Ipswich Cardinal Lofts: Tenants let down, government says

The government has accused the owners of a block of flats of having "badly let down" residents after it was deemed a safety risk.

People living in Cardinal Lofts in Ipswich were forced to leave on Tuesday after Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) found further issues.

Part of the building was evacuated by about 100 tenants last month.

The block's freeholder, Grey GR, said it was encouraged SFRS had reached the "same conclusion" over safety fears.

Grey GR is owned by Railpen, the pension fund for railways workers.

A spokesman for the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities said in a statement: "Grey GR and Railpen have badly let down the leaseholders and tenants in Cardinal Lofts.

"The safety of residents must be the first priority and they must be safely housed and properly looked after.

"They also deserve clarity about how and when they will at last be able to get on with their lives."

In November, the county council, which runs the fire service, issued the first prohibition notice, ordering people on the top three floors to leave.

Last month, Grey GR sent letters instructing people living in the lower six floors to vacate after extensive surveys revealed the building was unsafe.

However, a handful of tenants refused to leave their homes, with some saying they could not find appropriate accommodation.

The fire service enforced an "immediate evacuation" of the premises when it issued a second prohibition notice for the entire building on Tuesday.

Any residents still living in the nine-storey block - with a total of 70 apartments - were told to leave.

Problems first arose at the tower block in 2020 when a report revealed "combustible materials" on the outside of the waterfront building provided a "route for fire to spread".

It left residents having to pay £300 each month for a 24/7 patrol looking for any signs of fire.

The fire service issued its sudden order this week because it said "new information" had revealed structural issues at the property were "significantly worse" than first thought.

It said the state of the building posed a danger to occupants, firefighters and the patrol service.

Toby Gray, SFRS area manager for prevention and protection, said: "We are disappointed on behalf of residents that the fire service was not fully informed about structural issues at the property.

"Had we been made aware of these dangerous defects when the first prohibition notice was issued, months of uncertainty and confusion for those living at Cardinal Lofts may have been avoided."

However, Grey GR said it had taken SFRS four weeks to recognise the severity of the safety issues and it was disappointed about the lack of notice given about the prohibition order.

In a statement, it said: "We are encouraged to hear that SFRS have now reached the same conclusion based on the reports shared with them in February.

"We strongly refute SFRS' recent statement and points made in respect of 'new' information are categorically untrue.

"We have expressed our deep concerns to SFRS about this misleading information and have requested this to be updated urgently.

"There has been no new information supplied to SFRS since Grey GR issued the evacuation notice on 21 February.

"Since then, we have had multiple engagements with SFRS, to reiterate the findings of the reports, the severity of the situation and the potential risk to life.

"We appreciated the opportunity to highlight the risks identified within those reports with an on-site visit on 13 March with SFRS where our team drew attention to the issues."

It added it was working to remediate the issues at Cardinal Lofts, while overseeing that residents had suitable longer-term accommodation before they could return to safer homes.

In response to Grey GR's statement, Mr Gray said: "We can back up everything we have said and done, but have decided to focus our efforts on working towards a resolution for residents rather than arguing with Grey GR."

On Friday morning, Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service had a meeting with residents to discuss the latest developments and to explain the rationale behind their decision to issue this week's prohibition notice.

Mr Gray said: "It was really positive.

"It's difficult in written communications to convey how we understand the situation they're in, and it's really difficult to fully understand, but we appreciate the challenges and the fear they sit with day in, day out.

"Emotionally, for myself, it was quite a difficult meeting because there are certain elements of what we have to do under legislation and some of that can appear quite cold, but the rationale only ever has residents' safety in mind."

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