Issue - meetings

Assistant Director, Barbican and Property Services to be heard.

The Assistant Director, Barbican and Property Services was heard in respect of progress on fire safety works on the Estate and provided the following update:

a)         The Fire Signage Strategy had been finalised and the Chairs of the relevant House Groups were being consulted.

b)         The Fire Door Audit was underway, which would inform which doors would need replacement.  

c)         The London Fire Brigade (LFB) were auditing all residential blocks over a certain height in London, on a quarterly basis, and the first had taken place at the end of August. With regard to the Barbican, this includes the 3 towers.  This had been satisfactory and a couple of minor recommendations were being corrected.  In respect of LFB access to Shakespeare Tower, it might be necessary to move the Premises Information Box.

d)         An Officer/Member Working Party had been convened to consider the initial ‘Stay Put’ Policy and this would be convened once the Fire Signage Strategy had been agreed.      

In concluding, Members were reminded that they had agreed to receive the  Arup report, once it had been finalised, but anything requiring urgent attention would be actioned immediately.  However, given the depth of their local knowledge, Members asked if the respective House Groups Chairs could see the draft Arup reports, once they became available.

Assistant Director, Barbican and Property Services to be heard.

The Assistant Director provided the following updates:

a)         The Fire Strategy Document, which includes fire signage was being finalised and would be forwarded to the House Groups for their input.

b)         The Fire Safety Officer/Member Working Party had been set up 2 years ago to deal with the ‘stay put’ policy.  The Working Party would be convened again, once feedback on fire safety had been received, to consider the strategy and ensure a jointed up approach.  The Assistant Director agreed to provide bullet point notes after the next meeting.

c)         The fire door audits were underway and once complete, a design team would be procured, and the project would enter Gateway 3-4 of the decision making process.

d)         The draft report on compartmentation at Brandon Mews was complete and James Ball was thanked for his assistance. 

e)         The Barbican Estate fire risk assessments were expected complete in the next 3-4 months and residents would be updated in due course.

f)          The Arup Survey and London Fire Brigade (LFB) Inspections had taken place and Helen Davinson and Sean Moore (Property Services Manager) were thanked for their hard work during difficult circumstances.  The towers had been audited at the end of August, with nothing major to report.  There was an outstanding item in respect of how the LFB would access Shakespeare Tower, and whether the premises information box was in the correct place, both of which were under consideration.  

g)         The Arup Survey was underway; with Andrewes House now complete and a first draft received for Cromwell Tower.  The Assistant Director advised that the intention was for the full set to be presented to the BRC, rather than piecemeal, but stressed that anything of substance would be dealt with immediately and reported to the House Groups.

In respect of the design of