3 minutes reading time
(582 words)
Grenfell on Screen, Councillors in Denial
Cladding Matters – Friday 5th July at 1pm
Chair: Gareth Wax
With the by-election results now in, there’s one message the local Council can’t ignore: voters are fed up. Labour, once dominant, has been ousted with a dramatic 30% swing in favour of the Green Party. A strong signal. A clean break. A community saying: enough.
This Friday’s Cladding Matters podcast steps directly into the space left by that political shake-up. While the new representative is still settling in, the underlying issues remain. Especially for residents living with the fallout of the building safety crisis.
Gareth Wax returns to the chair, joined by conveyancing collaborator Hamish McLay and regular guest Stephen Day. Stephen, a resident of Royal Artillery Quays (RAQ), continues to speak from lived experience. He offers a clear picture of what it means to live in a building caught up in the cladding crisis. The stalled remediation. The broken promises. The persistent silence from local leadership.
That silence is where this week’s episode begins.
The conversation turns not only to the political shift, but also to the Council’s long-standing failure to engage. Despite years of pressure from residents, there has been little in the way of meaningful response or support. And so the question is raised: what would it take for Councillors to understand what’s at stake?
One suggestion this week is simple. Every Councillor in the borough should be asked to watch Netflix’s Grenfell documentary. Not as a formality, but as an act of responsibility. The documentary does not let you look away. It makes you listen. It tells the story that some in public office still haven’t grasped.
Grenfell wasn’t just a tragedy. It was a warning. And yet here we are, years later, still dealing with buildings that are unsafe and residents who are unheard. The culture of delay and avoidance persists, and nowhere is that clearer than in local council responses.
This episode considers what accountability could look like in practice. Now that voters have spoken, the challenge is what comes next. Political change matters, yet it only becomes meaningful when it leads to change on the ground. Safer homes. Better support. Honest communication.
We’ll also be joined by Matt Hodges-Long, a respected voice in the building safety space. His work has brought him close to the realities of forced evacuations, regulatory complexity, and the systemic lack of transparency that continues to affect residents across the country.
This includes concerns around the volume of buildings with known defects that remain undocumented or unaddressed in public records. As leadership shifts within the Building Safety Regulator, questions are also being asked about enforcement priorities and the impact of industry backgrounds on independence and oversight.
While elections shift the headlines, the realities remain. The waking watches. The insurance hikes. The mental strain. These aren’t abstract issues. They affect people every day.
So perhaps it is time for every Councillor to sit down, watch Grenfell, and really take in what it means to be responsible for people’s homes and lives. Then come and speak to the residents at RAQ. Show up. Ask questions. Listen before deciding.
This Friday’s Cladding Matters will be timely and grounded. The conversation continues, because it has to.
Live on Friday 5th July at 1pm. Watch on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@SpillingTheProper-Tea
PS:
For content enquiries:This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
For podcast/media info:This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Chair: Gareth Wax
With the by-election results now in, there’s one message the local Council can’t ignore: voters are fed up. Labour, once dominant, has been ousted with a dramatic 30% swing in favour of the Green Party. A strong signal. A clean break. A community saying: enough.
This Friday’s Cladding Matters podcast steps directly into the space left by that political shake-up. While the new representative is still settling in, the underlying issues remain. Especially for residents living with the fallout of the building safety crisis.
Gareth Wax returns to the chair, joined by conveyancing collaborator Hamish McLay and regular guest Stephen Day. Stephen, a resident of Royal Artillery Quays (RAQ), continues to speak from lived experience. He offers a clear picture of what it means to live in a building caught up in the cladding crisis. The stalled remediation. The broken promises. The persistent silence from local leadership.
That silence is where this week’s episode begins.
The conversation turns not only to the political shift, but also to the Council’s long-standing failure to engage. Despite years of pressure from residents, there has been little in the way of meaningful response or support. And so the question is raised: what would it take for Councillors to understand what’s at stake?
One suggestion this week is simple. Every Councillor in the borough should be asked to watch Netflix’s Grenfell documentary. Not as a formality, but as an act of responsibility. The documentary does not let you look away. It makes you listen. It tells the story that some in public office still haven’t grasped.
Grenfell wasn’t just a tragedy. It was a warning. And yet here we are, years later, still dealing with buildings that are unsafe and residents who are unheard. The culture of delay and avoidance persists, and nowhere is that clearer than in local council responses.
This episode considers what accountability could look like in practice. Now that voters have spoken, the challenge is what comes next. Political change matters, yet it only becomes meaningful when it leads to change on the ground. Safer homes. Better support. Honest communication.
We’ll also be joined by Matt Hodges-Long, a respected voice in the building safety space. His work has brought him close to the realities of forced evacuations, regulatory complexity, and the systemic lack of transparency that continues to affect residents across the country.
This includes concerns around the volume of buildings with known defects that remain undocumented or unaddressed in public records. As leadership shifts within the Building Safety Regulator, questions are also being asked about enforcement priorities and the impact of industry backgrounds on independence and oversight.
While elections shift the headlines, the realities remain. The waking watches. The insurance hikes. The mental strain. These aren’t abstract issues. They affect people every day.
So perhaps it is time for every Councillor to sit down, watch Grenfell, and really take in what it means to be responsible for people’s homes and lives. Then come and speak to the residents at RAQ. Show up. Ask questions. Listen before deciding.
This Friday’s Cladding Matters will be timely and grounded. The conversation continues, because it has to.
Live on Friday 5th July at 1pm. Watch on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@SpillingTheProper-Tea
PS:
For content enquiries:
For podcast/media info:
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