City council to spend £735k bringing in firm for housing fire checks

IN-HOUSE TEAM IS TOO BUSY TO CARRY OUT WORK

- By OLIVER PRIDMORE

NOTTINGHAM City Council has approved spending more than £700,000 on a company to carry out fire risk checks on its housing as "increasingly busy" staff can't do it themselves.

The Labour-run authority says the findings of the Grenfell inquiry have increased the number of fire risk assessments needed to meet legislation.

This is because the council now has to do assessments on lower-rise buildings as well as the high-rise properties it is responsible for.

An external specialist is now set to be employed to do the work for the next three years at an overall cost of £735,000.