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Sharma refuses request for help funding sprinklers in high rises
The housing minister has described sprinkler systems as “additional rather than essential” as he refused a council’s request to lift financial restrictions to install them in high rises.
Alok Sharma wrote to Nottingham City Council earlier this month to decline its request for help funding £8m of works to high rises in the city, including a £6m bill to retrofit sprinklers in 13 towers.
In his letter, dated 3 September and seen by Inside Housing today (see document below), Mr Sharma said: “The government expects building owners to fund measures designed to make a building safe and to draw on existing resources to do so. We would consider the removal of financial restrictions in limited circumstances.
"It would appear the work you want to carry out to buildings does not meet either of these categories and the fire safety measures you outline are additional rather than essential. On that basis, any costs would have to be borne by your authority without any further financial assistance.
His comments directly contradict Dany Cotton, commissioner of the London Fire Brigade, who told BBC Breakfast this morning that retrofitting sprinklers “can’t be optional; it can’t be a ‘nice to have’. This is something that must happen”.
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Inside Housing’s Never Again campaign calls on the government to fully fund the retrofitting of sprinklers in high rises across the UK.
Encouraging the retrofit of sprinklers in high rises was a recommendation of the coroner following the Lakanal House fire in London in 2009, which killed six people.
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In a cladding fire similar to Grenfell in a high rise in Australia in 2014, there were no fatalities. The building was equipped with a sprinkler system.
In a letter to the minister on 8 August, Jane Urquhart, portfolio holder for planning and housing at Nottingham City Council, had called for funding support from government.
She wrote: “You seem to be unaware of the financial pressure councils are under, much thanks for funding reductions implemented by your government… We estimate the cost of installing sprinklers in our tower blocks will cost in the region of £6m; money we haven’t got or budgeted for.
The government contributed to this crisis and must contribute to the response.”
Never Again campaign
Inside Housing has launched a campaign to improve fire safety following the Grenfell Tower fire
Never Again: campaign asks
Inside Housing is calling for immediate action to implement the learning from the Lakanal House fire, and a commitment to act – without delay – on learning from the Grenfell Tower tragedy as it becomes available.
LANDLORDS
- Take immediate action to check cladding and external panels on tower blocks and take prompt, appropriate action to remedy any problems
- Update risk assessments using an appropriate, qualified expert.
- Commit to renewing assessments annually and after major repair or cladding work is carried out
- Review and update evacuation policies and ‘stay put’ advice in light of risk assessments, and communicate clearly to residents
GOVERNMENT
- Provide urgent advice on the installation and upkeep of external insulation
- Update and clarify building regulations immediately – with a commitment to update if additional learning emerges at a later date from the Grenfell inquiry
- Fund the retrofitting of sprinkler systems in all tower blocks across the UK (except where there are specific structural reasons not to do so)
We will submit evidence from our research to the Grenfell public inquiry.
The inquiry should look at why opportunities to implement learning that could have prevented the fire were missed, in order to ensure similar opportunities are acted on in the future.
