Oxford tower block residents 'elated' after £2.7m renovation bill cut

Windrush Tower had rain-screen cladding added then later removed

Tower block residents who were sent renovation bills adding up to more than £2.7m have now been told they will only have to pay about £216,000.

Oxford City Council said in 2016 it wanted to carry out refurbishments to five buildings in Blackbird Leys, Cowley and Northway.

But a tribunal ruled the 54 leaseholders were not obliged to pay for improvements, only repairs.

The council said "the issue had been resolved".

Leaseholder Jackie Stocker said residents were "elated".

'Sleepless nights'

Each leaseholder faced a bill of about £50,000, but the individual bills are now less than £4,000.

Ms Stocker, of Hockmore Tower and secretary of the Oxford Towerblocks Leaseholder Association, said: "What Oxford City Council did, and their conduct, was absolutely despicable.

"People have had two years of sleepless nights and this hanging over them... I hope this sets a precedent for other people against councils."

The authority applied to the HM Courts & Tribunals Service for a ruling on whether the charges, part of a £20m revamp, were reasonable.

Residents have now been deemed only liable to pay for work on the lifts, and structural and concrete repairs.

Work on the roof, windows, balconies, doors, ventilation, cladding and sprinklers was not applicable, the tribunal found.

'Widely welcomed'

Cladding added to towers has since been removed in the wake of the fatal Grenfell Tower fire.

Stephen Clarke, head of housing and property services at the council, said: "We are pleased that as the repairs project is nearing its completion, the issue of leaseholder contributions has now been resolved.

"The improvements have been widely welcomed by residents and are much valued and appreciated."

The council said it had spent £228,000 on all legal work on the tower blocks project, which included some fees for the tribunal.