Tyfoam Houses, Brighton
Mears and Brighton & Hove City Council
Podium were engaged by Mears and Brighton & Hove City Council to act as the Building Owners Surveyor for a project aimed at repairing and insulating a group of terraced and semi-detached properties in Brighton. The project was designed to address various defects and ensure the buildings met current thermal standards. To achieve this, the existing external leaf of cavity brickwork was removed to facilitate the replacement of outdated Tyfoam insulation and the installation of an External Wall Insulation (EWI) system.
The rolling programme, beginning in August 2018 and concluding in February 2021, involved repairing and insulating multiple properties, with an average cost of £30,000 per house. As part of the process, external walls were reconstructed, and it was necessary to issue party structure notices to over 30 properties. This required notifying neighbours (where these were not council tenants with a tenure/lease of more than 12 months) through a Section 2(b) notice to determine whether they assented or dissented from the works.
Podium’s responsibilities included:
– Serving Notices – Podium served necessary notices and acted on behalf of the Building Owner to engage with Adjoining Owners (AO)
– Producing Party Wall Awards – given the scale of the project, over 15 Party Wall Awards were produced, including agreed Schedules of Condition.
– Stakeholder Management – answering AO questions, monitoring progress, and attending site to check and sign off the SoC.
This project demonstrated the need for clear communication and collaboration with Adjoining Owners, particularly when working on terraced and semi-detached properties. Despite the challenges of navigating multiple party wall agreements, Podium ensured compliance with legal requirements, facilitated smooth project execution, and resolved any disputes arising from the works. Jason Paine’s expertise and experience were instrumental in guiding the project to a successful conclusion.