The power of local systems to save lives
Councils and their partners could do even more to contain the spread of COVID-19 if properly funded to undertake a robust localised system of testing, tracking and tracing, argues Professor Donna Hall.
Building safety fund not 'enough' says task force
21/05/2020 The government fund to replace dangerous cladding is not enough to make all buildings safe, the Greater Manchester High Rise Task Force has warned. |
More councils sign pledge to continue with building safety work
07/05/2020 The leaders of 25 councils have signed a pledge to continue with vital building safety improvements during the pandemic. |
Cladding remediation work to pick up pace
23/04/2020 Vital building safety work to replace unsafe cladding on high-rise buildings that had ‘significantly slowed down’ as a result of the coronavirus pandemic will resume, it has been announced. |
Grenfell taskforce to ‘stand down’
27/03/2020 The Government has announced that the taskforce set up to help the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea respond to the Grenfell tragedy is to stand down at the end of the month. |
Budget 2020: £1bn Building Safety Fund to remove unsafe cladding
11/03/2020 A new £1bn fund to remove unsafe cladding from high-rise buildings has been unveiled today by the chancellor. |
High-rise residents warn worries over fire safety causing mental distress
24/02/2020 A survey of residents living in high-rise buildings in Manchester has found fire safety risks are damaging their mental health and wellbeing. |
Councils slam Grenfell's witnesses' immunity request
07/02/2020 Councils would be unlikely to use products from any company that fails to cooperate fully with the Grenfell Tower inquiry, the Local Government Association (LGA) has warned. |
Sector presses for further action on cladding
21/01/2020 Building safety reforms billed as the ‘biggest change for a generation’ do not go far enough to clamp down on potentially dangerous cladding, councils argued this week. |
Manchester becomes 'early adopter' of Hackitt Review
20/01/2020 Manchester City Council has joined three other councils to become an ‘early adopter’ of the recommendations made in the Hackitt Review. |
Welsh government bans combustible cladding
23/12/2019 Welsh government has banned the use of combustible cladding on high rise buildings following the Hackitt review into fire safety after the Grenfell tragedy. |
Grenfell inquiry: Better communication between councils and fire services needed
30/10/2019 ‘Far better direct communication’ between local authorities and fire and rescue services is needed, an official inquiry has urged. |
Queen's Speech 19: Whitehall to ‘implement’ new building safety standards
14/10/2019 The Government plans to ‘implement new building safety standards’ in order to prevent a repeat of the Grenfell Tower tragedy, according to the Queen’s speech. |
The safety of social housing
26/09/2019 Neil Merrick explores how councils are improving the safety of social housing two years after the Grenfell Tower tragedy. |
Council announces £57m funding for estate next to Grenfell
25/07/2019 Kensington and Chelsea Council are to invest £57m transforming an estate next to Grenfell Tower. |
Whitehall ‘too slow’ in reforming fire safety rules after Grenfell
18/07/2019 The Government has been ‘far too slow’ in reforming the building and fire safety regime in the wake of the Grenfell tragedy, MPs have said. |
Grenfell Tower: Hundreds of high-rise buildings still have 'unsafe' cladding
14/06/2019 There are still 'huge challenges ahead' two years after the Grenfell Tower fire, according to the leader of the council where the disaster took place. |
Social housing tenants ‘failed’ by poor regulation
10/06/2019 Social housing tenants are being forced to report the same problem with their home multiple times, a housing charity has warned today. |
Firefighters blast Government for ‘complacency’ after the Grenfell fire
21/05/2019 The Government has done nothing to ‘adequately prepare’ fire and rescue services for another Grenfell-type fire, a firefighter union has warned. |
Councils urge Government to fund sprinkler installations
27/03/2019 Local authorities have called on the Government to fund the installation of sprinklers in high-rise buildings two years after the Grenfell tragedy. |
Grenfell residents had human rights breached, watchdog warns
13/03/2019 The residents of Grenfell Tower had their human rights breached by the council and public services before the fire started, a watchdog has warned. |
Councils calls for tougher regulations around sprinklers in high-rise buildings
12/03/2019 Local government leaders are calling for tougher rules governing the installation of sprinklers in high-rise buildings following last year's Grenfell tragedy. |
Manchester residents will not have to pay to remove Grenfell-style cladding
04/03/2019 Apartment owners in Manchester will not be required to pay for replacing the dangerous cladding on their buildings, it has been confirmed. |
Grenfell cladding over 50 times more flammable than safer alternative
18/01/2019 The cladding used on Grenfell Tower was 55 times more flammable than the least combustible materials available, according to a new study. |
Councils given power to remove unsafe cladding from private buildings
30/11/2018 Local authorities have been given the power to strip unsafe cladding from private residential buildings over 18 metres tall. |
The long journey towards rebuilding trust at Kensington and Chelsea RLBC
13/11/2018 The Grenfell tragedy and its aftermath were devastating, says Elizabeth Campbell - and she pledges to listen more closely to local people to ensure they 'have a real stake in what is happening on their own doorsteps and in their own lives'. |
Twelve councils given funding to remove unsafe cladding
18/10/2018 The Government has released the first £248m of a fund to pay for the removal and replacement of unsafe cladding from high-rise tower blocks. |
Council worker charged with Grenfell Tower fraud
30/08/2018 A council worker has been accused of stealing money intended for those affected by the Grenfell Tower fire. |
Government steps in following Grenfell Tower outcry
