Tower block safety net will cost £500k - council

The building was constructed about 1969 and re-clad externally in the 1990s

A Lancashire council is set to spend £500,000 to stop debris falling from an empty town centre tower onto the streets below.

Blackburn with Darwen Council has proposed covering the 16-storey building behind the town hall and above the Mall shopping centre in Blackburn with netting.

Executive Member for Growth and Development Labour councillor Quesir Mahmood has asked the council to authorise the spending to make the block and its cladding safe in the longer term.

Conservative growth spokesman councillor Paul Marrow said steps to make sure the building was safe should already have been taken and that urgent action was needed to dispose of it as it was now "a liability" for the council.

'Debris netting system'

The building was vacated in 2022, apart from a small facilities management team which left in April 2024.

In his report Mr Mahmood said it was constructed about 1969 and re-clad externally in the 1990s.

"During 2025 work has been undertaken to safely decommission the building with a focus on reducing holding costs and to allow time to consider the future of the building," he said.

Mr Mahmood said "routine inspections and maintenance" had identified "actions to be taken".

He said the building structure "is safe" but given its "age and condition of the external cladding system and increasingly severe weather conditions" independent assessors "have concluded that the entire building should be enveloped as soon as possible".

"More specifically, the solution identified requires the installation of a full-height debris netting system fixed to the building structure to provide an effective interim control measure," he said.

The work - costing up to £500,000 - would "ensure that the building is protected and secure, and the risk from falling materials is mitigated to a minimum".

"This solution would also enable the council to assess the future of the building," he added.

Councillor Mustafa Desai, leader of the 4BwD opposition group, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: "I support the recommendations, but I'm concerned that this building has been vacant for several years and presents a long-term liability.

"Its future plans are unclear, and this will continue to pose challenges."