Hackney Council needs £547 million to address potentially unsafe cladding on council-owned buildings. The issue was discussed by the council's Cabinet during a meeting on Monday, 26 October 2026.

Housing Services is assessing 190 owned buildings for cladding safety under the Building Safety Act. Of these, 32 buildings require remediation works, 82 require further surveys to determine if action is needed, and 76 have been cleared with no work required. Work is currently underway to measure all 190 properties to formally categorise them into height thresholds over 18 metres or between 11 and 18 metres. The target is for every applicable building over 18 metres to be fully remediated by the end of 2029, and every building over 11 metres to have a confirmed completion date.

Cladding remediation typically ranges from £2 million to £15 million per eligible building, with an average contract value of £7.5 million. The total projected outturn cost for Hackney's programme is estimated at up to £547 million, based on current eligible property forecasts.

The baseline is firmly established by £15.6 million in grant funding already secured by the council through the government's Cladding Safety Scheme. This initial capital is fully committed to comprehensive diagnostic and engineering reviews led by approved consultants.

Approval was given to apply for and accept the grant funding, with authority delegated to the Executive Director of Finance and Corporate Resources and the Director of Legal, Democratic and Electoral Services to sign the necessary legal documentation. This funding ensures the achievement of full compliance at nil cost to both the Council and individual leaseholders, preventing a significant financial burden.

A voluntary ongoing engagement strategy is in place, featuring newsletters, block-specific meetings, and a dedicated liaison team for affected areas, to keep residents informed throughout the remediation process.

Read more about the decisions made at the Cabinet meeting on Monday 26 October 2026 in the Decisions document.

Public reports pack Monday 26-Oct-2026 18.00 Cabinet Agenda frontsheet Monday 26-Oct-2026 18.00 Cabinet Supplementary Pack Monday 26-Oct-2026 18.00 Cabinet Unrestricted minutes of the previous Cabinet meeting