On Wednesday, residents of blocks with dangerous cladding shared their stories via #MyCladdingScandal. Here are some of their tweets
Many of the residents who shared their stories are in the Greater Manchester region:
#MyCladdingScandal
— Tasha Foulkes (@natashafoulkes)
Facing bills of up to £44k to pay for remediation works on a flat that is unsafe to live in.
Sick of having nightmares that my block will be the next Grenfell.@insidehousing @RobertJenrick @EstherMcVey1 @mhclg @ukcag @McrCladiators#MyCladdingScandal
— Tasha Foulkes (@natashafoulkes) November 27, 2019
Facing bills of up to £44k to pay for remediation works on a flat that is unsafe to live in.
Sick of having nightmares that my block will be the next Grenfell.@insidehousing @RobertJenrick @EstherMcVey1 @mhclg @ukcag @McrCladiators
#MyCladdingScandal
— BurtonPlace_MCR_Cladding (@BurtonPlace_MCR)
Leaseholder Emma shares her story:
I live in Burton Place, a non ACM wooden clad building that not only has flammable insulation, it also has missing fire breaks. If a fire does break out it has a high chance of spreading in a catastrophic manner.
1/4#MyCladdingScandal
— BurtonPlace_MCR_Cladding (@BurtonPlace_MCR) November 27, 2019
Leaseholder Emma shares her story:
I live in Burton Place, a non ACM wooden clad building that not only has flammable insulation, it also has missing fire breaks. If a fire does break out it has a high chance of spreading in a catastrophic manner.
1/4
1. A THREAD: Ref Imperial Point apartment building, Media City UK.
— Julie Taylor (@JulieTa94581516)
The shock revelation that this beautiful building has been built with ‘flammable materials’, has been surpassed only by the threat that the cost of fixing it is to be met by us residents.#MyCladdingScandal pic.twitter.com/jXi0wPZvXq1. A THREAD: Ref Imperial Point apartment building, Media City UK.
— Julie Taylor (@JulieTa94581516) November 27, 2019
The shock revelation that this beautiful building has been built with ‘flammable materials’, has been surpassed only by the threat that the cost of fixing it is to be met by us residents.#MyCladdingScandal pic.twitter.com/jXi0wPZvXq
- Sick to the stomach of the £44k and rising costs we are facing for ensuring our block is fire safe!
— Rob Moncrieff (@superbobbie)
- Everytime I hear a siren on the roads, I immediately panic that my apartment block is up in flames!
- My Mental & Physical Health can’t take much more!!#mycladdingscandal t.co/tBw0DO3Gcw- Sick to the stomach of the £44k and rising costs we are facing for ensuring our block is fire safe!
— Rob Moncrieff (@superbobbie) November 27, 2019
- Everytime I hear a siren on the roads, I immediately panic that my apartment block is up in flames!
- My Mental & Physical Health can't take much more!!#mycladdingscandal https://t.co/tBw0DO3Gcw
Many of the residents are facing huge bills for the remediation work and have no legal recourse to challenge the bills or access government funding:
I suddenly owe life changing sums of money and my flat is worthless. I face having nowhere to live. I must find 35K for next phase, already paid two phases. My flat has zero value, I am retired, no money left, can’t get a loan. There are 10s of 1000s of us. #MyCladdingScandal
— Juliet Morris (@JulietMorris1)I suddenly owe life changing sums of money and my flat is worthless. I face having nowhere to live. I must find 35K for next phase, already paid two phases. My flat has zero value, I am retired, no money left, can't get a loan. There are 10s of 1000s of us. #MyCladdingScandal
— Juliet Morris (@JulietMorris1) November 26, 2019
Some buildings (like ours) have ACM, timber, flammable insulation AND missing fire breaks. It’s deathtrap bingo! Guess how many of those the wholly inadequate gov fund covers? Or how many the developer/freeholder will have to pay for? #EndOurCladdingScandal #MyCladdingScandal t.co/IN0yXzwx0d
— Mariam Ali (@mariamali7)Some buildings (like ours) have ACM, timber, flammable insulation AND missing fire breaks. It's deathtrap bingo! Guess how many of those the wholly inadequate gov fund covers? Or how many the developer/freeholder will have to pay for? #EndOurCladdingScandal #MyCladdingScandal https://t.co/IN0yXzwx0d
— Mariam Ali (@mariamali7) November 27, 2019
My flat was signed off as safe, it was seen as compliant to gov legislation.
— Gunny (@Gunny08065130)
I am now responsible for an est 90k bill to fix cladding I was told was safe.
I cannot start a family.
I will be homeless.
I am stressed.#MyCladdingScandalMy flat was signed off as safe, it was seen as compliant to gov legislation.
— Gunny (@Gunny08065130) November 27, 2019
I am now responsible for an est 90k bill to fix cladding I was told was safe.
I cannot start a family.
I will be homeless.
