Tower blocks to be refurbished in £8.3m project

An "essential" £8.28m project to refurbish two high-rise towers looks set to be approved.

The planned work on the 12-storey Wellington Court and Westwood Court buildings in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, would include a new sprinkler system along with replacement windows and doors.

Improvements would also be made to the lifts, Stoke-on-Trent City Council said, and the roofs would be replaced to ensure long-term weather protection.

The project has been recommended for approval ahead of the authority's meeting on Tuesday, and it would mark the final stage of the programme to refurbish all five of Hanley's high-rise buildings.

The two blocks contain a total of 92 flats, of which 16 are leasehold properties with the rest being part of the council's social housing stock.

The work is due to start in summer 2027 and the council said it expected residents to be able to stay in the building until the project was finished by winter 2028.

It will be carried out by Stoke-on-Trent firm Novus and the council estimated the overall cost to be about £8.28m.

Councillor Chris Robinson said: "This major refurbishment work is essential as part of our drive to deliver safe, energy-efficient, modern and affordable homes around the city.

"While the programme is comprehensive and includes a wide range of modernising initiatives, we are looking to carry out the work with the disruption to residents being kept to a minimum."

This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations.

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