City centre tower block to get new cladding

An apartment block in Hull city centre is to have new cladding installed to make it safer.

Pure Block Management said it had received £2.7m from the government's Cladding Safety Scheme on behalf of the leaseholders at Kemley House in Ferensway.

The building was built in the 1980s and divided into 34 flats in 2005.

According to the company, a 2023 fire risk assessment and survey showed the cladding fell short of the latest standards. It made clear the previous cladding was not the same as that on the Grenfell Tower in London where 72 people died in a fire in 2017.

Liam Parker, director of Pure Block Management, said the "very important project" is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

He said: "Obviously the regulations around external cladding and insulation have continually evolved following the tragic events at Grenfell tower, with the focus quite rightly on ensuring fire safety is the priority.

"Following the Grenfell fire we supplied samples of the cladding on Kemley House for surveys and the building was at that time deemed not to be a risk as it was not the cladding of concern at that time."

He added the residents in the block will be able to remain in the building while the work is carried out, although there will be some noise disruption.

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