Balcony, Window & Roof Safety

BALCONY, WINDOW & ROOF SAFETY

Most home accidents are preventable through increased awareness, improvements in the home environment and product safety. But there are also steps we can all take to ensure our homes are safe for ourselves and our loved ones.

With the arrival of warmer weather, the likelihood of your windows and balcony doors being open increases the risk of an accident in your home. Falls from height pose a significant risk to you and your family, especially small children. Young children are naturally curious but have no real sense of danger. Nationally every day, at least one child under 5 is admitted to hospital with head injuries caused by falls.

It’s important you report any fault or damage to your windows, balcony railings or glazing to us at once, so we can make them safe or carry out an urgent repair.

This includes any damage to balcony or walkway railings, balustrades or glazing panels to communal walkways.

Residents are not allowed access to roof areas, unless the roof forms part of the building escape route.

If contractors or utility providers chosen by residents need access to roofs, they must contact us to get a permit to work.

To make sure you and your family stay safe in your home, remember:

• Ensure, where fitted, window restrictors are working efficiently. The restrictor is a safety device which prevents the window opening wide enough to allow a child to fall out;

• Never leave small children unattended in rooms where windows or doors leading to balconies are open;

• If possible, move any furniture units, tables and chairs away from windows. These could be used by a child to climb out of an open window or climb over a balcony railing;

• If your windows and balconies can be locked, ensure any keys are kept in a secure place; and

• Don’t put any material (such as vinyl sheet or tiles) down on your balcony. This will prevent rainwater from draining properly and may also make the surface slippery when wet, causing you to slip and fall.

Remember, if there is a fault or a repair is needed to your windows or balcony railings, you should report this to us at once.

REPORT A REPAIR 0800 035 0003 propertyservices@cityoflondon.gov.uk

City of London Corporation have procured six window replacement contracts across the housing estates totalling 824 properties. Estates benefitting from new windows are:

• William Blake Estate

• Holloway Estate

• Windsor House

• Sydenham Hill (Otto Close & Lammas Green)

• Dron House

• Southwark Estates (Pakeman House, Stopher House and Sumner House)

Dron House will see a pilot flat completed imminently before starting on the rest of the estate.

The other estates are just going through the very last of the formalities before work can commence on site, but this should start later this year. Once the new windows are in, redecoration work will start.

The main benefits for the new windows will be increased comfort, reduced heat loss to help lower heating bills, less noise, ease of use, better ventilation, reduced condensation and better security, not just for those trying to get into the property but also helps prevent young children climbing out.

If you have any queries regarding the work, please contact the team at dccs-majorworksteam@cityoflondon.gov.uk