Harold Wood residents in housing block await cladding bill

Primula Court, on the Kings Park estate, is one of several blocks to have received a B2 fire assessment rating in the last few years indicating remediation work is necessary due to the presence of combustible cladding.

One Primula Court leaseholder said residents have accepted the rating, largely due to the fact the block had caught alight in 2019 after a cigarette was carelessly disposed of. 

• READ MORE: Residents 'stuck' in flammable flats can't sell their homes
• READ MORE: Harold Wood block does not need cladding work, review finds

According to block manager Wildheart Residential Management, the block’s buildings insurance provider agreed to pay for the fire damage, with one resident estimating up to 80 per cent of the cladding was affected. 

But Wildheart said funding for removing the remainder of the cladding has still yet to be secured. 

Due to the building being less than 11 metres tall, sitting instead at 10.1m, leaseholders are not protected against remediation costs. The estate’s developer, Countryside, is not legally obliged to contribute. 

Instead, the bill is set to be passed onto the residents, who are bracing for the hit. 

Primula Court was damaged in a 2019 fire (Image: London Fire Brigade)

Steve Bulkan, 57, has lived in Primula Court for more than five years. He said while the residents in the block are not contesting the B2 rating, they are asking why they have to foot the bill for something they had no say on. 

The impact of struggling to sell or re-mortgage their homes due to the rating is also causing distress among leaseholders, Steve said. 

“It’s really tough because a lot of people moved there and now they have started families and now they want to move and they can’t.” 

Instead, he said people are having to accept a reduction in the value of their homes. 

Steve Bulkan (Image: Steve Bulkan)

Steve said Wildheart recently told residents it was due to issue a Section 20 notice, which informs the homeowners that work is due to be carried out which they will have to pay for, before later saying it would wait until it has consulted with residents. 

Since then, he has received a letter from Wildheart notifying him of the tender process for the cladding works and the upcoming consultation, due to last until March 25.

Based on the letter, Steve estimates leaseholders at Primula Court will have to pay between £3,700 and £4,000 per flat, describing the costs as "absolutely disgraceful".

In terms of a resolution to the issue, Steve said he wants to see action, namely payment, from Countryside to replace the cladding. 

“We never put the cladding on there,” he said. “Countryside should be paying.” 

• READ MORE: Flat-owners faced £2m bill after being wrongly told cladding was unsafe

Julia Lopez, MP for Hornchurch and Upminster, said she is “very concerned" that Primula Court leaseholders "may soon be issued with a Section 20 notice”. 

She added she is in contact with Wildheart, as well as ministers and civil servants at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) to highlight the issue. 

"I know how stressful this process is and we want to do what we can to help residents navigate this difficult situation, as we have managed with other blocks,” she said. 

Hornchurch and Upminster MP, Julia Lopez (Image: Julia Lopez)

A spokesperson for Wildheart, on behalf of the freeholder, said a report commissioned following the fire in 2019 found the building to be safe, despite the loss of much of its cladding. 

However, they added the replacement work “has been delayed through planning issues, difficulty in sourcing appropriate materials and a shortfall in funds”. 

While Countryside has declined to “make a meaningful contribution towards rectifying the problems it created and cannot be forced to do so”, the spokesperson said a full specification has been obtained for the works, and once funding is secured, "we anticipate that work will commence without delay”. 

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“The freeholder and its agent share leaseholders’ frustration at the process and are focussed on resolving the position as quickly as possible. 

“In the meantime, expert advice confirms that the building is safe for occupation.” 

A spokesperson for Countryside said it had no comment on the questions put to it by the Recorder. 

This article was updated to reflect Primula Court is 10.1m tall, meaning its leaseholders do not receive protection offered against remediation works on blocks 11m and above.