Accessing the Building Safety Fund

Making sure that the buildings we manage are safe and that residents are comfortable, happy and informed is a responsibility we take very seriously.

In February, the government updated and increased the fund which will meet the cost for remediation of unsafe non-ACM cladding systems on residential buildings in the private and social sector that are 18 metres and over and do not comply with building regulations.

This fund is predominately targeted at supporting leaseholders in the private sector facing significant bills. However, the government is clear that for leaseholders also living in buildings owned by providers in the social sector, it will provide funding to meet the provider’s costs which would otherwise have been borne by leaseholders. The government expects landlords to cover these costs without increasing rent for their tenants.

Whether you are a Resident Management Company, investor landlord or Right to Manage Company, our experience and advice on applying to the fund as well as the implications of any updates to the legislation could be invaluable.

We can appoint independent fire safety consultants who will carry out complex and intrusive surveys that identify the brick or render type of your building, the panels and the assembly system used in the cladding, and whether what is behind the cladding is fit for purpose. Our experts identify all the materials used in the cladding, examine the cavity barriers between floors, walls and windows and whether they’ve been installed according to manufacturer recommendations.

After the examination we will report the results and arrange for any further reports (such as a fire engineer’s holistic survey). We will also appoint and manage any third party advisers such as solicitors who can understand the liabilities according to works undertaken, the leasehold provisions and advise on any remedial claims on guarantees such as the NHBC.

Should the building fail its inspection, we will arrange for budget costings for the management of any remedial works. We will put together the programme of remediation works across the building, with third party providers and prioritise them according to risk. These could include as an example, replacement of timber cladding with an alternative non-combustible material which looks similar; recoating timber cladding to reduce the surface spread of flames or installing suitable cavity barriers.

We will then take a Section 20 Notice to residents concerning the remedy, outline the possible and likely responses and the findings of any report, having already submitted an expression of interest for funding from the Building Safety Fund, asking and answering any pertinent questions from MHCLG as we undertake this.

Throughout the entire process we will keep residents informed through fortnightly emails of progress. In the event of a successful application, we will create a Deed of Trust to hold client money for the works.  

If you know or are concerned that a building might have unsafe cladding, you should contact your building owner or manager to ask them to confirm what action they are taking. Your building owner or managing agent should not be waiting for the fund, they should have begun planning the work already.

We have the benefit not only of extensive experience in residential cladding issues/claims but also a specialist team able to handle advancing claims against the Building Safety Fund. We are actively involved in advising and managing claims both against the Building Safety Fund and against third parties, including new build warranty providers and parties who originally installed/designed the cladding.

If you want to find out more about how we can help you with your application, please email newblockenquiry@kfh.co.uk or call 020 3542 0147.