How Grenfell Should Be Boosting Retrofit - But Isn't

One tragedy is too many. Now, things could be getting much worse. The Grenfell report was not the end of the story, just the beginning.

Social housing in the UK was one of the finest examples of our country doing something right. With it's roots in the industrial revolution, the improvements in living standards encouraged better, more productive working lives - and society got richer.

Now to today.

The Grenfell Fire was a defining moment in our history - and the subsequent government action to remediate cladding should have been the catalyst for widespread investment not just in the cladding, but in living spaces of all social housing.

With better social housing, those people can get a step closer to living healthier and happier, and again, more productive, fulfilled lives.

With the publication this month of the National Audit Office report in the government handling of the remediation issue post Grenfell Tower. There was some stunning figures.

Dangerous cladding: the government’s remediation portfolio - NAO report

Up to 60% of buildings with dangerous cladding have not yet been identified & remediation for buildings within government’s portfolio is slow.

National Audit Office (NAO)

But rather than soak up the report like a sop. We went out and found some people to talk to. People who were interviewed for the report.

This is what we discovered. Although the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government issued their their remediation plan for medium high rises (11-18) in 2023 - 6 years after Grenfell Tower was discovered to be unsafe. Many unitary and city councils where already attempting to survey their vast estates and portfolios.

"I'd like to think our department was at least 4 years ahead. We all were taking trips however we could, buses, trains, cycling and cars to survey our building stock". Director of Landlord and Housing services.

But medium rise buildings have been missed, according to the NAO, thousands of them. In fact the report from the NAO says some may never be registered.

The NAO report states,

Some building owners may be reluctant to engage for fear of uncovering problems that are out-of-scope for government funding, and that others – such as Right to Manage companies – can lack the time and knowledge to navigate the process. p.11 Section. 10

Our sources corroborated the NAO report which stated that some councils may never know the number of medium rise buildings and one source then said this;

"We are missing a golden opportunity whilst we remediate this cladding on so many social housing houses - homes we could be retrofitting them with to make their homes warmer, cheaper and more efficient to heat" City Building and Estates Manager

So I had to ask them.

What could be done and then I got some feedback I was not expecting. They responded with a list of comments, in some granular detail;

1. There is help needed to raise funds for the backlog of Expanded Polystyrene remediation works that need completing.
2. Re-invigorate the council tender system so young companies can win contracts rather than be stymied by cartel organised pricing.
3. Re-inforce the ring fencing of funding that is supposed to be for city and county upkeep but is being used to subsidise new build developments.
4. If new builds are being built then enforce minimum units of social housing and insist on the same material as the preceding build.
5. Coordinate estate wide retrofit with remedial works and pitch out tenders to encourage supply chain growth!
   

And it was that last point that got me. What was the effect on the council housing stock right now.

One source told me;

"If you can imagine a piece of cladding has been pulled off after 20-30 years, so much has changed, and we could be fixing the wall insulation, the wiring, I mean the scaffold is up!"

The retrofit sector is in rude health, there are ancillary products being launched at the next few shows, new hemp boards, training software and service offerings. It's exciting times, but it won't be easy.

The NAO report, right at the last page, on the last bullet point raised this critical point;

"to maximise value for money from their investment in systems, MHCLG and Homes England should explore opportunities to use data collected on buildings for other purposes (in line with data protection rules) – for example, to provide information to residents or to support cross-government objectives such as on net zero."

Yeah go! Net zero heroes!

With climate resilience very much at the forefront of our minds, what can we do the best we can for our future selves?

Read our report about the Climate Resilience Roadmap coming next to find out!