Plans in for ‘urgent’ cladding work at City Gate
Dangerous aluminium carbonate cladding needs to be removed from three blocks at Bellway’s Castlefield scheme and an application for the work has now been lodged more than three years after the problem was identified.
The application was lodged by property management firm Rendall & Rittner, which manages City Gate 1, 2 and 3, the residential blocks developed by housebuilder Bellway on Blantyre Street, Manchester.
The planned remediation work is due to start at the end of the year, subject to sign-off from government housing body Homes England, and will see the ACM cladding removed from each of the blocks and replaced with a non-combustible material.
Sections of timber cladding on City Gate 1 and 2 will also be replaced.
In 2017, when the faulty cladding was first identified, residents were told they might have to contribute up to £7,000 each for the remediation work.
However, funding for the work is now being sought from the Government, which has set aside £1bn for the removal of unsafe materials from residential blocks across the country in the wake of the Grenfell tragedy.
A spokesperson for Rendall & Rittner said: “Subject to approval from Homes England, work is anticipated to start at the end of the year and costs are being sought from both the Government’s ACM and Building Safety Funds, although we haven’t yet been given clarity on how much will be awarded.”
Bellway has been contacted for comment.
1210 days since sadly 72 people lost lives in a tower block and we still have dangerous cladding on tower blocks. There is still hundreds of tower blocks all the UK with cladding on putting citizens lives at risk.
By Darren born bred.
Seen quite a bit written about these problems over the last few years, I can’t understand why the builders, consultants, architects, designers or manufacturers aren’t the ones being held to financial account and why are tax payers in the seat to fund remediation?
By Simon Calvert
Can we ask the project team about the cavity fire barriers?
And now we are paying Surveyors to confirm that the steel frame has been fire protected!
By Resident
I agree with Simon Calvert, it’s a disgrace.
By Resident Eville
Simon Calvert – They’re not being held to account because for the most part the regulations at the time classified the materials in question as being acceptable. It’s the regulations at fault not the consultants.
By Oscar
Playing devils advocate, why should the developer or anyone else be responsible, if hey built it within the current laws and regulations that existed at that time. If there is a fundamental issue with the structure of the building that’s the issue, then i could understand, but blaming them for cladding which was legal at the time is a bit much…at the end of the day it’s no ones fault….
By Steve
Bellway have taken zero ownership. Stalled and ignored communications, and yet they’re still being awarded new bids
By Resident
Your stance doesn’t pass even the lightest scrutiny. Our legislators specified what they deemed to be acceptable and the supply chain followed the rules. The legislators then changed the rules after the event. How are any of the people on your list therefore financially liable? It’s nonsense.
By Sceptical
Bellway take absolutely zero responsibility. They built the unsafe buildings. People’s lives are at risk, they should be levied by the government and made to pay for this.
By Public
Bellway just keep quiet, uninvolved and get away with it
By Jim rennie
Oscar, what about untreated steelwork and flawed or missing fire breaks
By Jim rennie
What does ‘dangerous aluminium carbonate cladding’ actually mean? Precisely what is the issue? I don’t understand why these cladding is more dangerous than fireplaces in old properties.
By Jenny Corybn
I’d rather they knocked them down, dreadful cheap building
By Dan