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Two common themes for me are customer experience and community spirit.  These are matters for all aspects of life but are exacerbated when it comes to communal living of any sort.  The number of clips on the internet of people overreacting, bullying, arguing, and incident rage are extraordinary.  Of course, from any totally objective perspective, it is easy to be rational or controlled.  However, when caught up in a moment rationality tends to disappear faster than Boris Johnson for a Heathrow runway vote

Property management and surveying firm Scanlans has bolstered its Manchester team with the appointment of Andrew Ashworth as a senior surveyor. Andrew, 33, has joined Scanlans from Nolan Redshaw, where he began his career as a graduate surveyor in 2008. He qualified as a registered valuer with the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors in 2013. Andrew said: “Joining Scanlans is a brilliant career move for me. The opportunity to join one of the most respected consultancies in the region is very exciting

A specialist with more than 30 years’ experience in credit management, legal debt recovery and enforcement has joined a new national property law firm based in Birmingham. Neil Jinks has been appointed as a director of Realty Law Limited, a sister company of established law firm Emms Gilmore Liberson, with a remit to shake up the property law sector. Realty Law Limited specialises in the complex area of debt recovery for the residential sector, acting for managing agents of leasehold properties to recover

Leases - it is easy to underestimate their importance. They survive the lifetime of your tenancy, and even if you’ve paid a considerable premium to own your dream flat, compliance with the terms of a long lease is as important as it is in a short letting. Your Lease A lease is a special type of contract – one which grants you the right to live in your home, subject to certain rules. It might seem peculiar that you can buy a flat for an open market value and still be subject to a landlord’s rules, but effo

More than 50 firefighters have been tackling a blaze today (July 3) that spread across four storeys of a block of flats in London. Eight fire engines were called as flames licked up the side of the building in Heritage Lane, West Hampstead, north-west London, at 11:25am. The fire was believed to have started on a balcony before it spread to balconies above, but London Fire Brigade (LFB) said that the cause was not known at this time. The added that no casualties had been reported in the fire, which has no

People attending the Grenfell Inquiry were evacuated when a fire alarm sounded today (July 3). A tannoy announcement at about 12:30pm said that a fire had been reported and urged those at the inquiry to assemble outside Holborn Bars. A fire warden then reported that it had been a false alarm and the hearing continued from 2pm. During the day’s evidence, the inquiry heard that senior fire officers wanted to abandon the policy of telling residents to “stay put” as the inferno engulfed the high-rise. Senior

JPC Law are delighted to announce Andrew Morgan has joined the partnership at JPC Law. Andrew joined the firm in 2017 as Head of Company and Commercial. His experience is broad, however he has particular expertise in tier one transactional matters including Mergers, Acquisitions and Disposals of Corporate entities, Management Buy-Outs and Joint Ventures. Andrew has demonstrated excellent client care and business development skills, operating a very simple “client charter” which sees him offer an informal

QUESTION I own a leasehold ground floor flat with concrete floors. I recently had an under floor water leak which was quickly traced to a faulty dishwasher connection. Initially it seemed possible that the Karndean vinyl flooring, which was showing no damage, might have needed taking up to investigate. The buildings insurance for the flats only covers me for trace and access if there is damage. As there was none visible I would not have been able to claim and emergency home cover would not have covere

Issue 95 of News on the Block has now been published.  This issue includes some of the following articles: Landmark judgment passed down following appeals in two cases Unravelling complexities in tax clearance Right to Manage: are you compliant?  Defeating the claim to appurtenant land  Will Commonhold take hold? Grenfell: one year on! Enfranchisement & Right to Manage Awards 2018 - winners announced!  and more... Please click the download link below to read this issue.

A fire at a high-rise in London and another at a block in Glasgow broke out on the morning of the first anniversary of the Grenfell tragedy.   Eight people were treated for smoke inhalation after a fire in a kitchen in a 14th floor flat at Commercial Court, in the Gorbals area of Glasgow.   Alan Fairbairn, the area manager of the Scottish fire and rescue service, said the blaze was contained within an hour.   Hours earlier, at 4:14am, about 180 people fled their homes when fire broke out on the 12th floor

The firefighter who led the response to the Grenfell blaze had no knowledge of how the inferno was burning out of control and was not trained in reversing “stay put” advice. Watch manager Michael Dowden, who broke down in tears while giving evidence to the public inquiry into the blaze, said he had never experienced a fire like Grenfell.   He told the inquiry that on his way to the blaze, crew manager Christopher Secrett had radioed to say the fourth floor kitchen fire that started the inferno had been pu

As a flat owner you might not consider the effects on your flat in an area that is prone to flooding as much as a house owner would. After all, surely flood water won’t reach any levels above the ground. However, buying a flat in a flood risk area is actually an important factor to consider whatever level your flat is on. What are the downsides? Even a flat owner above the ground floor will often find they have a higher contents insurance rate to pay in a high risk flood area unless you shop around for an