The work of a social housing provider in improving the fire safety of its residents has been praised by the government’s chief fire and rescue adviser during a visit to a tower block in Essex.
Sir Ken Knight visited Bewley Court in Southend last week to mark the completion of the first stage of a £3m fire safety upgrade to blocks run by South Essex Homes.
The improvements to Bewley Court include the installation of one-hour fire resisting communal doors, fire resistant paint and automatic bin room sprinklers. In addition, tenants had new fire resisting entrance doors fitted to their individual flats.
“I’ve seen a lot of good practice during the visit which I hope South Essex Homes will share with other housing providers and partners,” said Sir Ken. “In particular, this project has demonstrated some excellent examples of partnership working with tenants and residents being involved in the work to be done and a lot of the decisions to be taken.
“I’d like to reassure tenants that tower blocks are no more at risk than any other property. However there is always going to be a risk of fire at any property, which is why measures such as those I’ve seen today are so important and that people know about how they can prevent fires in their homes and what to do if a fire occurs. I particularly welcome the fact that hard-wired smoke alarms have been fitted in this block of flats.”
During the visit, Sir Ken was joined by representatives from partners involved in the project including South Essex Homes, Southend Borough Council, Essex Fire and Rescue Service and fire safety company Gerda. James Duddridge, MP for Rochford and Southend East also attended.
South Essex Homes chief executive, Mike Gatrell, said: “As an organisation, we have made a commitment to improve and modernise the tower blocks to ensure they had the latest fire safety measures. We will be spending £3m over the next four years to upgrade more of our tower blocks to this high standard.
“However it is important to remember the role our tenants must play in fire prevention. Tenants have a responsibility to look after their communities through simple things like ensuring fire exits are kept clear, that fire doors are not left open, that burning material is not thrown into waste chutes and that domestic rubbish and furniture etc is not left in communal areas.”
Tenant coordinator and Bewley Court resident, Pauline Tanrikulu, said: “I am really pleased with the project. We were consulted the whole way through and we got to have our say in what designs and colour were used which was really nice.
“I definitely feel much safer in my home now, especially with the new front doors that have stronger locks and give us 30 minutes’ fire protection. We have moved forward massively as a community and people now take more pride in the area and there’s less graffiti on the walls. South Essex Homes do listen to the people that live here which is brilliant.”
