Cladding Works

The University is appointing a contractor to deliver cladding works on the Petros Court site in Canterbury.

All five student accommodation buildings at the Petros Court site are constructed in the same style - a steel frame structure clad in a variety of different cladding systems. In accordance with our statutory requirements under the Regulatory Reform Order (Fire) 2005, the University undertakes regular risk assessments of all properties. Following a change in guidance, because of the Grenfell enquiry, the Fire Risk Assessment (FRA) for Petros requested an independent assessment of the external cladding system. This assessment has identified deficiencies and outlined the measures that need to be taken. Specifically there is a recommendation that the University 'Take action to ensure that remediation work is carried out on the structural elements of the building required to prevent the spread of fire on the premises.... remove and replace the cladding which has been identified as being capable of contributing to external fire spread and undertake remediation work to ensure there are adequate cavity barriers/fire breaks'.

The University must work at speed to appoint a contractor to remove the existing external materials and replace with systems that are compliant with new regulations.

The University intends to award a contract for this work to a previously identified supplier using the Negotiated procedure without Prior Publication procedure and is therefore posting this notice to raise awareness of this course of action. The supplier was identified by an independent third-party consultant. It is anticipated that a contract will be signed in early January 2023 with work commencing on site later that month.

The University has determined that use of the negotiated procedure is justified in this case as regulation 32(2) (c) applies to this project - "for reasons of extreme urgency brought about by events unforeseeable by the contracting authority, the time limits for the open or restricted procedures or competitive procedures with negotiation cannot be complied with".