Action to improve window safety in Sheffield council tower block flats
£1m plan to fit new catches and check window safety
Work to improve the safety of thousands of windows in Sheffield council high-rise flats has been agreed at a cost of £850,000.
New safety catches will be fitted to 10,306 tilt-and-turn windows in council tower blocks. They automatically reset when windows are closed after being opened, for example to clean the window.
Housing campaigner Peter MacLoughlin, who lives in a council high-rise flat in Netherthorpe, has long campaigned for action on the issue. He raised concerns following the deaths of two people in falls from Sheffield council flats in the past three years.
Mr MacLoughlin said part of the problem was that the safety catches on windows could just be disengaged by tenants. He also worried that vulnerable people and families with young children are placed at height in council flats.
The project, which is set for completion in September 2027, will also include checks on windows to report those that need repair or replacement.
Sheffield City Council’s finance and performance policy committee yesterday (September 21) agreed to spend £850,000 on the high-rise window safety programme.
The window surveys will cost another £150,000. The council will use outside contractors to carry out the work.
A report to the committee said: “Overall, the scheme will make Sheffield’s high-rise homes safer, improve compliance with building safety requirements and provide reassurance to residents that the council is taking proactive action to protect their wellbeing.”
It said that the window survey, rather than a wholesale replacement programme, “provides the best balance between safety, value for money, deliverability and resident impact”.
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