Residents evacuated from five tower blocks in Canning Town will pay no council tax while they are out of their homes, Newham Council has said.
The council is granting a 100 per cent discretionary reduction to residents who have moved out as a result of the evacuation. It will be backdated to 23 October for residents of Centurion Tower, Sovereign Tower and St Vincent Court, and to 30 October for those from Thanet Tower and Prince Court. The reduction will be reviewed monthly.
Residents will not have to claim it — the reduction will be applied automatically. Priority will be given to those who pay by direct debit, so no further money is taken unnecessarily, and any payments already made will be refunded automatically to the bank account the direct debit came from. Residents who do not pay by direct debit will be contacted for bank details so a refund can be made.
The relief was set out in the council’s resident support update on 6 November, the latest in its regular updates for households affected by the Canning Town building incident.
Around 211 households were evacuated from Centurion Tower, St Vincent Court and Sovereign Tower in the early hours of 23 October, after London Fire Brigade told the council the buildings faced serious structural problems. Residents of Thanet Tower and Prince Court were evacuated a week later, on 30 October. Dangerous structural notices have been served on all five buildings.
Businesses forced to close will also get help. Temporary business rates hardship relief will be applied to eligible businesses operating from the affected buildings at Caxton Works, from 23 October for those in the north towers and 30 October for those in the south tower, while they are unable to access and operate from their premises. The relief will be applied automatically and reviewed as the situation develops.
Developer Galliard Homes has separately written to residents to confirm it will reimburse reasonable costs for relocation and temporary accommodation. The offer applies retrospectively from 23 October for residents of the three north towers and from 30 October for residents of Thanet Tower and Prince Court, and is in place for an initial period of 14 days from the date of Galliard’s letter, up to and including Thursday 19 November, while investigations continue.
Residents must keep receipts or other proof of the costs they have paid so Galliard can reimburse them. The council said it is not a party to those arrangements and cannot determine or guarantee the outcome of individual claims.
The council said it continues to work closely with partner agencies following the service of the structural notices, and with the buildings’ property management company, Prime Property Management. Its housing prevention and support service is providing advice and assistance, and residents unable to secure accommodation through their own arrangements, landlord, managing agent or insurer are being encouraged to contact the council on 020 8430 2000.
The evacuations left families with no return date and mounting hotel costs. Read our earlier report on the Canning Town evacuations.
