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RBKC to check balconies after Barking fire
The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC) is set to check the balconies on its homes for fire safety issues, following the Barking fire.
It is responding to government guidance released last week that advised building owners to remove combustible materials from balconies “as soon as is practical”.
However, an RBKC spokesperson said that “it is a little too early to say” whether the council will remove any combustible materials it finds on balconies.
The government’s guidance was part of its response to the Barking fire last month, which saw flames spread across wooden cladding and balconies to destroy part of a block of flats.
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It said that any combustible material used in balconies should be removed and replaced.
RBKC said it will visit all the homes it owns that have balconies and remove coverings, to check the insulation used underneath and other materials.
It added in a press release: “If council officers are not satisfied with standards or materials, they will be replaced.”
It also plans to write to housing associations and private landlords in the borough to ask them to check balconies on their buildings as well.
When asked what standard materials would need to meet to avoid being replaced, the council spokesperson said: “If materials are found to be below required national standards, they will be replaced. That includes materials that are combustible.”
The spokesperson added that “the council would like to see materials that are Class A1 in standards”, but also that it would assess each building on its merits and not necessarily require A1 materials.
A report commissioned by the government in July 2016 said that none of the fire safety regulations in place at the time applied to balconies.
The government has since banned the use of all combustible materials on balconies. But this ban does not apply to existing buildings or buildings shorter than 18 metres tall.
It has now told building owners to remove any combustible materials from balconies on buildings of any height, but has not brought in legislation for this. It also does not plan to provide any funding for the work.
Councillor Kim Taylor-Smith, deputy leader of RBKC, said: “We have a number of families in the borough who have been rehoused after the Grenfell tragedy two years ago and we will make sure their homes are prioritised.
“But this is a borough-wide effort and goes hand in hand with other measures we are putting in place, including fire door upgrades.”
