More than three years on from the Grenfell Tower Tragedy, the Housing Secretary, Robert Jenrick, has announced a new £3.5 Billion fund towards the fixing of dangerous cladding on high-rise buildings in England.
In his announcement, Robert Jenrick stated that he was “today making an exceptional intervention on behalf of the Government” by making this “further funding available to pay for the removal and replacement of unsafe cladding for all leaseholders in high-rise residential buildings of 18 meters and above, or 6 storeys, in England.”
What about Buildings under 6-storeys?
This extra £3.5 billion in funding relates to high-rise buildings in England. The money will go into the Government’s Building Safety Fund and will not be used towards cladding removal on lower-rise buildings.
However, it has been announced that leaseholders in lower and medium rise buildings under 18m that face cladding removal will also be protected from the costs of this through the introduction of a “long-term, low interest, government-backed financing arrangement.”
Since the risks are considered lower, remediation is less likely to be needed on lower and medium rise blocks. However, where it is needed, it has been announced that the Government will develop a long-term scheme of financial support for cladding remediation (for buildings between 4 and 6 storeys).
What does this mean for Leaseholders of buildings between 4 and 6 storeys?
Whilst Leaseholder’s of buildings above 18m will not have to pay anything towards unsafe cladding removal thanks to the new funding, leaseholders of buildings between 4 and 6 storeys will have costs of up to £50 a month for the removal of unsafe cladding on their blocks.
The Housing Secretary argued that has been put in place so that “no leaseholder will ever have to pay more than £50 a month towards the removal of unsafe cladding, many far less.”
It is important to note, that these costs will only cover the removal of unsafe cladding and will not extend to further fire safety work.