I am stressed.#MyCladdingScandal
We were told our building was safe and no works required after #Grenfell. The @mhclg guidance changed this & we now face a 12 month wait for the reports to give us the true picture. May be unsafe, & cost millions to fix, can’t sell or remortgage in the meantime #MyCladdingScandal
— Stephen Squires (@gqsteve)We were told our building was safe and no works required after #Grenfell. The @mhclg guidance changed this & we now face a 12 month wait for the reports to give us the true picture. May be unsafe, & cost millions to fix, can't sell or remortgage in the meantime #MyCladdingScandal
— Stephen Squires (@gqsteve) November 27, 2019
2 years ago my boyfriend and I bought our first home on Shared Ownership; we simply couldn’t afford to buy any other way. We now know the cladding on our building is unsafe. We are no longer proud homeowners- our home is unsafe & our property is worthless #mycladdingscandal
— Amy Harvey (@amyharvz)2 years ago my boyfriend and I bought our first home on Shared Ownership; we simply couldn't afford to buy any other way. We now know the cladding on our building is unsafe. We are no longer proud homeowners- our home is unsafe & our property is worthless #mycladdingscandal
— Amy Harvey (@amyharvz) November 27, 2019
#MyCladdingScandal I’ve been losing sleep. We’ve only recently found out the cladding on our building is a big fire hazard. I’m worried about our building closing, being unable to pay the huge leasehold charges & a fire consuming the building. I’m terrified. Where’s the support!
— Ellie (@ElvenBuilds)#MyCladdingScandal I’ve been losing sleep. We’ve only recently found out the cladding on our building is a big fire hazard. I’m worried about our building closing, being unable to pay the huge leasehold charges & a fire consuming the building. I’m terrified. Where’s the support!
— Ellie (@ElvenBuilds) November 27, 2019
Some have even paid out:
This is #MyCladdingScandal story - more than two years after Grenfell I still live with the stress and worry of my home being unsafe. European Land forced us to pay in excess of £4m yet no works have even started. @ukcag @insidehousing t.co/Wh2q8JGoKI
— JLeong (@JLeong76212602)This is #MyCladdingScandal story - more than two years after Grenfell I still live with the stress and worry of my home being unsafe. European Land forced us to pay in excess of £4m yet no works have even started. @ukcag @insidehousing https://t.co/Wh2q8JGoKI
— JLeong (@JLeong76212602) November 27, 2019
Those who do qualify for the government fund are struggling to get through the application process:
In May the Govt created a fund to remove ACM cladding from leasehold properties like mine. Yet we still wait, trapped in an unsafe building because of ridiculous red tape around the application process. Surely peoples safety matters more #MyCladdingScandal #EndOurCladdingScandal t.co/sQejyJJU1x
— Paul Wallis (@_PaulW)In May the Govt created a fund to remove ACM cladding from leasehold properties like mine. Yet we still wait, trapped in an unsafe building because of ridiculous red tape around the application process. Surely peoples safety matters more #MyCladdingScandal #EndOurCladdingScandal https://t.co/sQejyJJU1x
— Paul Wallis (@_PaulW) November 27, 2019
Even housing sector figures revealed they are directly effected:
Gas-fired communal boiler room is surrounded with ACM on the roof of converted office building I live in (permitted development). Offshore freeholder not interested. “Managing” agents @SterlingEstates not willing to even produce a quote for 8 months.#MyCladdingScandal
— James Caspell FCIH 💚 (@jjcaspell)>Gas-fired communal boiler room is surrounded with ACM on the roof of converted office building I live in (permitted development). Offshore freeholder not interested. “Managing” agents @SterlingEstates not willing to even produce a quote for 8 months.#MyCladdingScandal
— James Caspell FCIH \uD83D\uDC9A (@jjcaspell) November 27, 2019
And there was a call for the political parties to act:
This is #MyCladdingScandal @RobertJenrick @EstherMcVey1 @BorisJohnson @joswinson @jeremycorbyn @LabourSJ @insidehousing @ukcag 2 years on & STILL there are 10’’s of dangerously clad buildings in the UK. Why’s this not at the top of your flashy manifestos? #EndOurCladdingScandal pic.twitter.com/Wnj6PvvVt6
— William Martin (@willmartin88)>This is #MyCladdingScandal @RobertJenrick @EstherMcVey1 @BorisJohnson @joswinson @jeremycorbyn @LabourSJ @insidehousing @ukcag 2 years on & STILL there are 100's of dangerously clad buildings in the UK. Why's this not at the top of your flashy manifestos? #EndOurCladdingScandal pic.twitter.com/Wnj6PvvVt6
— William Martin (@willmartin88) November 27, 2019
The End Our Cladding Scandal campaign set up b ;Inside Housing along with residents of the affected blocks has made two demands of political parties:
The next government must:
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Ahead of the general election, Inside Housing revisits our national cladding scandal and sets out what needs to be done to prevent any further tragedies. Peter Apps reports.
The cladding crisis Down Under: what we can learn from the response to Grenfell in Australia
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Five years ago a fire spread up Grenfell-style ACM cladding on a high-rise in Melbourne. This prompted an overhaul of the Australian state of Victoria’s building safety regime. Peter Apps finds out what the UK could learn.
More than 100,000 buildings outside scope of fire safety measures, minutes reveal
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There are more than 100,000 medium-rise homes that fall outside new regulations aimed at making buildings safe in the aftermath of Grenfell, including the ban on combustible cladding, Inside Housing can reveal.
It’s only a matter of time until the next Bolton unless the parties step up to the plate on fire safety
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Inside Housing’s new election campaign calls on the main political parties to commit to taking action to prevent what currently seems like an inevitable further tragedy. It’s time for everyone to step up, writes Martin Hilditch.
Leaseholders fear missing out on £200m cladding fund as bidding deadline approaches
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Leaseholders living in blocks seeking government funding for the removal of Grenfell-style cladding have raised concerns over meeting the deadline for applications, while criticising the lengthy process being run by the government.
Government refusing to test polystyrene panels, despite request from London boroughs
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The government has no further plans to carry out testing of cladding products despite a specific request from London boroughs to test systems comprising polystyrene, a document obtained by Inside Housing has revealed.