Cladding removal work progressing at Wolverhampton student blocks
Work is well under way to remove cladding from two empty student apartment blocks in the Black Country.
The aluminium composite material was discovered on the blocks B and C at Liberty Heights in Wolverhampton in the wake of the Grenfell Tower fire.
And work started last month to strip the cladding off the student accommodation near Wednesfield Road, which is owned by Liberty Living.
This new photo shows work is progressing swiftly to remove the cladding.
It started last month and was due to last three months, with a Liberty Living spokesman saying the buildings will be reopened by the start of the 2018 academic year.
The two eight and 10-storey apartment blocks have been empty since the Grenfell fire last June, with students being found alternative accommodation, such as in Telford and Walsall.
A 25-storey block also at the site, the highest, does not have the material and was unaffected.
Cladding made from aluminium composite material was thought to have contributed to the spread of the fire at Grenfell Tower.
The blaze, which killed 71 people, resulted in West Midlands Fire Service testing cladding on more than 400 high-rise blocks.
A spokesman for Liberty Living said: “In August we closed two blocks at Liberty Heights in order to upgrade the buildings’ fire safety measures. External works are under way and we look forward to reopening the refurbished buildings in time for the new 2018 academic year.”
Meanwhile, sprinklers in all high-rise flats across Wolverhampton are a step closer after a £20 million installation plan was given the go-ahead by council bosses last month. The move follows the Grenfell tragedy.
