We’re working to resolve some building issues we’ve identified at Rutland House, Derby.

This page was last updated on 3 May 2024.

 

Background

In February last year, we wrote to you to announce the outcomes of a fire risk assessment at your building.

We told you the assessment had found that the insulation materials used in the external walls of the building did not meet safety standards. We told you that action was needed to address the issue. There were also other issues we needed to address too including works to the roof to stop leaks and action to address other fire safety measures.

We’ve now written to all customers with an update on those issues, read the letter here.

 

Technical information

External Wall Survey – Fire Risk Appraisal of the Externals Walls (FRAEW)

An external fire engineer, Tri Fire Ltd, was commissioned to undertake a Fire Risk Appraisal of the External Walls (FRAEW) at Rutland House in August 2022. The FRAEW was undertaken based on the government guidance PAS9980 that was introduced in January 2022. This risk-based assessment methodology takes into consideration three factors:

• Fire performance risk factors.
• Façade configuration risk factors
• Fire strategy / fire hazards.

Findings from the FRAEW:  

The Fire Engineer determined that the external wall systems for this block are as follows:

Façade Type 1: EWI System (Render)

It is estimated that approximately 50% of the total external wall area of the building comprises of an insulated render system, commonly referred to as ‘external wall insulation’ or EWI). Based on an inspection of the render, it appears that the insulation to this system comprises expanded polystyrene.

Façade Type 2: Metal cladding panels

It is estimated that approximately 20% of the total external wall area of the building comprises of metal cladding, primarily located on the top two floors. Metal cladding has also been applied as an architectural feature between glazing units.

Façade Type 3: Masonry

It is estimated that approximately 10% of the total external wall area of the building comprises of fair faced brickwork. The masonry clad walls are considered to be of ‘full brick’ conventional facings.

Cantilever balconies:

The cantilever balconies are vertically aligned with timber decking. Tri-Fire has determined that the risk of rapid external fire spread is minimal due to the limited number of balconies vertically aligned.

Recommendations based on the FRAEW:

 Following the fire risk assessment our contractor, Tri Fire Ltd, recommended the following measures:

1. Removal and replacement of current external wall rendering and insulation
2. Installation of a sprinkler system in the property.

They did not recommend any interim fire safety measures. However, we elected to change the fire strategy for the property from stay put, which essentially means you stay in your flat in the event of a fire alarm sounding – to simultaneous evacuation supported by the newly installed automatic fire alarm system, which now means you should evacuate the building should the fire alarm sound.

We made this decision to exercise caution as there are still some outstanding fire safety issues to address.

Leaseholder protections

The Building Safety Act 2022 has brought in number of financial protections for qualifying leaseholders, preventing them from being recharged for cladding remediation works. For further information regarding this please visit the Government website.

 

Next Steps

Riverside has instructed our legal representatives, Devonshires Solicitors, to assess the validity of a legal claim. This can be a time-consuming process and we cannot give a timeframe for when this could be completed. If we were to conclude this was not viable, or if a claim was unsuccessful, there is also a Government funding scheme – the Cladding Safety Scheme (CSS) – which is run by Homes England. We may be able to pursue funding via that route once we have exhausted all avenues with the original contractor. However, we must pursue our legal options in full to be eligible to apply.

The Building Safety Team will continue to keep you updated on the progress of the works which will be provided on a quarterly basis. The next update for your building will be provided in August 2024 however, we will ensure that we communicate with you earlier, if there is any significant progress in relation to the above.

 

EWS1 form

The EWS process, and resulting form (EWS1), is a way for a building owner to confirm that an external wall system on residential buildings has been assessed for safety by a suitable expert, in line with government guidance. This may be requested by lenders if you are looking to sell your property.

Following the FRAEW, the EWS1 for Rutland House has been assessed as OPTION B2, with remedial works required.

If you would like a copy of the EWS1 please contact [email protected].

For further information regarding the EWS1 form please click here.

 

Other issues

We’re working to resolve an issue with the car park shutter which is currently broken because of some vandalism.

Our contractor, Maintec, have visited the building but need a specialist to repair the control panel. We’re doing everything we can to get this resolved as soon as possible.

In the meantime, we know that customers have reported that homeless people have been accessing the bin store and car park. If this does happen again, please ensure you report this to police via 101.

We have reviewed CCTV footage of the vandalism and have passed it on to the police to investigate the matter.