Javid gives Grenfell update to Parliament

Communities Secretary the Rt Hon Mr Sajid Javid MP gave an update to Parliament this week about the response of Her Majesty's Government to the Grenfell Tower fire. 

The points of the update relevant to Architectural Technology are summarised as follows: 

• The Grenfell Recovery Taskforce has been appointed and has started work
• The process of removing control of properties from the tenant management organisation has begun.
• The remit of the public inquiry has been set.
• Work is underway on the scaffolding that will surround the tower.
• Tests by BRE established that 165 social housing blocks over 18m in height are at risk due to flammable cladding.
• Local authorities/owners have been given detailed advice on treatment, with weekly updates from central government.
• BRE testing facilities have been made available to all private building owners, with 89 tests carried out so far. 
• Tests have uncovered other safety issues with structural engineers on the Ledbury Estate in London discovering problems similar to those linked to the Ronan Point disaster in 1968, when part of a tower block collapsed following a gas explosion. 
• Some cladding systems in Glasgow may be at risk from high winds. 

A full update was published on 5 September and may be read here.