London,
13
November
2017
|
13:54
Europe/London

The latest news and updates from the Chalcots Estate – w/c 30 October 2017

We want your feedback on cladding replacement options

  • Thank you to all residents who attended our Chalcots community drop-in event on Tuesday 31 October. Your feedback is an important part of the decision-making process and integral to finding the right replacement system for the Chalcots Estate.

    We have enclosed a cladding options sheet with this newsletter. If you were unable to attend the event or didn’t get the chance to tell us what you think, please return your feedback to [email protected] by Sunday 12 November.Following feedback from residents, we will also be running an additional cladding drop-in session on Monday 6 November from 4pm to 7pm in the Adelaide Room at Swiss Cottage Library. At the drop-in, there will be another opportunity to see samples of the replacement cladding materials. If you are unable to return your feedback form electronically, please bring it along to the additional session. You can find further cladding information online at camden.gov.uk/chalcotsestate

    We expect to make a decision on the replacement system by the end of this year, if this receives planning permission we hope to start on site in 2018. How long it takes to start and finish installation will depend on which system is chosen, we will keep you informed as we make the final decisions.
     
  • There are still some vouchers remaining for a free swimming session at Swiss Cottage Leisure. We have left these with your TRA for collection. The vouchers are valid until Tuesday 7 November.

Current works

  • We continue to progress with the installation of smoke alarms and heat sensors, we have now fitted alarms in 416 flats. The installation of new flat front doors is also well underway with 92 flats having had their new door fitted. To make an appointment to have your smoke alarms or door fitted please contact your Resident Liaison Officer:

    Taplow and Bray – Hayley Townsend – 07702 970354
    Burnham and Blashford – Angela Carr – 07590 170332
    Dorney – Sue Speller – 07939 158509

Taplow

  • Residents will have noticed that cladding removal works are in delay on Taplow. Each of the blocks on the Chalcots Estate have a slightly different design, this affects the speed at which our contractors can work. Taplow is the only block with three roads around it. As a result, we cannot park a cherry picker at the base of the building without causing significant traffic disruption on Adelaide or Fellows Road. This means we must wait until the mast climbers are in place to accelerate the cladding removal works. Despite these delays, we still have a programme that will see the cladding removed by Christmas.
     
  • We would also like to apologise to Taplow residents who moved their vehicles from the underground carparks. The carpark beneath Taplow has a different set-up to other blocks and our scaffolders have had to alter the design of their mast climber supports accordingly. This has caused significant delays to the start of works in the carpark. We can now confirm that these works are underway.

 Other news

  • Following discussions around bin access at the TRA technical meeting, bins at Dorney have been relocated to Fellows Road. We apologise for any confusion caused.
     
  • We are aware that the scaffolding is making access to your blocks dark. We are looking for solution to this and expect lighting to be in place on scaffolding at Burnham and Blashford by Monday. We are looking to roll this out across the remaining blocks.

Feedback from the joint TRA technical meeting, Wednesday 1 November 2017

  • The TRA group said they felt the cladding replacement event at the Swiss Cottage Library had been very good and was very informative for residents as to the pros and cons of options for the proposed cladding replacement. They asked the Council to confirm that all of the options proposed did indeed meet all regulations and the current post-Grenfell advice from key Government bodies such as the Department for Communities and Local Government. Camden Council will also send the cladding replacement option it chooses for Government testing ahead of installing it.
     
  • The TRA group followed up on the previous concerns they had raised with Council officers about some teething issues with the new fire door replacement programme. The Council officers had arranged for a senior manager from Sentry Doors (the door manufacturer) to meet the TRA reps the previous Wednesday. This had given TRA representatives the opportunity to raise problems that had arisen around locks, closers, door handles and some other concerns about the new doors. The manager from Sentry Doors had addressed some of the issues (including sourcing new lock barrels for doors which had faulty barrels) and is continuing to work with Council officers and the TRA group to review what could be done about the outstanding issues. The Council confirmed that a team, separate from the door fitters, would be coming around to fix any damage or gaps, including where the floor areas had been cut out around the communal and front door entrances.
     
  • The TRA group asked for an update on problems that had been caused by the scaffolding around the bin areas. The Council confirmed that this had been discussed with the Estate Management team. It appears the situation has improved for some blocks, but not all. Council officers confirmed that this would be raised with the Estate Management team again.
     
  • The Council officers thanks the TRA group for the considerable amount of personal time they had put into making sure that residents’ views and concerns were raised so that these could be taken into account in planning and managing the significant amount of work completed to date and to be completed in future.