St Peter's House: residents set to return to Norwich flats after "life-threatening" hazards fixed

Residents of the block, on Cattle Market Street, were told to leave last year for their own safety.

St Peter's House in Norwich, which was converted from offices into luxury flats
Author: Matt SoanesPublished 8th Aug 2023

Residents of a block of flats in Norwich, who were told to leave last year over major safety concerns, are finally being allowed to return to their homes.

All 53 flats at St Peter's House in Cattle Market Street were evacuated on April 11 2022 after 'potentially life threatening' hazards were discovered within the construction of the building.

Since then, the owner of the building has been working to make the property, which is a former office block, safe once again.

At the time the residents were told to leave the property had been cut off from mains power, with a generator reportedly being used to produce electricity for the building.

There were also multiple serious fire hazards.

An emergency prohibition order which prevented residents returning home has now been lifted by Norwich City Council.

Councillor Beth Jones, of Norwich City Council, said: “Cases like this illustrate the shocking indictment of our under-regulated private housing sector.

“In this particular instance, it has resulted in many people being forced to be away from their homes for a long time. I’d like to thank them for their resilience and patience during what has been a really difficult time.

“None of this would have been possible without the tenacity of many council officers. They never stopped in their efforts to make sure that a raft of very serious issues in the building, including serious fire and electrical safety matters, were addressed.”

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