Residents on estate neighbouring Grenfell call for government help with £15,000 bills for refurbishment

While tenants from the estate have been assisted with rehousing if they wanted to move away in the aftermath of the fire, leaseholders have been offered no support.

Properties on the estate – in the shadow of the remains of Grenfell Tower – have lost around 50% of their value since the fire in June 2017. This has placed many in negative equity and means they cannot afford to move home.

The letter continues: “They have suffered just the same as all the other residents have in the last three years: through the disruption to their lives and homes, the stress and trauma of living in a national disaster area and the horror of the night and the aftermath and yet they, alone, have received nothing in return.”

It is understood that ‘Section 20’ notices have been served on leaseholders for the sums, but the collection of money has not yet started. The council has offered a 20% discount and a lengthy payment plan of up to 10 years.

Service charge bills on the estate are already up to £3,500 per year. It is understood that the council, which has put a total of £57.9m towards the estate refurbishment project, has received legal advice saying it is obliged to charge for the works in line with council policy.

However a source at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) insisted councils could waive or reduce charges the Social Landlords Discretionary Reduction of Service Charges (England) Directions 2014.

The source said more than £158m had been committed to supporting the Grenfell community since the fire, including £15m for the estate refurbishment works.

Abbas Dadou, chair of the Lancaster West Residents Association, told Inside Housing he believes that the council did not invest enough in the estate in the years before Grenfell.

“I believe the estate was run down to make it viable for regeneration along with [nearby] Silchester Estate,” he said. “We were promised things will get better after the fire, however our resident leaseholders are the only group that has been charged as result of Grenfell tragedy.”

David O’Connell, vice-chair and resident leaseholder, added: “We were promised a 21st century estate, but what has happened through the process is it has become much more like a normal estate refurbishment programme.

“We’re talking about people’s life savings to pay for it. This is about resident leaseholders, not people who are renting the homes out. These are mostly people who love the area and want to stay.”

The group had a video call with Lord Greenhalgh last week, but he was able to speak only briefly from the back of his car while being driven between meetings. The group is awaiting a reply to its letter, dated 5 August.

Kim Taylor-Smith, deputy leader of Kensington and Chelsea Council, said: “I fully appreciate the special circumstances of those living on the estate and have engaged with the Lancaster West Residents Association in providing resident leaseholders and shared owners with a 20% discount on potential charges from the council for the refurbishment. Combined with support from the government, this equates to a 54.4% reduction.

“We are offering a range of options, including repayment periods of up to 10 years – around £100 per month – or a voluntary charge on a property, to ensure that no one suffers financial hardship as a result of the work.”

An MHCLG spokesperson said: “The refurbishment of the Lancaster West Estate is critical to the recovery of the Grenfell community.

“It is important that residents start to see the changes they have been promised and we have worked closely with the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea to fund the bulk of this work. Together we’ve provided £58m for the refurbishment.”

“We understand the stress large service charges can put onto leaseholders. That is why we have capped leaseholders’ payments for major works and we introduced regulations that require councils to consider exceptional hardship and offer affordable repayment terms in these circumstances.”