A coalition of building safety groups has come together with the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) to call for the development of a housing scheme planned for Penge in Bromley, London, to be blocked in its current form
On 9 May, a letter was sent to London Mayor, Sir Sadiq Khan, and Bromley Council leader, Colin Smith raising “serious concerns” over the development of 230 homes across four blocks at the site of the current Blenheim Shopping Centre in Penge. It warns of the potential for “another fire safety disaster” if the current proposal goes ahead as approved, highlighting the fact that one of the high-rise towers is planned to be 17.7m tall with one staircase. This places it just 30cm short of requiring a second staircase, an act which the letter says is not ethically justified.
It points out that “The fire risks are almost identical as a building that is 30cm taller and would not meet the requirements of the regulations. Evacuation at Grenfell was severely hindered by the single narrow stairwell.”
Referencing the requirement within the London Plan Policy 2021 D12 for all developments to “achieve the highest standards of fire safety”, it accuses the developers Hadley Property Group and Clarion Housing Group of “doing the bare minimum to meet fire safety standards”.
It also raises other fire safety concerns from the London Fire Brigade (LFB) around the lack of suitable means of escape for occupants in open plan apartments and a second evacuation lift which they claim have “been ignored by the developer or remain unresolved.”
In spite of LFB submitting a nine-point objection to the plans, the scheme was approved by Bromley Council, leading to the letter signed by representatives from the Fire Brigades Union, End Our Cladding Scandal, UK Cladding Action Group, Justice4Grenfell, Tower Blocks UK, Social Housing Action Campaign, ACORN the Union, London Renters Union Coordinating Group, Labour Campaign for Council Housing, and Penge Preservation Society being sent.
The development will provide a third of the Borough’s annual housing targets, with affordable housing making up 35% of the scheme, with a 60/40 split between London’s affordable/social rent and shared ownership.
As reported by Construction Enquirer, the designs for two of the four proposed blocks do have second staircases. However, one of the smaller towers had changes made to the ground-floor commercial unit, which reduced the ceiling height and consequently the overall height to 17.7m.
Speaking on the release of the letter, Fire Brigades Union general secretary Steve Wright said: "This is an attempt to cut corners and get around the building safety regulations introduced to avoid a repeat of the Grenfell Tower tragedy.
"If the development goes ahead in its current form, residents of this property will only have one staircase which they can use to evacuate. This could cost lives.
"It's vital that Sadiq Khan uses his powers to block this attempt to circumvent the safety improvements that were introduced in the wake of the Grenfell fire."