ao link
Twitter
Facebook
Linked In
Twitter
Facebook
Linked In

You are viewing 1 of your 1 free articles

ACM remediation to be completed by end of the year, says Pincher

Remediation of aluminium composite material (ACM) cladding on high rises in England is expected to be completed by the end of 2021, the housing minister has said

Linked InTwitterFacebookeCard
Picture: Getty
Picture: Getty
Sharelines

Remediation of aluminium composite material (ACM) cladding on high rises is expected to be completed by the end of 2021, the housing minister has said #UKhousing

In response to a written question from Labour MP Clive Lewis on deadlines to remove unsafe cladding, Christopher Pincher said: “It is our expectation that building owners will have completed ACM remedial works on all high-rise residential buildings by the end of 2021.”

This appears to be a new, more ambitious estimate compared to previous timescales suggested by government.

In a monthly data release for the end of March 2021 released last week, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) had less expectations for the removal and replacement of ACM cladding – the type used on Grenfell Tower.


READ MORE

ACM remediation far slower among blocks that have received government fundingACM remediation far slower among blocks that have received government funding
Named and shamed: who are the landlords yet to start the removal of Grenfell-style cladding from their buildings?Named and shamed: who are the landlords yet to start the removal of Grenfell-style cladding from their buildings?
Three social housing high rises added to government ACM figures, nearly four years on from GrenfellThree social housing high rises added to government ACM figures, nearly four years on from Grenfell

The release said: “By the end of 2021, it is currently estimated that 85% of identified buildings will have completed remediation.

“Of the 71 buildings not forecast to complete remediation by the end of 2021, 31 are forecast to have removed their ACM cladding systems by the end of 2021 and a further seven are vacant.”

An MHCLG spokesperson said: “We expect all high-rise buildings with ACM cladding will be remediated by the end of this year. We are working with the remaining buildings to get work started and completed as soon as possible and the figures show the numbers of buildings where remediation work has begun or completed is increasing."

Since the Grenfell Tower fire in June 2017, which claimed 72 lives, 469 high rises have been identified as having unsafe ACM cladding, including 376 non-student residential blocks.

Of these 376, 204 have completed remediation or have finished the work and are awaiting building control sign-off, 141 have started works and 31 have not yet begun removal.

The government previously set a June 2020 deadline for the removal of ACM from all buildings but later moved away from this target after 307 towers were left needing remediation by the end of April 2020.

The data release for March 2021 also showed that three high-rise social housing blocks had been added to the list of blocks requiring ACM remediation, nearly four years on from the Grenfell Tower fire.

Inside Housing recently investigated the 14 building owners that were still yet to start ACM remediation work as of March.

Update at 10:00, 23.04.21: story edited to include MHCLG response

Sign up for our fire safety newsletter

Sign up for our fire safety newsletter
Linked InTwitterFacebookeCard
Add New Comment
You must be logged in to comment.