Council tower block to be demolished next year

The decision to knock down St Peter's Court was made following a survey of the site

The demolition of a town's only residential tower block is due to start early next year.

Everyone in the 90 flats in St Peter's Court in Lowestoft, Suffolk, have been offered alternative accommodation elsewhere in the town, East Suffolk Council said.

It made the decision in October 2023 to knock down the 16-storey building after a survey revealed it would cost £23m to maintain the site.

The former Borough of Lowestoft council constructed the high-rise in 1968.

The flats would have cost millions to maintain, the council said

David Beavan, East Suffolk's Liberal Democrat cabinet member for housing, said: "We did promise to offer everybody there a place in Lowestoft and the housing department has worked really hard and they have managed to do that, which I'm very pleased about.

"We now need to get it down and look at what to put up in its place. Demolition work should start early in the New Year.

"My opinion is that we don't want another 16-storey building there, so we will be looking at a lower-rise structure.

"But we do need density so we are coming up with a plan that will be imaginative and good for the environment"

According to the council, initial estimates indicated the repair cost for St Peter's Court would have been almost £8.8m in year one.

It said two-thirds of residents in 2023 "either supported [demolition] or would be content with whatever decision was taken".

A council spokesperson said pre-demolition work would begin internally, with external work expected to commence in 2025.