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Ledbury Estate residents protest over lack of heating in tower blocks

Residents of the Ledbury Estate have protested after being left without heating, after safety fears resulted in the gas supply being switched off in the tower blocks.

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Ledbury Estate residents protest over lack of heating in tower blocks

Southwark Council was due to start installing heating pipes in the tower blocks this week but wrote to tenants saying there would be a delay because of safety concerns and they “expected” work to start next week.

On Sunday residents gathered for a protest and solicitors Anthony Gold have sent a legal letter stating the lack of heating is “not lawful”.

Hannan Majid, who is one of the resident co-ordinators, said the protest was organised because families are “too frustrated, so we needed to do something”.

One resident said her seven-month-old baby had been unwell for the past three weeks and another resident said her six-year-old was in tears because she is cold.

The council was due to start work this week drilling into the walls of the blocks to install heating pipes. However, in a letter sent this week the council said this work would be delayed by a week because engineering consultancy Arup said additional work must be carried out “for safety reasons”.

The Ledbury blocks have been without heating since last month when the gas supply was turned off because of concerns over the safety of the buildings in the event of a gas explosion.

A council spokesperson said nine families had asked to move into a hotel while they wait for the heating to be installed and all these families had been moved.


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Anthony Gold Solicitors is representing at least one of the residents on the Ledbury Estate. The firm’s letter said the heating installation is likely to take at least a month, leaving residents without heating for weeks.

The letter added: “In the interim, our client and others in the blocks are being left without any temporary form of heating. This is in breach of your client’s express and implied repairing obligations and is not lawful.”

The solicitor has asked for temporary heating arrangements to be organised by tomorrow otherwise the firm will apply for an interim injunction to force the council to provide temporary heating.

Stephanie Cryan, deputy leader and cabinet member for housing at Southwark Council, said: “We are still on course to get a new district heating system installed for the Ledbury towers in mid to late October, despite a delay to the start date. However, we completely understand how difficult things are for Ledbury tower residents and we know the current cold spell is their main concern. No-one should suffer ill health as a result of these issues – staff can arrange immediate hotel accommodation for anyone who needs it, and we are also giving residents top priority for longer-term moves.

“We are working seven days a week to fit immersion water heaters and cookers, and council officers are available 24/7 in the residents’ hall on the estate, and have been knocking on every door to offer support, with extra focus on vulnerable residents.

“The council is doing all it can to resolve these issues caused by a historic problem with the structure of the blocks, from long before the council was responsible for them. We have had no choice but to turn off the gas – if we didn’t, residents would not be safe. Experts have advised that with the gas turned off, this risk is removed.”

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