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Flat owners are living in limbo at a Maidstone high rise beset with problems after fire safety concerns were raised in the summer.
Leaseholders at Miller Heights, in Lower Stone Street, are unable to sell as they wait to hear whether the government will pay for the repair work urgently needed.
The plight of flat owners in Maidstone is discussed on kmtv
Now, MP Helen Grant has intervened, saying she is "deeply concerned" about the delay to the works and has called for answers from the block's managing agents.
The 122-apartment block is one of many buildings across the country embroiled in the cladding scandal, bought on after the tragedy of the Grenfell Tower fire exposed defects in high rises and other homes.
In this exclusive report, KentOnline has investigated the problems at Miller Heights and spoken to residents affected.
When retired couple Robert and Christine Marshall first saw Miller Heights, they thought it was the ideal buy-to-let investment opportunity. The grandparents downsized from Epsom to Maidstone in 2017, and for the first time, "had a little money left over," Christine, 69, said.
They were advised to invest and Miller Heights seemed like the perfect place.
"It appeared at the time to be finished to a high standard. We thought it was ideal for commuting, it has its own concierge. We saw it in the summer when it looked really nice," Christine added.
Now, three years later, the couple's only savings are tied into a flat they believe is "unsellable" and they fear being burdened with paying to fix fire safety problems hidden in the walls of the building.
In August 2020, the block received a B2 rating in its EWS1 (External Wall System) form, meaning an adequate standard of safety was not achieved.
A report prepared for the-then freeholder, a company called Smith Homes 4, which accompanied the rating, warned that cavity barriers are missing throughout, describing one section as "like a chimney" which "has the potential to spread fire unhindered to any level."
Cavity barriers close off concealed holes or gaps in parts of a building such as roofs, ceilings or walls to prevent fire or smoke spreading through the block.
EWS1 forms were created in the wake of the 2017 Grenfell Tower tragedy, where safety defects such as flammable cladding, saw a fridge fire spread throughout the high rise block killing 72 people.
An expert checks the wall structure, plus cladding, complies with new toughened government guidance on fire safety.
Lenders now require an EWS1 form before giving a mortgage and flats which fail are widely regarded as unsellable in the housing market.
The report for Miller Heights, produced by firm TetraClad, says while the materials in the external walls and balconies are non-combustible, "over-cladding has created cavities that would cause a fire breaking out of a compartment to spread almost unhindered throughout each facade."
This, Christine says, means their flat is unsellable, or they would have to sell it at a heavily reduced price.
"This was our only investment for the future. We haven't got private pensions. We are both retired now, this was our security for the future," she said.
Their son Tom, 32, and newly engaged, also lost a sale for his flat in Sidcup because the buyer's lender refused a mortgage because of a failed EWS1.
The Marshalls are just one example of people whose future is now entwined with the fate of Miller Heights.
Leaseholder Lucy Gladwin, who formed a resident's association for the block, says people can't sell or remortgage their flats, unless they sell to a cash buyer who "isn't fussed about an EWS1 form".
The project manager for a construction firm said: "One guy took a £50,000 loss on his flat just to sell it, just to get out."
Miss Gladwin was one of the first residents to move into Miller Heights, and she said it appeared "lovely".
However, soon the building started to deteriorate, with the reception area not being cleaned and Lucy says she has also seen homeless people in the stairwells.
When KentOnline visited at the start of April, we were able to walk into the building, as the main door had been kept open.
Miss Gladwin tried to sell her flat in the summer but it fell through because of the failed EWS1.
Early last month, one leaseholder, who wanted to remain anonymous, said she didn't even like her family visiting her because of the state of the building.
She said doors and a lift were broken.
The leaseholder said: "I want to move closer to London but to get the place to sell the whole building needs to be in a better state."
And now a question hangs over whether the government will pay for installation of the much needed cavity barriers.
The government has promised £5 billion to replace unsafe cladding, covering buildings over 18 metres in height.
This was in response to private leaseholders often being left to pay to fix cladding problems on their buildings after Grenfell, with bills estimated at between £12 and £20 billion.
The funding does not cover safety defects such as inadequate fire doors, but documents from the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government, read: "We will fund reasonable capital costs for eligible works that are necessary to remediate unsafe non-ACM cladding systems on high-rise residential buildings."
Cavity barriers are identified as being part of the "cladding system", suggesting the Miller Heights work will be covered by the funding.
However, Mrs Marshall is worried Miller Height will be "right down the line", when it comes to the funding as there are so many other blocks which require costly works.
ACM (Aluminium Composite Material) is the type of cladding that was used on Grenfell Tower and which is now known to be combustible.
Managing agents of Miller Heights, Grange Homes, informed Maidstone and the Weald MP Helen Grant that they have applied for funding, but are yet to hear back.
Grange Homes, which is stepping down from its role imminently, declined to comment on action taken to install the barriers.
However, Mrs Marshall says she was told in February by Grange Homes that the next step is either getting money from either the government or leaseholders "to fix the cladding."
Miss Gladwin says the situation is "stressful" as they have had "no contact" from from Grange Homes about the funding application.
Ms Grant said Miller Heights residents "have been failed by their managing agents for too long" and has chased up the funding application as a "matter of urgency".
She went on: "Ever since the residential properties were first occupied at the site, I have been helping residents resolve a range of unsatisfactory issues, from plumbing and heating to anti-social behaviour. Enough is enough and I now welcome the chance to work with a new management company to take the necessary action to put things right.
