|
Welcome to our new Building Safety newsletter - designed to keep you regularly informed on developments in Wales.
You can also follow us on Twitter using @WG_Communities
Message from the Minister for Climate Change
 Building Safety is a priority for the Welsh Government. It is critically important that residents feel safe and secure in their homes.
I appreciate for leaseholders and residents having to live in affected buildings, this is a very difficult time. However, I am committed to addressing building safety in Wales and continue to take forward our Welsh Building Safety Programme alongside a significant programme of reform to establish a fit for purpose building safety regime in Wales.
Developers Pact – Underpinning Legal Document
We have always made it clear that we do not expect leaseholders to bear the cost of repairing fire safety issues that are not of their making and that we expect developers to step up to their responsibilities.
We are pleased a number of large developers have set aside funds to replace cladding and address other fire safety work on properties in Wales. These developers have set an example that others should follow.
We have written to over 50 developers who have either signed up to the UK Government’s Pledge, or who operate at scale in Wales. The majority of these have confirmed they have not developed buildings of 11 metres or over in Wales. Of the remainder, two have confirmed they have already taken steps to address fire safety risks in Wales, two developers are yet to respond and the eleven remaining developers have signed up to the Welsh Government’s Developers’ Pact.
The Pact represents a public commitment they will address fire safety issues in buildings of 11 metres and over, they have developed over the last 30 years. These developers are Persimmon, Taylor Wimpey, Lovell, McCarthy and Stone, Countryside, Vistry, Redrow, Crest Nicholson, St Modwen, Bellway and Barratt.
The Pact is underpinned by formal legal documentation, and we are pleased to confirm that this has been drafted and shared with the Home Builders Federation. We anticipate that these developers will confirm their acceptance of our terms shortly. We are also pleased to report a number of developers have started remediation works in advance of signing, such as Bellway and Persimmon Homes, as we saw when we visited Century Wharf in Cardiff.
We continue to engage and work with developers and press them to take responsibility and action in matters of fire safety.
Although it is preferable that developers engage voluntarily, we have made clear we will explore all options, including legislation, to ensure developers step up to their responsibilities.
Welsh Building Safety Fund
Our Welsh Building Safety Fund has invited Responsible Persons of buildings of 11 metres or over to submit an Expression of Interest. This is the starting point for accessing support from the Welsh Government.
In the first instance, a digital survey is carried out, which is a desk-based appraisal. If appropriate, a further intrusive survey is undertaken to understand specific fire safety issues present in the building and will generate a report setting out any next steps required to restore the fire safety integrity.
To date, we have completed 113 intrusive survey and we anticipate the remaining survey work will be completed shortly, subject to access.
The Expression of Interest process has provided an understanding of fire safety issues in residential buildings of 11 metres and over and have also helped us to identify the developers responsible for the remediation of these buildings. However, a number of buildings have been identified where the developer is unknown or ceased trading. These buildings are defined as orphaned buildings.
We have agreed to an initial cohort of six orphan buildings to be remediated, to test our approach, and ensure that buildings are made as safe from fire risk as possible. The work to develop this first cohort has started and we will make further announcements on the details of this first cohort of buildings in due course.
The route to accessing Welsh Government support will continue to be through our Welsh Building Safety Fund. This fund remains open for Responsible Persons to complete an Expression of Interest, which is the starting point for accessing support from the Welsh Government. We encourage all Responsible Persons to complete an Expression of Interest for their buildings as soon as possible. In the first instance, the fund will allow for surveys to take place at no cost to leaseholders, offering information about fire safety issues, and providing EWS1 forms for those buildings where the risk of fire is low.
As always, we are committed to ensuring leaseholders do not pay for fire safety issues which they are not responsible for, and this is not limited to building which have cladding.
Our Welsh Building Safety Fund continues to be and will remain open for responsible persons to complete an Expression of Interest.
We encourage all responsible persons to complete their Expression of Interest as soon as possible.
