Fire safety works to start at three Portsmouth blocks of flats

Work is soon to begin to replace the aluminium composite material (ACM) cladding on three blocks of flats in Portsmouth to ensure the highest level of fire safety for residents.

VIVID has appointed consultants CBRE and contractors United Living to undertake the works at Southdown View, Hilsea, Ockenden House and Harding House, Cosham. Works will begin in February at Southdown View and March at Ockenden House and Harding House and could take up to 12 months.

Residents of the three blocks have received details of the plans and drop-in sessions have been arranged to offer them the opportunity to discuss the works directly with representatives from VIVID and United Living. VIVID has confirmed all costs associated with replacing the cladding will be funded by the organisation and not passed on to the residents in the buildings.

Following the Grenfell Tower fire, VIVID carried out thorough fire safety investigations of its buildings, over and above its regular fire risk assessments, and identified ACM cladding on the three buildings in Portsmouth. The buildings are under 18-metres in height and until recently did not fall within the government’s scope of works. This meant it was not mandatory to replace the cladding. However, VIVID made decision to do the works anyway to ensure its homes are as safe as possible for those living in them.

Julian Chun, Director of Property and Strategic Services of VIVID said: “Our prime focus is to ensure the safety and wellbeing of our customers. Over the last two years we’ve worked hard to find the best possible solution to replace the ACM cladding on these three buildings and we’re pleased the work will start this month.

“We’re keen to replace the cladding to make our homes safe as possible in the event of a fire. Finding the right solution and contractors has taken longer than we had hoped but we wanted to ensure the buildings have the highest available level of fire security, above and beyond current mandatory requirements. We’re confident we’ve found the best available solution for our customers and would like to thank all residents in the three blocks for their ongoing co-operation.”