Brighton: High rise residents warned block does not meet safety

Independent surveys of eight high rise towers in Brighton showed they do not meet the standards to withstand an explosion or fire and would be unable to "resist a disproportionate collapse".

A Brighton and Hove City Council spokesman said: "The surveys were carried out on the council’s behalf by independent consultants, which included both observational and intrusive surveying, and the findings show the building do not meet the current safety standards in relation to their ability to resist a disproportionate collapse in the case of an explosion or large fire.

"While there is no immediate danger to the buildings – and measures such as a ban on gas cannisters and barbecues have long been in place – we have acted on the advice of our independent consultants and taken a number of immediate steps as additional safety measures."

 The tower blocks affected are:

• Dudeney Lodge and Nettleton Court in Upper Hollingdean Road
• Falcon Court, Heron Court and Kestrel Court in Swanborough Place
• Kingfisher Court and Swallow Court in Albourne Close
• St James's House in High Street, Kemp Town

The buildings are all made of “large panel systems” (LPS).

LPS were popular in the 1950s and 60s for building multi-storey residential buildings across the country. The buildings are made up of reinforced floor and roof structures supported by precast concrete large panel walls.

The council has written to residents living in the blocks.

Chapel Street car park, beneath St James's House in Kemp Town, is closed (Image: Ramy Abou-Setta/The Argus)

The council said measures such as a ban on gas cannisters and barbecues have long been in place.

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Now, working with the fire regulator East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service and the Building Regulator and the Social Housing Regulator, the council has introduced the following measures:

• A temporary ban on e-bikes and e-scooter in all areas of the buildings, with the council providing alternative storage for these away from the blocks
• A temporary ban on vehicles parking underneath the blocks, which includes the temporary closure of the Chapel Street car park and a temporary suspension of the use of the garages behind Nettleton Court and Dudeney Lodge
• A further detailed inspection of the communal gas boiler at St James’s House
• A 24 hour security service will be put in place for the buildings to help manage what’s taken into the building and to support with floor walks and maintaining clear entrance and exit ways

The council will be holding a drop-in meetings for all the blocks over the next few weeks to give residents an opportunity to talk to councillors and council staff and ask any questions.

St James's House is one of the blocks affected (Image: Ramy Abou-Setta/The Argus)

Councillor Gill Williams, cabinet member for housing and new homes, said: “We do appreciate this will be worrying news for many residents in the LPS blocks, and we do apologise for that.

“We would like to reassure that the health and safety of our residents remains an absolute priority for the council, and we are working at pace to put in the additional precautionary measures to ensure the safety of the buildings.

“I will be holding drop-in sessions in the three areas and I’d invite all residents to join us. We will be vising all residents and are committed to working with them as part of our ongoing response to fire and building safety and our duties under the new national legislation.

“We will work with residents and will be led by them on the options for the longer-term future of the buildings.”