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Grenfell survivors react with anger at Rydon’s inclusion on government framework
Survivors of the Grenfell Tower fire have reacted with anger to the inclusion of the contractor which carried out the tower’s deadly refurbishment on a government procurement framework for high-rise buildings.
Rydon was the lead contractor for the £10m refurbishment of Grenfell Tower, which saw combustible, polyethylene-cored cladding fixed to the walls of the building.
Last week, the inquiry into the fire decided that this cladding was the “primary cause” of the vertical fire spread and did not comply with building regulations.
Rydon has been included as one of 12 contractors on the Crown Commercial Service’s new construction framework for high-rise residential buildings in the South of England.
The framework allows government departments and other public sector bodies – including local authorities – to select contractors for publicly funded projects.
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It is estimated that £30bn of work will be awarded under the framework, with the high-rise residential buildings section valued at £2.25bn.
A spokesperson for Grenfell United, which represents the bereaved families and survivors of the blaze, said: “It is totally unacceptable that Rydon, one of the companies required to answer questions for its role in the refurbishment of Grenfell Tower, would be put on a government list that promotes it as a reputable contractor for other high-rise towers.
“It makes us question the government’s intention to learn the lessons of Grenfell. [Housing secretary] Robert Jenrick must suspend Rydon from this list and explain how the contractor under investigation for Grenfell ended up there.”
The story was originally revealed by specialist magazine Construction News.
A spokesperson for the Cabinet Office said: “There is absolutely no guarantee of a company securing government contracts just because they are on a framework. Under existing EU rules, we are not legally allowed to preclude Rydon Construction from bidding for government contracts.”
Rydon was appointed as the contractor for the Grenfell Tower refurbishment after a public procurement exercise run by the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It was said to have submitted “the most economically advantageous” tender.
The cladding was supplied by giant American-based company Arconic, installed by Harley Facades and cut to shape by Omnis Exteriors.
The refurbishment work that Rydon carried out also involved the installation of new windows.
In the report last week, Sir Martin Moore-Bick ruled that the “configuration and materials of the windows” created a “disproportionately high” chance of the fire spreading from the flat where it started to the cladding system.
Rydon has been contacted for comment.
