Refurbishment of Glenavon Road flats: FOI release

FOI reference: FOI/17/01412
Date received: 16 June 2017
Date responded: 12 July 2017

Information requested

Any information held by the Scottish Government regarding a refurbishment of Glenavon Road flats in Maryhill which are owned by Maryhill Housing Association. You are particularly interested in the specification of the cladding used and fire safety checks carried out.

Response

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the Scottish Government does not routinely hold the type of information you have requested. However, we do hold one piece of information which may be relevant and was obtained recently in response to an information gathering exercise conducted following the devastating fire in Grenfell Tower, London. I understand that the information in the table below includes the Glenavon Road flats, with 'Structherm' identified as the type of insulation system installed.

RSL	ADDRESS	POSTCODE	BUILDING CONSTRUCTION TYPE	NO. OF BLOCKS	NO. OF STOREYS	NO. OF UNITS	SPRNKLER SYSTEM INSTALLED? (YES/NO)
Maryhill HA	45 Garrioch Road	G20 8RG	Reema	3	21	360	No

EWI INSTALLED (YES/NO)	TYPE OF INSULATION SYSTEM INSTALLED	DATE OF INSTALLATION	NAME OF INSTALLATION COMPANY	DISTRICT/COMMUNAL HEATING SYSTEM (YES/NO)	ARE BOILERS SITUATED IN THE BASEMENT?
Yes	Structherm	2013	Mears	No	No

I appreciate you have already been in touch with Maryhill Housing Association and are not satisfied with their response. I can only suggest that if you wish further detail regarding fire safety checks and confirmation of the cladding system used, you contact them again for the information you require. The reason why we don't have the information requested is explained in the Annex to this letter.

I hope I can go some way to re-assure you by advising that in Scotland we have stringent building and fire safety regulations. I can also report that following intensive work with all local authorities in Scotland, it has been reported that no local authority or housing association high rise domestic building has the same Aluminium Composite Material (ACM) cladding as that which was used on Grenfell Tower. To date, 30 of 32 local authorities have also reported that no high rise domestic blocks in the private sector have ACM cladding, with the remaining two local authorities completing their investigations as a matter of urgency.

In order to help ensure that people are safe in Scotland's buildings, and to provide reassurance to residents and communities about their safety, a Ministerial Working Group has been established to oversee a review of building and fire safety regulations in Scotland. Actions agreed by the group include bringing forward a consultation this year on safety standards in housing in Scotland.

You might also like to know that the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service will provide free Home Fire Safety Visits for anyone concerned about fire safety in their homes. Priority is currently being given to requests from residents in high rise flats. Information on how to book a Home Fire Safety Visit is available online at http://www.firescotland.gov.uk/your-safety/for-householders/home-fire-safety-visit.aspx.

Annex

The Scottish Government does not have the information you have asked for because it is related to an operational matter for the Housing Association concerned, and not the type of material which the Scottish Government would routinely collect. Requests for information relating to the refurbishment of the Glenavon Road flats and fire safety checks should be redirected to Maryhill Housing Association, who can be contacted at: Maryhill Housing Association, 45 Garrioch Road, Glasgow. G20 8RG, or by email at: enquiries@maryhill.org.uk

This is a formal notice under section 17(1) of FOISA that the Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested.

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