Caption: Lorraine Gilbert, Notting Hill Genesis ( NHG), David Adamson and Katriona Crossley, Housing Executive, Jake Le Page, NHG, and Sheelagh Walsh and Chris Adair, Housing Executive, discuss best practice at a recent meeting.
High rise building safety was top of the agenda at a recent best practice visit to the Housing Executive in Belfast, as representatives from Notting Hill Genesis came to town.
A tour comprising some of the 28 high rise buildings currently occupied by Housing Executive tenants was arranged and best practice in a range of areas was discussed.
With a portfolio of 184 high rise buildings – mainly in London – Notting Hill Genesis bring considerable experience to this area and the Housing Executive’s Building Safety Team were keen to engage and learn during the tour.
David Adamson, Housing Executive Senior Building Safety Manager, said; “In the wake of the Grenfell tragedy in June 2017, we established an Independent Reference Group with both internal and external stakeholders.
“This group was tasked with conducting an examination of the management of all our high-rise tower blocks – a review which was carried out in partnership with the NI Fire and Rescue Service.
“A report from the Independent Reference Group was published in 2018 which provided a renewed focus on building safety and allowed us the opportunity to recommit to keeping our tenants as safe as possible in a high-rise environment.
“Resident’s safety was paramount and engagement with them increased, putting them at the heart of building safety at a time of much worry and stress,” he said.
“We have already begun to incorporate elements of the Building Safety Act, Fire Safety Act and the Fire Safety (England) Regulations – as far as possible – given we don’t yet have a similar legislative framework for Northern Ireland. So, in this sense, we are ahead of the game.
“Still, we were keen to hear directly the lessons learned to date in London, to hear how the Building Safety Regulator there operates and to discuss legislation applicable in this sector.
“Having representatives from Notting Hill Genesis in our buildings in Belfast allowed us to share learning on building safety in real time and on-site – this will stand us in very good stead in future.”
Jake Le Page, Head of Building Safety Regulation at Notting Hill Genesis, said; “We had a great visit with the Housing Executive team and we have committed to continue our mutual learning around all building safety matters.
“We’ve developed tools that use building information to better manage our buildings and help ensure residents are safe and, just as importantly, feel safe in their homes.
“We were delighted to be able to present these tools to the Housing Executive team in person and we were also keen to hear and see more about their focused approach to resident engagement.”
Lorraine Gilbert, NHG’s Head of Resident Engagement, said: “It was a pleasure to be invited by the Housing Executive team and share all we’ve learned about engaging with residents on building safety.
“We enjoyed exploring how others have navigated these challenges. This was a fantastic opportunity to exchange ideas, lessons and build relationships with our housing colleagues.”
