South Yorkshire tower block fire check finds 201 at-risk buildings

The fire service is working to identify all high-rise buildings which need fire safety work

A fire service safety inspection of high-rise buildings found 201 properties not included on an "inaccurate" government list.

South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue service inspected all high-rises in the county following the 2017 Grenfell Tower fire.

It found a total of 309 tower blocks in need of improvements, including 108 identified by the government.

A government spokesman said it was "wrong to suggest that these buildings are unsafe or dangerous".

Additional government funding to replace unsafe cladding in residential buildings was announced in February.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) provided the brigade with £126,194, based on its figure of 108 buildings.

More Yorkshire stories

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, a report to the county's fire and rescue authority said: "It was identified early on, that the MHCLG list did not provide an accurate number of High Rise Residential Building (HRRBs) within South Yorkshire, and that more work would need to be done by the team to identify a truer list of premises."

The service said it had carried out 179 building inspections on high-rise residential buildings, and found 69 had problems with cladding, insulation, fire break systems, or other external wall system issues.

'Comprehensive review'

Many tower blocks were found to be unsafe following the Grenfell fire, in which 72 people died.

This meant many thousands of flat-owners have since faced huge bills for necessary fire-safety improvements.

The government announced in February it was providing an additional £3.5bn to replace unsafe cladding in residential buildings over 18m high "at no cost to residents".

The government spokesman added: "We continue to work with the South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service to make sure all high-rise residential buildings over 18m in their area are reviewed or inspected by the end of this year.

"It is wrong to suggest that these buildings are unsafe or dangerous.

"Instead, these buildings will be part of our comprehensive review of high-rise, residential buildings to make them safer."

Follow BBC Yorkshire on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [e-mail] or send video here.