External wall systems (EWS) and cladding remediation

You may be able to access EWS1 form, if available for your building.

Cladding remediation

After the tragic events at Grenfell Tower block in 2017, we reviewed arrangements across all our housing stock.

At that time, we prioritised schemes which fell into “high rise” criteria (above 18 metres in height), of which we had 11. We have now completed cladding remediation work to all those buildings over 18 metres where defects were identified.

We are now doing assessments of wall systems on blocks between 11 metres and 18 metres in height (over four storeys), where the fire risk assessment has identified an external wall system such as cladding.  

Due to the number of blocks within this height range, the complex nature of the work and the availability of specialist contractors, we expect this work to take around two years to complete. 

Page published: April 2023

RICS EWS1 forms

If you want to sell your home, access staircase lending or re-mortgage, your mortgage valuer may ask for a copy of your EWS1 form for your building. If this happens, please contact us to see if this is available. 
 

What is an EWS1 form?

Following the fire at Grenfell Tower in 2017, the Government issued a number of guidance notes to the housing sector. These required building owners to inspect and confirm the design and performance of wall systems. 

In December 2019, as a response to the slow-down in the sale of flats across the UK due to ongoing concerns regarding the safety of wall systems, the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), in conjunction with mortgage lenders, created the EWS1 form.

This is a way for building owners to confirm to mortgage lenders that wall systems are free from defects and do not pose a risk to their financial investment, should they provide a mortgage to an individual. The EWS1 form, once provided, is valid for five years. 

The attainment of an EWS1 form by a building owner is not a legal requirement and does not demonstrate that the wall system is safe or unsafe. It is merely a tool by which mortgage companies can determine the risk associated with lending. 

Getting an EWS1 form

We will provide an EWS1 form on buildings below 18m (seven storeys in height) in-line with current guidance from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), where: 

  • there is a “significant” amount of cladding on the building (based on what can be seen from ground level) or
  • there are Aluminium Composite Material (ACM), Metal Composite Material (MCM) or High Pressure Laminate (HPL) panels on the building or
  • there are balconies which stack vertically above each other and either both the balustrades and decking are constructed with combustible materials (e.g. timber), or the decking is constructed with combustible materials and the balconies are directly linked by combustible materials. 

We will prioritise blocks where we have confirmation that ACM, MCM or HPL is present in accordance with the risk profile of the building. 

If an EWS1 form hasn’t been completed for your building, but is planned, we’ll let you know when we expect it to be available. Unfortunately, we are unable to prioritise the completion of forms for individual properties / leaseholders. 

Once we have completed our programme for blocks over 11 metres in height, we’ll then proceed to survey the remainder of our buildings, prioritising blocks where we have confirmation that ACM, MCM or HPL is present in the wall system. 

For leaseholders living in buildings below 11 metres where ACM, MCM or HPL is present, we’re sorry that we can’t supply or confirm when a EWS1 form for your home will be available. 

Some valuers request EWS1 forms for buildings which do not fulfil the criteria above. In these circumstances, please contact us. We will confirm whether or not an EWS1 form is required and recommend that you refer the valuer to the RICS guidance.