Harlow flats may be demolished over £5.5m 'Grenfell' bill

Residents of the flats in Sycamore Field have been informed of the plan, the council said

Residents could be moved after a council said it would be cheaper to demolish their homes than carry out £5.5m of essential fire safety work.

Harlow Council said it had already spent £300,000 on Sycamore Field flats following fire service advice.

Leader Dan Swords said the Grenfell Tower tragedy, which killed 72 people, necessitated safety reviews, but there was a "substantial cost in doing so".

A report recommending demolition will be heard by the cabinet on 15 February.

The Conservative-led council described it as a "difficult" decision and said residents were likely to be be moved out of the flats in Sycamore Field, Sumners, over a period of several months.

Of the 54 homes, 34 are occupied by leaseholders - 14 of which are private renters - and 15 lived in by council tenants. Five homes are empty.

'Huge upheaval'

Mr Swords said the news was "absolutely devastating" for those living there, but the situation had been an issue since initial inspections were carried out in December 2020.

"The latest advice is that in order to bring them to potentially safe standard - but there's no guarantee - we would have to spend in excess of £5.5m," he told the BBC.

"That means a bill to leaseholders of more than £110,000 each, and that's to just bring it to safe standard, not to improve the blocks.

"I don't think anyone would argue that that's a sensible use of money, so we're looking at what to do next."

The council has said any works would cause huge upheaval and it would be "more cost effective to move people out and demolish the buildings".

Council leader Dan Swords said the stuation at Sycamore Field was "unique"

Work carried out on the blocks since 2020 included a full fire detection system, new stores for recycling bins and closing the car parking under the flats.

Having a person watch the flats 24/7, to alert residents and assist with an evacuation was running up a bill of £4,000 a week, the council added.

'No guarantee'

Investigations of vacant homes revealed the entire wall system and structure would need upgrading, the council explained, with work further complicated by the presence of asbestos.

If the report is approved, residents would be supported and given financial compensation, with tenants given the highest priority for other council homes, the council said.

Mr Swords said he appreciated it was a difficult and unsettling time for residents, who had been informed of the plans.

"We have carried out works in other flat blocks and tower blocks in the town, but the situation at Sycamore Field is unique and we must now decide what to do," he added.

"Independent specialists are telling us that we will need to spend well over £5.5m on further works, which will deliver no other improvements to the look or energy efficiency of the buildings.

"There is no guarantee that these works will adequately protect the block and that further work won't then be required."