[To consider any matter arising from the minutes].
Minutes:
Cllr Brackenridge asked for an update on fire safety matters in relation to housing, as he had made reference to this subject at the last meeting when the overall housing strategy for the City had been discussed. The online consultation survey did make reference to fire safety in relation to high rise blocks. He had responded to the survey on the housing strategy and raised the point that it was important to address the issue of fire safety in all houses across the City and not just high rise. He was the Chair of the Council’s, Fire Safety Scrutiny Group and had been trying to persuade the British Government to pass legislation for England to have the same requirement as in Scotland and Wales, where new build houses were required to have sprinklers fitted. Whilst England did not yet have the legislation, the Council was able to set its own high standards in relation to sprinklers, automatic fire detection systems and general fire safety matters. The Contractors which the Council owned company WV Living used, had actually already fitted sprinklers in new build properties in Milton Keynes. He wanted to make it clear that it was important to factor in the vulnerability of individuals when assessing fire risk. This was because 80% of people who died or were injured in fires were vulnerable people.
The Director for City Housing responded that she was pleased the Councillor had officially responded to the consultation on the Housing Strategy and his response along with all others received would be taken into account. She took the issue of fire safety very seriously and agreed that fire safety was important across all housing and not just within tower blocks. The Council were issuing improvement notices on privately owned high rise blocks and taking enforcement action where appropriate.
The Director for City Housing commented that the Council had already pledged to implement approximately £20 million of sprinkler infrastructure into the public sector owned high rise stock in Wolverhampton. A further £11 million was being invested in electrical works and other critical maintenance into the public sector stock. The Better Homes Board, which included Wolverhampton Homes as a partner, would be addressing how they approached fire safety in their new build programmes. They would report back to the Fire Safety Scrutiny Group with the decisions reached. WV Living would also be considering how they embedded fire safety strategy into their new build programmes and would be reporting back to the Council’s Fire Safety Scrutiny Group. The Council were also having conversations as part of the Community Build Programme with the Tenant Management and Co-operative organisations. In addition, they were discussing fire safety with Housing Association partners who managed housing stock. A report had recently been taken to Cabinet on enforcement practices for smoke and carbon monoxide homes in the private rental sector. The Council were working closely with the Fire Service on the issue. They were also making improvements to the Rent with Confidence Scheme.
The Director for City Housing stated that the Council would be submitting a full response to the national consultation on building regulations. A response would be submitted by 31 July 2019. They were also part of the MCHLG pilot on fire door safety. Updates from the Council, Wolverhampton Homes and WV Living on fire safety matters would be provided in depth to the Council’s Fire Safety Scrutiny Group which was meeting on the 17 July 2019.
Cllr Brackenridge expressed his thanks to the Director for City Housing for her response and for the work which was ongoing on fire safety at the Council and within Wolverhampton Homes. He felt they were leading the way on fire safety since the Grenfell fire tragedy and the conception of the Council’s Fire Safety Scrutiny Panel. The Grenfell fire was a preventable disaster caused by successive governments failing to address the matter of fire safety appropriately. The residents of Grenfell had been warning the authorities for some time about the dangers within the building. He reminded the Panel that legal standards were only minimum standards, authorities could go above and beyond the legal requirements. Dame Hackitt in her review of Building Regulations had described the current building regulations as not fit for purpose. However, two years since the Grenfell tragedy the very laws that were in place at the time of the tragedy were still in force. The Government had just released £200 million of funding to rectify high rise private tower blocks wrapped in Grenfell style cladding. Wolverhampton Homes had undertaken and were continuing to do some outstanding work in relation to fire safety.
Cllr Brackenridge expressed frustration and disappointment with the former Interim Director of Place who had left the Council in March 2019. This was because he had articulated to the Fire Safety Scrutiny Group at their last meeting that he had commissioned an independent report into whether sprinklers should be installed at the Civic Halls, but no report on this subject matter had materialised. The current independently commissioned Fire Strategy for the Civic Halls said that the Council had asked that sprinklers should not be an aspiration for the Civic Halls and therefore the Fire Strategy was based around there being no sprinklers. He found this astounding, given the recommendations the Fire Safety Scrutiny Group had made in the past and the several meetings he had personally had with the former interim Director of Place. He saw this as a failure of the Regeneration Department within the Council, who had responsibility for the refurbishment of the Civic Halls. He wanted to ensure that all departments within the Council took fire safety seriously. An overall strategy on fire safety was needed for the Council which he felt had been encapsulated as part of the previous recommendations from the Fire Safety Scrutiny Group to the Executive.