Lifestyle
Music
The best Xmas markets from the UK and beyond
Games
Where do our readers stand on Xmas tracks?
p18
p28
THE UNIVERSITY OF SHEFFIELD’S INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER
South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Authority (SYFR) are set to launch an ‘urgent’, independent review into Sheffield’s student accommodation sector, in order to examine the fire safety of the city’s accommodation. The review comes after a blaze at ‘The Cube’ student accommodation block in Bolton on Friday 15 November saw the evacuation of over 200 students. Concerns have been raised by the likes of Greater Manchester’s mayor, Andy Burnham, over the use of combustible cladding - notably high
pressure laminate (HPL) cladding, and whether it was used on the fivestorey Bolton block. The SYFR review also comes after more than 100 students were evacuated from Sheffield’s Royal Riverside flats on Tuesday 15 October, when a power-cut left the block without water, electricity or working fire alarms. Speaking to the Sheffield Star, Cllr Paul Wood, who is also the Cabinet member for Neighbourhoods and Community Safety, praised the University’s response to the incident, adding that “although it’s a private building, the Council can get involved if there is a safety issue.
p37
ISSUE 140 | WEDNESDAY 4TH DECEMBER 2019 | FREE
Student blocks set for ‘urgent’ fire inquiry James Cottis News Contributor
Snow levels, like Marmite, you love ‘em or hate ‘em
Image: PA We will bill them for the cost that’s been incurred.” The former Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Students, Paul Blomfield, has since “received reassurances from the South Yorkshire Fire Authority and from Sheffield City Council that an urgent review will be undertaken on local high-rise developments, but has urged the Government to take action.” Documents seen by Forge Press outlining the next steps of the review shows that there will be moves to identify any student accommodation in the city that uses similar cladding to that on
The Cube through their Risk Based Audit Program, which, under The Regulatory Reform Order (2005), gives fire authorities the power to inspect buildings and enforce the party responsible for the building to make changes where there is a risk to safety. The document, produced by SYFR, states that: “Following the fire within Bolton, Greater Manchester, which occurred on the 15th November 2019 and affected student accommodation, I thought it prudent to update you on the immediate action taken by SYFR prior to the release of additional information from either Greater
Manchester FRS or the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC). “Officers from within the Business Fire Safety (BFS) department are in contact with colleagues in Greater Manchester to identify the construction type and the company responsible for “The Cube” building in order to identify if similar buildings are within South Yorkshire. “In addition BFS officers are seeking further information on the exterior cladding, given it appears that the fire spread from within the building to the exterior and developed up the exterior cladding. It is too... (cont. on p4)