"At the top of that list is fire safety. I am deeply concerned about the amount of time it is taking for the recommended ‘cavity barrier installation’ to be implemented at the property and I know how distressing this is for residents. Not only are they worried about the safety of their families, but it is also affecting their ability to resell their properties.
"I have already raised the matter with the existing managing agent on a number of occasions and it will be the first issue I discuss with the new management company on behalf of the residents. I have also raised the issue as a matter of urgency with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, to enquire as to whether any government money can be provided to fund the required works."
"Helping the residents at Miller Heights is a top priority for me and my team, and I sincerely hope we can make some genuine progress in the days and weeks ahead."
"One guy took a £50,000 loss on his flat just to sell it, just to get out..."
The building was recently sold and Kent Online is making attempts to contact the new freeholder. Kent Online has also requested to speak to the previous freeholder.
Christine and Robert, 70, a former freelance photographer, say firm answers about how the building came to fail the inspection are hard to come by.
The building now known as Miller Heights was built in the 1970s as an office block, then called Miller House.
In 2014, the first of several applications was approved to convert office space into apartments. All but 12 of these were approved under permitted development rights, meaning a planning application does not have to be submitted.
KentOnline's sister paper the Kent Messenger reported in 2019 that since 2013, 691 flats were created in the town through office space conversions.
However, that same year Maidstone Borough Council (MBC) bought in a new directive to protect 14 sites in the county town from, in the words of the council's head of planning, being converted "overnight".
No publicly available documents for the conversion or applications associated with Miller Heights propose fire safety provisions.
The TetraClad report drawn up in August 2020 says that the fitting of aluminium panels and box sections has created voids across the "entire facade" without including cavity barriers. The box sections rise to the full height of the building, and are described as "like a chimney", with the potential to spread fire unhindered.
It is not clear if the panel or box sections were installed before or after the conversion.
However, an application was approved to add aluminium panels between windows, but these panels do not appear to be addressed in the TetraClad report.
However, KentOnline has seen a fire strategy report by BWC Fire Limited, prepared for the proposed redevelopment, suggesting the need for cavity barriers.
The fire strategy was prepared for a company named as DPA (London) Ltd in support of its building regulations application and was "intended for discussion between the design team and to assist the design team in gaining approval in principle from the approving authorities."
The report says cavity barriers "will be included in any large cavity with the potential for extensive unseen fire spread."
The document says that the recommendations and conclusions of the report "may not be relevant if the report contents are not implemented into the design."
Miller Heights has been visited by the Kent Fire and Rescue Service but the service is not responsible for checking external walls, although this will change when amendments to the Fire Safety Bill come into force.
A spokesman for the Kent Fire and Rescue Service said: "The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 regulates fire safety of areas used in common within buildings.
"Currently, it does not include the structure or the external walls of the buildings, such as cladding.
"The legislation that includes those areas is the Housing Act 2004, which is enforced by the local authority. KFRS will support and work together with the local authority, if required."
She added that the fire safety bill which has now been passed but is yet to come into force, includes amendments to the legislation for the structure and the exterior of a building, including cladding, balconies and windows.
This will empower the fire service to take enforcement action for these areas where necessary, she said.
Some three fire safety audits have been carried out at Miller Heights, the most recent in February. The audits are part of a "risk-based inspection problem", which includes high rises across the county.
Suzanna Chisholm, building safety team lead for Kent Fire and Rescue Service, said: “At the last audit it was recommended some remedial works be carried out.
"These works included reviewing the current fire risk assessment, and keeping records of testing and maintenance of the fire provisions and facilities installed in the premises.
"The responsible person is carrying out steps to ensure that suitable fire compartmentation is achieved in the building. We continue to work with the management company to ensure these works are completed."
KentOnline asked MBC whether the authority had carried out an inspection on the external walls before the building was converted, or if it had received any documents which highlight fire safety provisions for the conversions.
A spokesman responded: "As the building is privately owned and the owners used a private approved building inspector, MBC Building Control would not have been involved in any previous inspections of the building."
When asked for an update this week, MBC said: “Our officers continue to liaise with Kent Fire and Rescue Service, who are the enforcing authority regarding the fire risk assessment.
“Maidstone Borough Council has no direct link to Miller Heights. We understand a number of local housing authorities make use of Miller Heights as temporary accommodation through third party providers. It is for each local housing authority to satisfy themselves that the accommodation they use is suitable.”
Since 1985, approved inspectors from private companies have been an alternative to local authority building control. They check plans and carry out site inspections during the course of the building progress.
For now, the Marshall's and other residents' search for answers and uncertainty over what happens next continues.
"It has taken over our lives," Mrs Marshall said.
The Grenfell Tower fire in June 2017 caused 72 deaths.
A six-month baby girl was the youngest victim. The oldest victim is believed to be an 84-year-old woman.
In the night a fire broke out in the kitchen of a fourth-floor flat. The blaze rose up the exterior of the building and then spread to all four sides within minutes.
In 2019, the judge at the Grenfell Tower Public Inquiry ruled the aluminium composite material (ACM) cladding panels were the “primary cause” of fire spread up the tower, and that changes to the walls during refurbishment meant a regulation had been breached, which required the external walls of a building to “adequately resist the spread of flame”.
The fall-out from Grenfell fire has revealed how tens of thousands of homes are wrapped in flammable material and over a million flats unmortgagable for years.
Action group End Our Cladding Scandal estimates that up to 11 million people have been "caught in the cladding scandal".
It is calling on the government funding put aside to fix dangerous cladding to cover all buildings, regardless of height, and a range of fire safety defects, not just cladding.
