St Jude’s council housing refurbishment

What's happening

June 2024

In June 2024, we advised that we were planning a major refurbishment of five blocks in St Jude's. In order to move ahead with the proposed refurbishment programme, we first needed to complete and then review the building surveys for four of the five blocks. This was an important and vital first step to ensure that we had as much detailed information as possible to inform the refurbishment programme.

September 2024

In September 2024, we contacted residents directly to deliver an update about some initial findings from the survey works and some additional fire safety measures we introduced to the blocks. As a precautionary measure, fire evacuation procedures in Charlton House, Haviland House, John Cozens House and Langton House were changed. We now advise that in the case of a fire, residents in these blocks should evacuate immediately. A waking watch service has also been introduced across all of these blocks.

May 2025

The final building and fire reports from our structural engineering contractor, Ridge, have provided the council with an overview of the blocks' current building and fire safety status.

The reports confirm that St Jude's is safe to live in.

Avon Fire and Rescue Service have endorsed the recommendations in the report and are satisfied that the building is safe for residents to live in. There are some immediate and medium works and recommendations that Ridge have identified which need to take place to ensure the continued safety of the building. These works were not budgeted for and therefore the council has made the difficult decision to not move ahead with the full proposed refurbishment plan.

Gas cannisters and batteries

There is no gas piping or gas hobs inside the buildings, however the reports explain that: "under accidental loading the concrete section of the structure is assessed to be inadequate in the event of a non-piped gas explosion".

It is absolutely essential that no gas canisters or high-capacity batteries are brought into the building under any circumstances. As outlined in the report, there is a risk to the building's structure should a gas canister explode inside the building.

Immediate recommended works

Ridge have made recommendations for immediate works that will maximise the buildings safety. We have been working with Ridge since June 2024 and have already taken steps to improve the blocks' building and fire safety. There are remaining immediate works which need to be completed, which include further surveys of the walkways and balconies, regular flat inspections, and the installation of a fire alarm.

Reports

On Wednesday 7 May 2025, we released the final reports which provide an overview of Charleton House, Haviland House, John Cozens House and Langton House's current building and fire safety status.

You can read the final report and executive summaries from the council and our contractors:

pdf Building Safety Executive Summary Report - St Judes - John Cozens Haviland Langton Charleton(629 KB)

pdf Building Safety Risk Assessment - April 2025 - St Judes - John Cozens Haviland Langton Charleton(3.04 MB)

pdf Fire Risk Assessment - Charleton House St Judes(10.91 MB)

pdf Fire Risk Assessment - Langton House St Judes(9.52 MB)

pdf Fire Risk Assessment - Haviland House St Judes(14.32 MB)

pdf Fire Risk Assessment - John Cozens House St Judes(11.09 MB)

pdf St Judes - Charleton House - Structural Robustness Assessment - Report Only(4.36 MB)

pdf St Judes - Haviland House - Structural Robustness Assessment - Report Only(4.38 MB)

pdf St Judes - John Cozens - Structural Robustness Assessment - Report Only(4.27 MB)

pdf St Judes - Langton House - Structural Robustness Assessment - Report Only(3.64 MB)

Your questions answered

If you've got a question about the findings of the report, check the document below to see if we've already answered your query:

pdf Your questions answered May 2025 update English(214 KB)

pdf Your questions answered May 2025 update Arabic (245 KB)

pdf Your questions answered May 2025 update Portuguese(198 KB)

pdf Your questions answered May 2025 update Somali(169 KB)

If we've not answered your question:

email st.judes@bristol.gov.uk
speak to your ward councillor
speak to your housing officer, or another member of staff on site

We'll aim to answer any appropriate questions within a few working days.

Help and support

Housing officers are available in the office at John Cozens every day from 10am to 4pm between Wednesday 7 May and Wednesday 14 May.

From Wednesday 14 May onwards officers will be available in the office at John Cozens from 10am to 4pm every Wednesday.

If you need more support and help:

email stjudes@bristol.gov.uk
call 0800 694 0184

If you need mental health support, you can find information on how to get in touch with mental health services and links to support groups in Bristol on our Mental health services page.

Stay informed

We're committed to communicating with residents first, sharing as much information as we can, when we have it.

If you're a resident living in Charleton House, Haviland House, John Cozens House, Langton House, or Tyndall House in St Jude's, let us know the best way you would like us to keep you updated by speaking to a housing officer.

We'll be sending updates by:

text
email in English, Somali, Arabic, and Portuguese
letters in English, Somali, Arabic, and Portuguese
meeting in-person

Housing officers have worked to get residents phone numbers and email addresses over the past few months, along with language preference.

If you've not managed to speak with a housing officer and provided contact details, or your details have changed recently, please make sure that we have these so that we can contact you directly.

You can provide details by: