P-06-1549 Urgent Support for Hirwaun, Wales, Homeowners Affected by Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC)
This petition was submitted by Wilson Chowdhry, having collected a total of 273 signatures.
Text of petition:
In February 2024, RAAC was discovered in
77 homes on Hirwaun’s Gower Estate, 14 of which are privately
owned through the Right to Buy scheme. Residents now face average
costs of £23,000 for a temporary fix, while contending with
invalid insurance policies and unfair mortgage terms. RAAC is
unstable and deteriorates rapidly, posing serious safety
risks—yet neither Trivallis nor Rhondda Cynon Taf Council
have offered realistic support.
We urge the Welsh Government to intervene, providing financial
assistance and long-term solutions for affected
homeowners.
Additional information:
Hirwaun residents come from deprived
communities. Many have become mortgage prisoners—trapped with
lenders unwilling to refinance, while alternative providers refuse
applications. “These homeowners are financially exposed,
paying for home insurance that excludes RAAC-related issues, all
while living under the threat of roof collapse. These properties
were cheaply built by the local council, sold to Trivallis, and
then passed to unsuspecting residents through the flawed Right to
Buy scheme—without any disclosure of the structural risks
posed by RAAC.
The Welsh Government must establish a national remediation
fund—using devolved powers or by pressing the UK Government
for support—and initiate a public inquiry into historic
failings. Warnings were ignored: over 400 RAAC-related demolitions
took place in Basildon in the 1990s, and 86 homes were condemned in
West Lothian in 2004.
The Welsh Government must act now—by redefining building
regulations and housing standards to mandate 50-year guarantees on
defective materials, and by creating a Welsh high-risk property
register to prevent future scandals.
Senedd Constituency and Region