A High Court claim has been filed against a housebuilder as part of a construction-related dispute after historic fire safety defects were found at a block of flats in Salford
As reported by Building Magazine, housing association Irwell Valley has asked the High Court to rule on whether Vistry Group should be considered the developer of the residential development, Fourth Quarter, and therefore liable for remediation costs.
Built in 2009 by a subsidiary of Vistry, Countryside Partnerships, “life-critical fire safety defects” were discovered at the low-rise block in Salford, which contains 29 flats.
According to court papers submitted by the claimant on 18 July 2025, Vistry was notified of the fire safety defects at the premises in early 2024. Irwell Valley argues that the developer is a known signatory of the government’s developer remediation contract, demonstrating its commitment to remedying historic fire safety defects, but has yet to accept any responsibility for the block of flats in question.
Countryside, which Vistry acquired in November 2022, disputes any liability under the developer remediation contract, stating it “was merely the contractor undertaking the construction works [at Fourth Quarter] and was not to be regarded as having played a role as a developer”.
The housing association believes, however, that Countryside should be considered a “participant developer” under the terms of the government’s remediation contract alongside other companies involved in the development that are also part of the Countryside group.
In the Part 8 Claim – Construction (incl construction materials), Irwell Valley seeks clarification from the High Court on whether Countryside was, in fact, a “developer in relation to the property to determine building safety remediation responsibility”.
The claimant added that it had not received a copy of the development agreement relating to the Fourth Quarter development from either Vistry or Countryside. Information about the cost of remediation works at the Fourth Quarter development, or whether they have been completed, has not been provided in the housing association’s court documents.
As reported by Construction News, Vistry saw a significant increase in its building safety provision, with 41 new building safety remediation claims made in 2024. Rising by £117.1 million, the provision for rectifying building safety defects across it housing portfolio now stands at £324.4 million.