High-rises ‘not clad’ in Grenfell Tower material
Region’s councils rule out flats danger
YORKSHIRE COUNCILS have ruled out the question of whether high-rise homes under their control are clad with combustible material which is thought to have aggravated the deadly fire at Grenfell Tower in London.
Leeds, Hull, Bradford and Sheffield all have different types of cladding on their towered flats, it was confirmed.
At least 79 people were killed after a blaze ripped through 13 floors of the 21-storey block in the capital just over a week ago.
It had yesterday emerged that combustible cladding was found on at least seven blocks nationwide as urgent tests of around 600 clad blocks across the country got under way.
A Hull City Council spokeswoman said: “We can confirm that the cladding used to refurbish high-rise tower blocks in Hull is different from that used on Grenfell Tower; it is made of solid aluminium with mineral fibrebased insulation which is noncombustible and offers a greater degree of fire protection.”
The authority is taking part in the Department for Communities and Local Government’s request to test high-rise buildings but reassured residents that this did not mean they were at risk.
Leeds City Council also distanced itself from the type of system used on Grenfell Tower.
When addressing the council’s Executive Board this week, the director of housing and resources, Neil Evans, said that no Leeds towers featured cladding made with aluminium composite material.
He said: “None of the cladding systems we have used is comparable to the system that was used in London. We can give reassurance on that.”
Sheffield City Council also ruled out the cladding used on its blocks being the same as that fitted on Grenfell Tower. Incommunities, which runs all 30 of the social housing high-rises in Bradford, confirmed that “noncombustible rock wool cladding” has been used in the city. Rotherham Council owns just one tower block and there is no external cladding on the building.
Prime Minister Theresa May’s spokesman yesterday said that a failed cladding test did not necessarily mean a building was unsafe.
Meanwhile, combustible cladding has been found on at least three tower blocks across the UK, with samples expected to be checked from many more.
Camden Council said the Chalcots Estate in north London was facing renovation after tests found “the panels that were fitted were not to the standard that we had commissioned”. In Plymouth, examination of the Mount Wise Tower found that it was made of potentially dangerous material.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn called on the Government to ensure funds were available to make the high-rise structures safe.
Further heads should roll at the council responsible for Grenfell Tower after the resignation of the chief executive, London Mayor Sadiq Khan said.
None of the systems we have used is comparable to London. Neil Evans, director of housing and resources at Leeds City Council.