Failed By The State
LWRA June Newsletter
Our June newsletter is out with the schedule of activities for the 2nd anniversary of the fire, distribution of scarves and badges, the Lancaster West awards ceremony and some tickets for Kew Gardens.
You can read it here
AECOM site walkabouts
AECOM will be undertaking the site walkover/recce of the exploratory sampling sites on Thursday and Friday, 23rd and 24th.
There are 20 proposed sites and the AECOM team will need about half an hour to survey each site, so the process will involve two full days. These locations have been selected on the basis of community input from the workshops, information following the fire and proximity (within 1km) to the Tower.
Please note, this is exploratory sampling and so does not represent a definitive list of everywhere that will be tested, as the main sampling will take place in Stage 2.
More details here.
Grenfell Walk - Community Art Project
Lancaster West Residents Association, Grenfell Walk Residents Association and Lancaster West Neighbourhood Team will be collaborating to create community led art designs for the hoarding along Grenfell Walk
If you are a local artist, community group, school or faith based organisation we are keen to hear from you.
For further information or to register your interest, please
email arts@lancwestra.com or call 07858 926397 to register your interest by Friday 10 May.
More details here
Professor Anna Stec’s Report on Contamination on the Lancaster West Estate
We, the Lancaster West Residents Association, are deeply concerned by the findings of Professor Anna Stec's report of cancerous and asthma causing contaminants in the soil and environment surrounding Grenfell Tower. Residents' continuous complaints of health problems (such as the infamous Grenfell cough) have been dismissed up until now.
The Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea Council is moving incredibly slowly, it has taken RBKC 21 months to appoint a specialist independent contractor to investigate the possible contamination of the air and soil. We need action now. They are taking chances with their residents' health.
Parents in the area are extremely concerned,. There are primary schools very close to the tower and the Kensington Aldridge Academy sits underneath. The KAA are being forced to think of relocation again due to the findings of Prof Stec's report. These children have just returned with the assurance that the area is safe.
We demand immediate response to the following questions:
Why were students and residents moved back into the area without the essential safety checks
Why has it taken 17 months before there was a proper investigation of the contamination?
Why were residents, of Lancaster West and the surrounding area, told it was safe to eat locally grown food and vegetables if they were washed thoroughly, which now proves not to be true?
What screenings will be put in place to ensure residents within the affected zones are monitored closely, and what date will this start?
When will central government or the local council contact residents to inform them of the findings and what is their immediate plan of action?
How will these findings affect the future of Lancaster west estate?
Will the council leaders attend a Committee meeting to discuss the toxicology report and answer Committee questions?
Can professor Stec attend a Committee meeting to go through her findings, discuss risks and recommendations?
We ask for a concerted program of total decontamination of the soil around the tower and surrounding relevant areas. And a long term health screening program both for the residents and those who work in the affected area.
Update on Tower wrapping
I regret that works to replace wind-damaged wrapping on Grenfell Tower started this morning, before we had informed you.
This had not been our intention and I am escalating with site contractors as a matter of urgency to understand what happened so that we can avoid it happening again.
I understand how upsetting it can be to see things happening to the Tower which you are not already aware of. Unfortunately, because works have started, for safety reasons they need to be completed. This will be done by the end of the day today.
No further works to replace the wrapping will be started until we have informed you of what you can expect to see and when.
Please accept my apologies,
Doug Paterson
Grenfell Site Management