01/08/2018 The Government will take on responsibility for the Grenfell Tower site, Marsham Street has announced. |
MPs call for sprinklers to be fitted to all high-rise residential buildings
18/07/2018 The Government should provide funding to enable councils to fit sprinklers in all high-rise residential buildings to avoid another tragedy like the Grenfell Tower fire, MPs have argued today. |
Removal of combustible cladding has left some buildings at ‘serious fire risk’
28/06/2018 The removal of combustible cladding from tower blocks could be making buildings more dangerous, experts have warned MPs. |
Councils double number of fire safety tenders in wake of Grenfell
19/06/2018 The number of councils tendering for fire safety work has shot up in the year since the Grenfell disaster, according to the latest figures. |
What the fire taught us
14/06/2018 After Grenfell, changes to governance and consultation were the recommendations of a study for Kensington & Chelsea RLBC by the Centre for Public Scrutiny, and the Democratic Society. Jacqui McKinlay explains. |
Council efforts to rehouse Grenfell survivors ‘fallen way short’, report says
12/06/2018 Kensington and Chelsea council’s performance in the wake of the Grenfell tragedy has ‘fallen way short’, according to a new report into the rehousing of those who survived the fire. |
Council response to Grenfell tragedy was 'weak' - report
30/05/2018 Damage caused by Kensington and Chelsea RLBC's ‘weak’ response in the immediate aftermath of the Grenfell Tower fire will be ‘difficult to repair,’ a report has suggested. |
Council promise to assist Grenfell inquiry ‘expose the lesson’ of the fire
21/05/2018 The leader of Kensington and Chelsea council today said her authority will assist the Grenfell inquiry ‘to expose the lessons’ from the tragedy so all councils may apply them. |
Councils disappointed Hackitt review fails to ban combustible cladding
17/05/2018 Local councils will have extra responsibilities for monitoring the safety of higher-risk residential buildings (HRRBs), under sweeping, wholesale reforms to the regulatory landscape proposed by the final Hackitt report, published today. |
Government commits £400m to remove dangerous cladding
17/05/2018 The replacement and removal of unsafe cladding by councils will be fully funded by the Government, at an estimated cost of £400m. |
Fire safety tests still ‘utterly’ inadequate post-Grenfell, study reveals
25/04/2018 New research carried out in the wake of the Grenfell Tower fire has exposed the ‘utter inadequacy’ of the tests currently used to check the fire safety of building materials. |
Whitehall to consult on banning fire performance ‘desktop studies’
12/04/2018 The Government yesterday launched a consultation into the use of ‘desktop studies’ to assess the fire performance of external cladding systems. |
Time for action
02/03/2018 Adrian Pargeter explores the long-term steps local authorities should take to ensure tenants are no longer living in unsafe buildings. |
Principles agreed for deciding future of Grenfell Tower site
01/03/2018 A set of principles to guide the forthcoming consultations on the future of the Grenfell Tower site have been agreed between the council, the community and the Government. |
Councils to share £1m to identify unsafe cladding on private bildings
01/03/2018 Local authorities are to share £1m to help then identify private high-rise buildings that may be clad in unsafe building materials. |
Unsafe cladding removed from only 4% of affected social housing
28/02/2018 Only seven social housing buildings have fully replaced their unsafe cladding in the wake of the Grenfell tragedy, shocking new findings reveal. |
Councils deplore Government guidance after Grenfell
21/02/2018 The Government’s guidance on fire safety after the Grenfell Tower fire has been ‘mediocre,’ ‘contradictory,’ ‘disjointed’ or non-existent, councils have said in response to a Labour survey. |
Construction professionals support ban on combustible materials on high-rise buildings
21/02/2018 Almost three-quarters (74%) of construction industry professionals believe that using combustible materials on mid-, high-rise and sensitive buildings should be banned, according to a new survey. |
KPMG quits Grenfell inquiry amid accusations of a conflict of interest
08/01/2018 Accountancy firm KPMG has announced it is quitting its advisory role on the Grenfell inquiry after campaigners accuse it of a conflict of interest. |
Council warns of ‘unprecedented’ fire safety funding gap
03/01/2018 Croydon Council has called on the Government to provide financial support to authorities struggling to pay for necessary tower block fire safety measures. |
Kensington & Chelsea announces ‘far-reaching’ review of Grenfell management
02/01/2018 The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Council has announced a ‘thorough and far-reaching’ review into the arms-length organisation that managed Grenfell Tower. |
Review highlights fire safety failings
18/12/2017 Scores of buildings do not have up-to-date arrangements for fire safety, an independent review has found. |
Public sector leadership: what can be learned from Grenfell?
15/12/2017 Grenfell sent shockwaves across the nation and has forced public sector organisations across the country to ask themselves serious questions. |
Human rights watchdog launches Grenfell fire inquiry
11/12/2017 The harm suffered by those who survived or witnessed the Grenfell Tower fire may constitute ‘inhumane and degrading treatment’, according to human rights watchdogs. |
Petition calls on PM to ensure Grenfell inquiry is ‘representative’
01/12/2017 A petition has called on the Prime Minister to ensure the Grenfell inquiry is representative so that those affected can have ‘confidence’ in its findings. |
This issue of Public Property examines how how flexible workspaces can lead the way in regeneration for local authorities, Why local authority intervention is key to successful urban regeneration schemes and if the Government’s challenge of embracing beauty is an opportunity for communities.
The March issue also takes a closer look at Blackburn with Darwen Council's first digital health hub to help people gain control over health and care services.
