Five things I found this week – 7 April

This week’s pages – general information, updates and informal CPD, are all relevant to Collier Steven’s work
(originally an in-house info page for our staff)

History – 

The Great Stink | The History of London
One of London’s great improvements took place in the mid-Victorian period. To most people it was evident in the form of new embankments along the Thames, but much of the benefit to their health and well-being was out of sight below ground. Such was the ingenuity and quality of the Victorian sewer system created by the Metropolitan Board of Works that it still continues to service London.

Collier Stevens conducted a programme of disable access audits on the visitor facilities at some of these sites, notably the Victorian splendour of Abbey Mills pumping station.  Crossness still has steaming days: https://crossness.org.uk/

Surveys – 

Certificates of Structural Adequacy
This article explores the topic of Certificates of Structural Adequacy (COSA) within the context of buying and selling residential property.

Legislation – 

Apply for the Warm Homes: Local Grant to improve a home
Find out if you’re eligible for the Warm Homes: Local Grant to make energy saving improvements to a home.

Health & Safety- 

A worker is perched on a sloped roof of a brick building, surrounded by scaffolding and autumn foliage. Overcast sky above.
Man spared jail for carrying out unsafe work on his own home – HSE Media Centre
A man has been given a suspended sentence after he carried out unsafe work on an extension to his own home in Manchester.

A reminder that Health & Safety can extend to instructing dangerous work on your own home.

Legal –

Woodworm affected floorboards
A Rising Concern About Housing Disrepair Claimant Expert Surveyors: Legal… | Rosie Wills
Housing Disrepair Claims and the Role of Expert Surveyors - We explore a real-world example where an expert’s report in a disrepair case raised concerns due to: Lack of proper causation analysis, Unverified claims about mould species, Inaccurate assumptions about insulation, Discrepancies in ventilation testing methods.

There’s a bit going on at the moment related to Expert Witness reports in Housing Disrepair cases, mainly centred on the very poor quality of some of these reports.