Brent Council to proceed with fire safety measures for all its blocks over 12 storeys high

The Brent Cabinet will be asked to approve a fire safety strategy LINK  for its housing stock at its next meeting which will centre on a five year programme of fire safety measures, with a particular emphasis on sprinkers, for all its blocks that are 12 storeys or higher. Standard 4 Fire Risk Assessments would be carried out as part of the programme.

These are the blocks (click on image to enlarge or see LINK):

The programme will be at a rate of 3 per year to be completed in 5 years and will be done alongside other improvement works.

The Council is faced with some uncertainty over financing of such improvements as well as what will eventually be recommended by the post-Grenfell Public Inquiry.

The report states:
 

The Chief Executive wrote to Department for Communities and Local government (DCLG) to request Government provide direct financial support to meet the costs that will be incurred. The current position in response to that request is that government will neither fund the additional works, nor change the policy on 1% decrease in rents up to 2020, nor increase the HRA borrowing cap as alternative ways to fund these additional works. However, there have been suggestions that there may be further announcements in the November 2017 Budget. 


This means that the £10m costs will need to be financed from the Housing Revenue Account which will  entail cuts in the  Capital Programme of at least £4.5m in 2018-19 and £3.9m in 2019-20 - unless the Chancellor comes up with some proposals in his budget.

As can be seen from the table above leaseholders in the blocks will be expected to contribute towards the costs of the improvement measures. This would raise £0.8m for the 14 blocks of over 12 storeys and £2.8m for all 37 Brent blocks. Average cost per leaseholder would be approximately £6,000.

London needs a million new homes by 2021 research claims

This statement from London Councils shows the depth of London's housing crisis:

London's future prosperity is in doubt unless steps - such as lifting restrictions on councils borrowing against their assets - are taken to build nearly a million homes by 2021, a new analysis shows.

London Councils, which represents London’s 33 local authorities, has carried out a new analysis of Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) and Greater London Authority (GLA) official housing statistics. The research reveals that:

• between 2011 and 2021, 526,000 new homes will need to be built in London just to keep up with new housing demand (London’s population is expected to increase by over one million in the next decade)
• only 250,000 homes will be built on current projections
• a further 283,000 homes will also need to be built to along with the 526,000 on current supply levels to meet both new demand and the backlog of housing need in London
• in total, 809,000 homes are needed by 2021 to meet new housing need as well as the backlog of housing need.

Current housing supply levels suggest that there will be a deficit of 559,000 homes by 2021 – which even when excluding factors such as overcrowding still amounts to 329,000 fewer homes than London will require. This will put London’s future status as a global city at risk while adding huge pressures to government and individuals’ budgets.

Mayor Sir Steve Bullock, London Councils’ Executive Member for Housing, said: “The news that London needs almost a million homes by 2021 is a scandal - the last time we faced such an acute housing supply crisis was after the Second World War. This is a long time coming and the capital’s future prosperity is on the line.”

“Rising housing costs are not only a problem for those struggling to rent but for any Londoner wishing to buy their own home.  If the housing crisis is not solved, costs for the London economy will continue to spiral. More working families will struggle to rent and to buy, more people could be forced out of the capital and homelessness is very likely to go up.”

London Councils’ discussion paper, which was released ahead of the party conference season, sets out a range of policy solutions to boost housing supply. This includes lifting the “Housing Borrowing Cap” which prevents councils investing in housing – a move supported by the wider housing and property sector .
Other policies include increasing investment in the rental sector, supporting smaller scale builders, and promoting sustainable development near London’s tube and rail network. 

The report estimates 134,000 homes could be built if all these measures and others were taken forward.

Mayor Sir Steve Bullock added: “With London’s population expected to top nine million by 2021, we need to use the party conference season to explore the radical strategic steps needed to build almost a million homes - such as lifting unnecessary restrictions on councils borrowing to invest in new homes and helping small businesses win construction contracts.”