A review ordered by the Housing Ombudsman after detachment of roof planting finds lack of safety measures and irrigation systems
A review ordered by the Housing Ombudsman has found a lack of safety measures and irrigation systems in Aster Group’s ’living roofs’.
The Housing Ombudsman last Decemebr ordered Aster to conduct an independent review of its living roof maintenance after it investigated a complaint from a resident relating to the detachment of roof planting during adverse weather conditions.
A living roof consists of a roof covered with plants and soil or another growing medium, placed over a waterproof layer to protect the building from water damage.
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In the review, Aster said it had limited experience with living roofs, having installed them at only four sites. However, due to the need to meet zero carbon targets and the growing demand for biodiversity in new developments, the association said that this could lead to more installations in the future.
The review recommended that Aster add qualified living roof specialists to its approved supplier list and develop a dedicated maintenance policy based on industry best practices.
The review also stressed the importance of ensuring timely communication with residents regarding repair requests and improving staff training on living roof maintenance.
The findings of the Housing Ombudsman’s investigation, published on 6 December 2023, revealed delays in Aster’s repairs to the roof of a property at Roman Barns in Devon, where planting had detached in February 2022.
Aster had appointed an external contractor to carry out the repairs after the complaint was raised. Between February and May 2022, the landlord attempted to contact the contractor multiple times, but there is no evidence that the contractor responded.
Aster eventually appointed a different contractor, but the Ombudsman said this should have been done sooner.
Another issue identified was the lack of a fall restraint system for the living roof. The roof at the Roman Barns property in Devon was completed in 2012. However, the service charge for a fall arrest system was only introduced in 2020.
Aster’s review revealed that while the fall restraint system was mentioned in the project’s value for money statement, it was not included in the contractor’s specifications and does not appear to have been installed when the roof was originally built.
The Ombudsman’s investigation also found that there was ”considerable confusion” about how to approach repairing the living roof due to a lack of internal expertise on living roofs.
Richard Blakeway, Housing Ombudsman, said: “This review reveals the proactive and positive steps Aster is undertaking in response to our wider order.
It also creates wider learning opportunities for landlords who are looking to bring residents on the journey to create zero carbon new homes.”
In a statement, Aster said: ”We are very sorry for letting our customer down by not delivering the high standard of service we aim for. We have contacted our customer to apologise and have paid compensation. A full replacement of the living roof was completed in summer 2024.”
On the introduction of the service charge for the fall arrest system without consulting with residents, Aster said “it wasn’t managed in the correct or best way”.
They added: ”We also accept we didn’t communicate well with our customer about the maintenance and repairs to the living roof.”
“Following this case, we carried out a full review of all the living roofs on our homes. We have since amended our policy and procedure for maintenance and repairs and have reviewed our supply chain arrangements for living roofs. We have also developed new complaint training with a focus on the importance of good pro-active communication.”
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