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‘Terrified’ Paragon students say they were unaware of fire safety issues before evacuation

Students living on an estate owned by Notting Hill Genesis (NHG) in west London said they were not made aware of any problems relating to the building’s construction when they moved in last month, before being asked to evacuate immediately on Monday.

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The Notting Hill Genesis block in Brentford (picture: Google Street View)
The Notting Hill Genesis block in Brentford (picture: Google Street View)
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Students living on an estate owned by Notting Hill Genesis said they were not made aware of any problems relating to the building’s construction when they moved in last month, before being asked to evacuate immediately #UKhousing

Inside Housing has spoken to students living at the 1,059-home Paragon Estate in Brentford who said they were completely unaware of any fire safety issues with the block.

Beyond a pamphlet and an email – seen by Inside Housing – that advise immediate evacuation in the case of a fire alarm, the residents said they were given no briefings about fire safety, despite many having first moved in at the start of the academic year in September.

This is despite NHG being aware of a litany of fire safety issues with the block since December 2017 at the latest, including missing fire breaks in the cladding system that could allow flames to spread between floors.

The pamphlet provided to students also referenced the scaffolding that has been put up around the estate, which it said is “part of a wider safety project across the site” and is being used for “safety inspections”.


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On Monday, the 66,000-home housing association announced that recent inspections had uncovered issues so serious that resident safety at the blocks – which also house 170 leaseholders and tenants – could no longer be guaranteed. This resulted in the evacuation and rehousing of the 858 residents.

NHG has not explained precisely what these issues are, but they extend well beyond the cladding system which, on four of the six blocks, is made from non-combustible ceramic and terracotta.

The building has been fitted with fire alarms and a 24-hour waking watch has been in place across the development since the issues were discovered.

But students said that on one occasion when alarms sounded last month, there was no one present to guide evacuation or a return to the building.

A spokesperson from NHG said that residents have been informed about the reasons for the additional fire safety measures and the fire evacuation procedures had been communicated to all residents living in the block.

However, Eleanor Willis, who is studying acting at the University of West London (UWL), said: “When it comes to fire safety, we were never given a fire briefing.

“I remember one time when it was the middle of the night, and there was a fire alarm that went off and obviously all of us vacated, but there was not one member of staff to guide us in any way, shape or form.

“We had to just take it upon ourselves to then go back into the accommodation because it was freezing. It was the middle of the night and no one was telling us what to do after it went off.”

A spokesperson for NHG said there are security guards on site at the Paragon Estate who are responsible for “investigating and resetting the alarm when appropriate”.

They said it was possible that residents may not be able to see staff members during an alarm, as their first port of call is the flat where the alarm was set off.

The spokesperson added that the vast majority of activations are due to “non-threatening events” such as “burnt toast or steam from showers” that can be dealt with without requiring evacuation. They added that there has not been a fire alarm this year that has required full evacuation and fire brigade attendance.

Laura Howes, a business studies student at UWL, said she was told “nothing at all” about the problems with the building before she moved in.

She said: “It has really terrified me and the fact that we now have to continue living there for the next couple of nights until we can pack up our stuff is even more scary.”

The blocks were built by the private house builder Berkeley Group before being sold to Pathfinder Housing Association in 2006. Pathfinder has become part of NHG following a series of mergers.

A number of students in the blocks are currently self-isolating after testing positive for COVID-19.

Ms Howes recently came out of self-isolation after testing positive for the virus. During that time she organised a ‘community food bank’ to receive donations from local residents after students struggled to access food and other supplies.

Inside Housing understands that the university did make efforts to provide students with food when they were made aware of the issues.

UWL students are now being moved to alternative accommodation in Wembley, which is further away from their campus.

Ms Willis said she is currently attending classes from 9am till 7pm in Ealing and is worried about the impact of the commute on her studies.

She said: “I know that they are panicking, but… obviously they’ve been going through the safety checks for months. If they knew that there was a potential need to vacate, this should have been thought out.”

The university will be putting on a shuttle bus between the accommodation and campus and students will be offered a free travelcard.

Kate Davies, chief executive of NHG, said: “We are extremely sorry that we have had to ask our student residents to leave the Paragon Estate, which we understand is causing disruption and worry to them at what is already a challenging time…

“We understand this is a distressing time and are offering free well-being advice and face-to-face counselling sessions to all student residents for the next 12 months.

“All Paragon students have been found alternative accommodation in other purpose-built student housing. We are supporting them as they move to their new homes and providing travel expenses and removal costs, including a packing service. Our intention is for all students to be in their new homes within the next week.

“We have worked with Public Health England to ensure that students who are self-isolating will be moved safely, with full PPE, to accommodation where they can continue to self-isolate safely if necessary.”

A representative from UWL said: “Following the receipt of new expert building safety advice, NHG informed the UWL’s leadership team of safety and construction concerns affecting students and other residents living in the Paragon Estate, and of the need for all residents to vacate the building as soon as possible to enable a comprehensive safety review to commence…

“Since being informed of the situation, UWL’s sole focus has been on identifying suitable alternative student accommodation and to put in place a comprehensive package of measures to support our students…

“Alternative accommodation has been secured for all those affected. Extensive support plans are in place to facilitate the smoothest possible transition to the new accommodation. The university and the students’ union are working closely to ensure the well-being of our students and to ensure any disruption is kept to a minimum.”

Update: at 11.45am on 21.10.2020:

Following the publication of this story, NHG provided an additional statement as follows: "We have responded to changing health and safety advice and regrettably, that advice has shifted. Our response this week is as a result of that. We have employed numerous measures to protect residents and these have been communicated. Any suggestion that we have knowingly put lives at risk is wholly without substance."

Nowhere in this story was it suggested that the organisation knowingly put lives at risk.

A further addition was made, at the further request of NHG, to clarify that safety issues with the building relate to more than just cladding. "To be clear, there are numerous issues with Paragon, and the evacuation of people this week is not because of the cladding, but because of broader safety issues," a spokesperson said.

Inisde Housing’s story contained no implication that the evacuation was due to cladding.

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