Avant Homes signs cladding contract

Avant Homes has become the latest housebuilder to sign the government’s contract for fixing safety defects in tower blocks 11m and over where the firm has had any involvement through building or refurbishing in the last 30 years. 

A spokesperson for the housebuilder said: “Avant Homes confirms that it has signed the government’s self-remediation contract.”

Forty-seven developers have now signed the contract. This leaves only Abbey Developments, Dandara and Rydon Homes yet to sign the legally binding agreement. Rydon Homes is so far the only company that has signalled an intent not to sign so far. 

A spokesperson for Dandara has told Housing Today that it too wants to sign the contract “as soon as possible” and is having “positive” talks with DLUHC about the details. Abbey Developments has so far not commented. But Rydon Homes, which reported turnover of £19.2m in its most recent accounts, said it believed it was an SME so did not fall under the remit of the contract. 

Housing secretary Michael Gove has effectively threatened to put housebuilders out of business using new legal powers in the Building Safety Act if they do not sign. He named and shamed 11 housebuilders in the House of Commons who had been asked to but had not yet signed the contract by the government’s deadline of the 13 March.

The government confirmed this morning it had “transferred Viva Midco Limited (parent company for Avant Homes) from the list of developers who have yet to sign the contract to the list of developers who have signed the contract”.