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Government will consider more £200m cladding fund bids despite deadline passing
The government will continue to consider applications to the £200m private sector cladding remediation fund despite the deadline closing on New Year’s Eve, Inside Housing has learned.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) confirmed that it would still consider allocating funding for applications which have not yet been completed if they are submitted as quickly as possible.
However, it said the 31 December deadline for the fund will not be extended and would not reveal how long it would continue to consider applications.
Organisations responsible for affected buildings that delay applications unjustifiably should expect further action, MHCLG added, although it did not specify what action would be taken.
Flat owners affected by the cladding crisis raised concerns in November about missing the deadline because of the onerous conditions required for applications, such as carrying out a survey to ascertain the full costs of work and securing signed state aid forms from all leaseholders.
Figures released by the government last month revealed that as of 30 November only two applications to the private sector remediation fund had been approved, with completed applications submitted for a further 29 buildings.
There were 95 buildings identified as being in scope for funding at the time, with work on most of the other 175 private residential high rises with dangerous aluminium composite material (ACM) cladding not yet remediated being funded by the building owner or through warranty claims.
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The government is working with named contacts at each affected building in an attempt to speed up the work.
A spokesperson for MHCLG said: “It is completely unacceptable that people are having to live in buildings with unsafe ACM cladding on them.
“We have made £200m available to building owners to deal with this problem and announced legislation in the Queen’s Speech to strengthen enforcement powers to hold building owners and managers to account.
“We have written to building owners to reiterate their responsibility in keeping residents’ safe and we will not hesitate to name and shame those who do not have a clear plan to safeguard their residents.”
It followed a similar £400m fund for affected high rises owned by social landlords.
Leaseholders in a block wrapped in another type of dangerous cladding – high-pressure laminate – this week criticised the government for ignoring their requests for help as they face a payment deadline for bills of up to £25,000 each to fix the building.
Inside Housing has called for the government to cover the cost of cladding works on private blocks through the End Our Cladding Scandal campaign run alongside affected leaseholders.
End Our Cladding Scandal: campaign aims
- Government provides a fund to cover the cost of cladding removal and remedial works on private blocks
- A firm timescale is set out of no more than two years for the work to be carried out
- Residents are reimbursed for the interim fire safety costs incurred, and funding is to be provided for necessary internal fire safety measures identified by a competent fire risk assessor
- Martin Hilditch, editor, Inside Housing
- Manchester Cladiators
- UK Cladding Action Group
- Natasha Elcock, chair, Grenfell United
- Sadiq Khan, mayor of London
- Kate Henderson, chief executive, National Housing Federation
- Terrie Alafat, chief executive, Chartered Institute of Housing
- Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester
- Lord Gary Porter, chair of the Local Government Association
- Polly Neate, chief executive, Shelter
- Jane Duncan, chair of the expert advisory group on fire safety, RIBA
- Andy Dark, assistant general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union
- Christina McAnea, assistant general secretary, UNISON
- Sir Peter Bottomley, Conservative MP and chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Leasehold and Commonhold Reform
- Jim Fitzpatrick, Labour MP, and member of All-Party Parliamentary Group on Leasehold and Commonhold Reform
- Mark Amesbury, shadow employment minister and Labour MP for Weaver Vale
- Emma Dent Coad, former Labour MP for North Kensington
- Lucy Powell, Labour MP for Manchester Central
- Rushanara Ali, Labour MP for Bethnal Green and Bow
- George Howarth, Labour MP for Knowsley
- Graham Stringer, Labour MP for Blackley and Broughton
- Rob Ellis, presenter, Capital FM
- John Biggs, mayor of Tower Hamlets
- Paul Dennett, mayor of Salford
- Suzanne Richards, councillor and executive member for housing and regeneration on behalf of all Manchester's Labour Councillors
- Sir Richard Leese, Labour councillor and leader Manchester City Council
- John Leech, Manchester Liberal Democrat leader on behalf of all Manchester’s Liberal Democrat councillors
- Darren Rodwell, executive member for housing at London Councils and leader of Barking and Dagenham Council
- George Clarke, TV Architect
- David Walker, bishop of Manchester
- Graham Tomlin, bishop of Kensington
- John Roberts, founder of AO.com
- Josh Beaumont, professional rugby player, Sale Sharks and resident of affected building
- Bill Beaumont, former England rugby captain
- Jeremy Dyson, co-founder of the League of Gentlemen
- Andy Moss, actor who has appeared on Channel 4’s Hollyoaks and resident
- Ross Mullan, actor who has appeared in Game of Thrones
- Get Cape Wear Cape Fly, musician
- Nour-eddine Aboudihaj, spokesperson for Justice4Grenfell
- Mike Leonard, chief executive, Building Alliance
- Kate Kendrick, founder, National Leasehold Campaign
- Martin Boyd, chair, Leasehold Knowledge Partnership
- Paula Higgins, chief executive, HomeOwners Alliance
- Mark Henderson, chief executive, Home Group
- Ben Clay, founding member of the Tenants Union
- Hilda Palmer, acting chair of the Hazards Campaign
- Susan Bright, professor of law, University of Oxford
- Gill Kernick, consultant and former Grenfell Resident
- Phil Murphy, fire safety expert and tower block resident
This list will be updated. Please email peter.apps@insidehousing.co.uk if you want to support the campaign