Leaseholder Support Scheme
Despite the positive moves made by developers, and other progress, we appreciate that these works will not come soon enough for some leaseholders who face financial hardship as a result of fire safety issues in their homes. In June last year we launched the Leaseholder Support Scheme with a commitment that we would continue to review the eligibility criteria to ensure those in greatest need would benefit from the scheme.
The recent cost of living crisis has created an untenable situation for many, and we are determined that the support offered through the Leaseholder Support Scheme takes into account these issues. As was the case previously, the scheme provides access to free independent financial advice for leaseholders, and if it is right for the household, the option for them to sell their property and either rent back their home or move on.
Following the completion of a review we have amended the eligibility criteria of the scheme in two fundamental ways.
The first is to amend the assessment of financial hardship to take into account the rising cost of energy. This is vital as it will increase recognition of those in significant financial hardship as a result of the recent increases to the energy price cap and will allow more people to access the scheme.
The second fundamental change is to remove the Displaced Residents clause. Previously, to be eligible for the scheme, leaseholders had to either be residents, or be residents forced from their property due to changing circumstances. By removing this criterion, the scheme is now opened to leaseholders who have purchased properties as an investment, such as pensioners, or those who have received the leasehold through an inheritance.
The new eligibility criteria will be live at the end of January. We urge any leaseholders in financial difficulty to complete our eligibility checker, to see if you can access support through this scheme.
For further information please visit the Welsh Government website.
Lenders
On 6 December the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors announced the publication of new valuation guidance for properties in multi-storey, multi-occupancy residential buildings with cladding.
As a result, from 9 January some lenders will consider fresh mortgage applications for medium and high-rise properties (buildings more than 11m high) with building safety issues, as long as they are covered by either a Government Scheme, or the developer has committed to remediate the building. This applies in England only.
In Wales, buildings continue to be assessed on a case-by-case basis and we are working together with the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors and UK Finance to ensure mortgage applications will similarly be considered for properties in Wales of 11 metres and over, which are covered by our agreements with developers and the Welsh Building Safety Fund.
Strategic Stakeholder Group
We have also recently launched a Building Safety Strategic Stakeholder Group. The Building Safety Stakeholder Group will act as a strategic, independent advisory group for Welsh Government on matters relating to, and under the jurisdiction of, the Welsh Building Safety Programme.
Stakeholder engagement is at the core of our approach to ensure our policy development for building safety is informed, effective, robust and based on clear evidence. Obtaining the expert views, leaseholder perspective, advice and support of our stakeholders is critical to the successful delivery of our Building Safety Programme. We have also issued invitations to expand the leaseholder representation in the Group, to ensure we capture their views and lived experience on this matter.
We are therefore very pleased that following the first recent meeting positive and valuable discussions were held. We look forward to future meetings to obtain the expert views, advice and support from our stakeholders which is critical to the successful delivery of our Building Safety Programme.
We have invited the Welsh Cladiators to join the Group, and although they declined to attend the first meeting, we hope they will reconsider their position and the opportunity to shape this area of work.
Resident Engagement
Resident engagement remains at the core of our approach to develop a new Building Safety Regime for Wales. Our proposals place residents at the heart of the reforms and seek to empower leaseholders and tenants to have more say in matters that affect their homes.
Over the last 12 months, we have reached out to a number of resident groups and associations to ensure the voice and insights of a broad representation of leaseholders and tenants are heard, and their lived experiences considered. The engagement to date has provided valuable insight into the issues which matter most to residents.
We will continue to engage with leaseholders and tenants of multi-occupied homes over the coming months to ensure our building safety reforms are practical and accessible.
Independent information and support for leaseholders in Wales
If you are a leaseholder concerned about unsafe cladding in your building, you can get free initial advice about your rights from the Leasehold Advisory Service (LEASE). LEASE provides FREE initial advice on fire safety to leaseholders in high-rise buildings, including those with ACM cladding, to ensure that leaseholders are aware of their rights and are supported to understand the terms of their leases.
You can get free advice from our experienced advisers, by booking a telephone appointment, or by writing to us.
There are other specialist advisers and support groups that leaseholders in Wales might want to consult including:
|
