Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
THE FATAL FLAWS
87 UK tower blocks are facing enforcement orders over fire safety failures Calls for urgent probe into similar covering on 30,000 more buildings
There are two reasons why panels are involved in fires over the years GERALD MCLEAN OF PROBYN MIERS
AN overhaul was demanded yesterday of rules governing the use of the external cladding added to Grenfell House.
Investigations are likely to focus on the “combustibility” of panels and the quality of workmanship in their installation. Calls for an urgent review grew as it emerged the same cladding was used on as many as 30,000 other buildings in the UK. Prime Minister Theresa May yesterday announced a full public inquiry – with the Government already under pressure for delaying a review into fire safety regulations under former housing minister Gavin Barwell. It comes as the Mirror discovered 87 tower blocks in the UK are currently under enforcement orders for failures in their fire safety precautions. Former fire minister Mike Penning said: “We need to expedite this as far as possible. This cladding is used extensively in the UK and abroad.” Concerns about external cladding and fires date back to at least 1999, when an elderly man died in a flats blaze in Scotland. The Environment, Transport and Regional Affairs Committee launched an inquiry after the fire at a 14-storey block in Irvine, Ayrshire. The committee’s 2000 report recommended that all external cladding systems should be required “either to be entirely noncombustible or proven not to pose an unacceptable risk”. Fire resistance rules, normally designed to stop flames on the inside from escaping, have rules on “limited combustibility”. The panels are only likely to burn once there is an “established” fire but the blaze can then spread quickly within cavities. Gerald Mclean, of specialist architects Probyn Miers, said: “These panels have been involved in fires over the years and there are two reasons for that. “In the Middle East and China, panels continue to be used that would not be allowed here. “Here we allow a range of panels that are fairly safe if used properly. The problems in the UK tend to be of workmanship.” Harley Facades, the company that fitted the panels to Grenfell Tower in 2016, said in a statement: “At this time, we are not aware of any link between the fire and the exterior cladding.” Last year the firm posted on Facebook: “Harley completes its work at Grenfell Tower. Well done to the team, great looking job and a happy client!!” Construction firm Rydon, which oversaw a major refurbishment of the block, insisted the work “met all required building control, fire regulation and health & safety standards”. Cladding is used to upgrade a building’s heat and sound insulation but also to improve its looks. A 2014 planning document said changes to Grenfell would mean “a significant improvement to the environmental performance of the building and to its physical appearance”. New tower blocks over 30m high are required to have sprinkler systems but there are an estimated 4,000 older blocks in the UK without them. Just one out of eight councils, responding to a Freedom of Information Act request in 2015, said it had put sprinklers into flats – in a total of only 18 out of 2,925 blocks. In 2009 six people, including three children, died in a flats blaze in Southwark, London. Louise Christian, the solicitor who represented the families at the inquest, said it was unbelievable that Kensington and Chelsea, “one of the richest places in the world”, could not afford to instal sprinklers. The Mirror searched public records to find 308 enforcement notices by 29 different regional fire brigades on high-rise buildings of more than four storeys. Of these 87 are still “in force” with the oldest dating back to 2008. The largest number of “in force” notices, 51, are in London. Nick Paget-brown, leader of Kensington and Chelsea Council which owns Grenfell Tower, has said: “When the public inquiry is held we will find out more about any design faults.”