Brent Council has approved a step towards a cladding-safety programme that could bring up to £4.7 million of grant support to seven residential blocks in Kilburn. The decision, taken by the Director of Housing Services on 23 September, authorises the council to enter grant agreements with Homes England through the Cladding Safety Scheme. It remains subject to the council’s call-in process and has not yet come into force.
An initial award for The Oaks
The immediate agreement concerns an initial £667,500 offer for The Oaks. The council has also authorised officers to enter further agreements estimated at £4,025,100 for the wider programme, but those sums remain subject to formal awards by Homes England. Together, the figures would amount to £4,692,600 if the anticipated awards are made.
The council’s report describes the current award as funding for pre-contract activity. It says Homes England will make approved funding available once the relevant grant agreement has been signed, allowing design and procurement work to move forward. A subsequent grant award for the construction work is then expected to be considered. That distinction matters: the published decision enables grant agreements, rather than marking the start of building work at every site.
Seven blocks included in applications
The applications cover 13–56, 57–96 and 97–135 Watling Gardens, 1–51 Canterbury Court, 1–113 Gorefield, 1–64 Alpha House and 1–44 The Oaks. The council says assessments of external walls and related elements have informed the proposed sequence of work. Its report identifies different issues at the blocks, including panels or cladding components that need replacement or further assessment.
For Watling Gardens, the report says corridor spandrel panels have an inadequate fire rating and could allow a fire to spread between floors if one reached the end of a corridor. At Canterbury Court, it identifies flammable components in part of the external façade. Gorefield and Alpha House are listed with cladding concerns on open staircases. At The Oaks, the report says an external-wall fire-risk appraisal identified inadequately fire-rated corridor spandrel panels; replacement is proposed alongside separately planned heating work.
All seven blocks have been assigned a risk rating to set the order in which work should be taken forward. The council also says the assessments completed so far did not require interim measures or temporary risk-mitigation action at any of the affected buildings. That is an important limitation on the decision: it does not state that risks have been eliminated, but records the council’s current assessment while a remediation programme is developed.
Funding, costs and resident impact
The national scheme is designed to address life-safety fire risks associated with cladding on residential buildings. Brent’s report says the funding can cover cladding remediation and associated activity such as surveys, design, procurement, scaffolding and preliminary costs. It adds that leaseholders will not be recharged for the planned work, describing that approach as intended to protect leaseholder rights and avoid hardship connected with remediation.
The council’s Housing Revenue Account is expected to carry out the work, financed through the grants where buildings meet the scheme’s requirements. However, the report makes clear that there is no existing capital budget for these works. Cabinet approval would be needed before spending on construction could begin. It also warns that any costs beyond the grant awards would have to be met through borrowing or other Housing Revenue Account capital resources, potentially affecting other planned work.
The report links the proposed programme to reducing fire-spread risk, dealing with water penetration and dampness, and specifying energy-efficient materials where appropriate. It also says a comprehensive engagement and consultation plan will be developed for residents affected by the works. Ward councillors, the Cabinet Member for Housing, Homelessness and Renters, and residents have already been advised of the grant applications.
What happens next
The decision was published on 23 September and is subject to call-in until 30 September. If it is not called in, it is scheduled to come into force on 1 October. The council’s published record showed no call-ins at the time it was checked. Homes England must still make formal awards for the additional agreements, and any funding will carry conditions on eligible capital spending and programme delivery.
For residents, the practical next stage is therefore not an immediate start on site but the move from application and grant agreement towards design, procurement and detailed communication. The scale of the proposed programme and the range of blocks involved make the decision a significant housing-safety development for Kilburn, while its final scope, timetable and funding remain conditional on the next approvals.
