURVIVORS of the Grenfell Tower fire are to be permanently rehoused in a $3.3 billion apartment block on a classy estate in Kensington, the British Government has announced.
Some 68 one, two and three-bedroom flats have been bought by the government at the Kensington Row development in upmarket High St, Communities Secretary Sajid Javid said.
The announcement came a week on from the disaster, which left at least 79 dead.
The properties are “newly built social housing” at a site where private homes are on offer from $2.6 million to $14.2 million and boast a 24-hour concierge and a private cinema.
Social tenants will be housed in two separate purpose-built “affordable housing” blocks at the site. They will be different from the luxury apartments on sale.
The site is 2.4km from Grenfell Tower.
The Department for Communities and Local Government said the expectation was the new properties would be offered as one of the options to permanently rehouse Grenfell residents.
Extra public money had been found to fit out the flats quicker and the developer had taken on more staff and relaxed working hours rules, DCLG said, with the aim of having the homes ready by the end of July.
It comes after much anger from victims’ families and survivors over the official response to the deadly blaze.
An independent public advocate to help bereaved families after major disasters was announced in the Queen’s Speech earlier in the day as hundreds of protesters outside Parliament called for Prime Minister Theresa May to resign over her handling of the Grenfell Tower tragedy.
Ms May apologised for the government response to the disaster, saying: “The support for the families on the ground in the initial hours was not good enough.”
Last week, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn called for empty homes near the scene of the fire to be requisitioned for house victims.
■ The first funeral has been held for a Grenfell Tower fire victim.
— INM