City council to borrow £25m to replace tower cladding

Salford City Council is set to borrow £25m to replace potentially lethal cladding on nine of its residential tower blocks in Pendleton.

Along with scores of others across the UK the blocks have been scrutinised in the wake of the Grenfell Tower fire disaster two months ago and deemed to be potentially dangerous.

The authority says a report is going to a special council meeting in a week’s time (Wednesday, August 23) to authorise it to use its borrowing powers to provide a temporary cash flow of up to £25m so that safety work can be done.

Deputy City Mayor John Merry said: “We will not allow the lack of immediate funding to become a barrier to undertaking further essential fire safety works on the Pendleton tower blocks.

“We are asking for a decision to provide temporary funding so that works can continue to replace the ACM cladding as quickly as possible.

“The City Mayor (Cllr Paul Dennett) has made clear that the safety of residents is of paramount importance. So we’re now taking the necessary steps to ensure works are undertaken.

“Everything is being done in the best interest of our residents.

“The regeneration work has been carried out under a PFI contract and whilst the council is not accepting liability for the works, we do believe that it is crucial that legal disputes do not prevent essential works being carried out.”

Cllr Dennett said: “We are taking a lead in dealing with what is a national crisis. We have called on Government, as a city council and through the work of the Greater Manchester High Rise Taskforce, to financially support councils and housing associations so that they can respond swiftly to legitimate public concerns. Residents’ must be able to feel safe in their home, whatever their tenure.

“This is not an easy time for local authorities – government cuts have taken a severe toll on council budgets. This will be a strain on our resources but it is important that we respond effectively to address safety issues raised by the Grenfell Tower tragedy and we must do all in our power to ensure that a fire such as this never happens again.

“We are now awaiting the results of independent tests before we move ahead with a permanent replacement to the cladding.

“At the same time, partners are quantifying total costs by putting together a complete programme of works.”