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| Tower block cladding could be safe despite failed tests, experts say | Tower block cladding could be safe despite failed tests, experts say |
| (1 day later) | |
| Government advisers to consult on whether panels could be used in some cases while warning that removing them could increase fire risk | |
| Robert Booth | |
| Fri 30 Jun 2017 14.57 BST | |
| Last modified on Fri 15 Sep 2017 20.18 BST | |
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| Government experts suggest cladding panels that have been found to be combustible on 149 tower blocks after the Grenfell fire could still be used safely in some circumstances and warn that removing them could increase fire risk. | Government experts suggest cladding panels that have been found to be combustible on 149 tower blocks after the Grenfell fire could still be used safely in some circumstances and warn that removing them could increase fire risk. |
| An advisory body headed by Sir Ken Knight, the former government chief fire and rescue adviser, said tests carried out following the blaze only examined the filler inside the aluminium panels. | An advisory body headed by Sir Ken Knight, the former government chief fire and rescue adviser, said tests carried out following the blaze only examined the filler inside the aluminium panels. |
| Knight’s panel said in a statement that if a cladding sample were to fail tests, landlords were expected to take recommended interim fire safety measures. But it said it would now consult experts across the country to consider whether the panels could still be used in certain circumstances. | Knight’s panel said in a statement that if a cladding sample were to fail tests, landlords were expected to take recommended interim fire safety measures. But it said it would now consult experts across the country to consider whether the panels could still be used in certain circumstances. |
| The statement added: “If, in the meantime, a landlord chooses to take down and replace cladding, care should be taken to consider the impact that removal may have on the other wall elements, especially insulation, and therefore on the overall fire integrity of the building as well as other building regulation requirements.” | The statement added: “If, in the meantime, a landlord chooses to take down and replace cladding, care should be taken to consider the impact that removal may have on the other wall elements, especially insulation, and therefore on the overall fire integrity of the building as well as other building regulation requirements.” |
| The Department for Communities and Local Government urged councils and landlords to remove samples of cladding similar to the one used on Grenfell Tower for testing after suspicion that the tower’s aluminium composite cladding contributed to the rapid spread of the blaze that claimed at least 80 lives. | The Department for Communities and Local Government urged councils and landlords to remove samples of cladding similar to the one used on Grenfell Tower for testing after suspicion that the tower’s aluminium composite cladding contributed to the rapid spread of the blaze that claimed at least 80 lives. |
| But there are growing concerns that the tests are too simplistic to determine whether towers are clad safely. Some critics, such as the chairman of the Local Government Association, Gary Porter, have called for the tests to be halted as a result. | But there are growing concerns that the tests are too simplistic to determine whether towers are clad safely. Some critics, such as the chairman of the Local Government Association, Gary Porter, have called for the tests to be halted as a result. |
| Earlier on Friday, Lord Porter, the Conservative peer, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “The thing that is being tested at the request of the experts isn’t the right thing to test. We need to test the whole panel.” | Earlier on Friday, Lord Porter, the Conservative peer, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “The thing that is being tested at the request of the experts isn’t the right thing to test. We need to test the whole panel.” |
| On Monday, the Guardian revealed increasing concerns about the tests. “The government is fundamentally flawed in its use of the BRE [British Research Establishment] to conduct overly simplistic and limited fire test samples and not the complete cladding assembly,” said Stephen MacKenzie, a fire risk consultant. “The small-scale tests on external panels need to to be extended to a full disassembly.” | On Monday, the Guardian revealed increasing concerns about the tests. “The government is fundamentally flawed in its use of the BRE [British Research Establishment] to conduct overly simplistic and limited fire test samples and not the complete cladding assembly,” said Stephen MacKenzie, a fire risk consultant. “The small-scale tests on external panels need to to be extended to a full disassembly.” |
| He said he had observed the removal of panels in three locations, including Camden, and said he was worried that “we could be pulling off cladding systems that are potentially OK”. | He said he had observed the removal of panels in three locations, including Camden, and said he was worried that “we could be pulling off cladding systems that are potentially OK”. |
| The independent advisory panel includes Dr Peter Bonfield, chief executive of the Building Research Establishment, Amanda Clack, president of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, and Roy Wilsher, chairman of the National Fire Chiefs Council. | The independent advisory panel includes Dr Peter Bonfield, chief executive of the Building Research Establishment, Amanda Clack, president of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, and Roy Wilsher, chairman of the National Fire Chiefs Council. |
| Grenfell Tower fire | |
| London | |
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