An upcoming inquiry will explore how the council tower block was evacuated
Barton House residents demonstrate at City Hall(Image: Bristol Live)
Emails sent and received by Marvin Rees are “unlikely” to be reviewed by an upcoming inquiry into the Barton House evacuation.
The former mayor was out of the country in November 2023 when the council tower block was evacuated after fears the building could suddenly collapse.
Several questions regarding the evacuation remain unanswered. Around 400 residents were ordered to leave their homes with no warning when Bristol City Council decided the block, in Barton Hill, was too risky for them to stay in.
The building was declared safe in February 2024.
During the evacuation the former mayor was attending a conference in Kigali, Rwanda, which might have affected decisions on Barton House.
But because his emails appear to have been deleted when he left office, the inquiry might leave some huge question marks lingering.
Councillors on the housing policy committee were asked on Friday, May 30, whether these emails would be available to the inquiry.
The council will hire consultants to work with residents of Barton House to review what happened during the evacuation.
A written answer to a public question said: “The planned review will be carried out by an independent consultant. The consultants will work with residents and stakeholders to co-design the scope of the review.
“This is not an inquiry into the working activities of the mayor of Bristol, as such individual’s emails are unlikely to form part of this review.”
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The answer added that the review’s findings would be shared with residents and published more widely. These answers are usually written by an unnamed senior council officer, and signed off by a policy committee chair.
Green Councillor Barry Parsons, chair of the housing committee, added: “The terms of reference of the review haven’t yet been set, and that will be done along with residents.
“I would expect that any evidence that’s necessary for that review should be made available to it. I really don’t know what specific evidence will be required for that review to take place yet.”
It’s unclear when the inquiry will actually begin. The evacuation happened more than 18 months ago, and the Greens won the local elections promising a review more than a year ago. The committee was urged to set up an investigation that “doesn’t just sweep things under the rug”.
Dan Ackroyd, a democracy activist, said: “This should be an inquiry into how the council cocked up an evacuation that led to people being traumatised because of the incompetence of the people involved. What the hell was going on that day? Did anyone in the mayor’s office try to prevent the evacuation from happening?
“It was inconvenient that the day of the mayor’s big speech in Kigali that he had this evacuation going on. I have reason to suspect that trying to manage an evacuation while hobnobbing at a conference is likely to lead to delays in making decisions and communicating with the public. The council needs to hold a proper inquiry, not one set up to sweep things under the rug.”
People living in Barton House could be given extra priority to find a new home, in a victory for campaigners including the community union Acorn. The council is consulting the public about changing the way people waiting for social housing are put into four different bands of priority.
This would include “tenants who have had to leave their homes and stay in emergency accommodation for a prolonged period following an emergency event”. Tenants would be moved up one band, so somebody in band three would move up to band two, and somebody in band two would be moved up to band one.
Higher bands mean people get a new home quicker. However, one resident living in Barton House said this could still leave traumatised tenants waiting in the council tower block for ages if placed into band two, and suggested that Barton House tenants should be put into band one.
Speaking after the meeting, Fadumo Farah said: “I’ve spoken with one of the residents who is in band three. She’s worried they might move her to band two. It’ll take probably like three or four years to get rehoused if you’re on band two. The people who don’t feel safe are those who are disabled, who cannot evacuate the building when the alarm systems go off.
“It’s not a clear process to be honest. I wish they could just offer those residents who are struggling to live in Barton House, who do not feel safe, who have children with autism and other learning disabilities, to go straight to band one. The main thing though is that people feel safe, and at the moment Barton House is not safe.”
Ms Farah was recently offered a home away from Barton House, but said she would carry on supporting other residents. She said the former mayor’s emails must be available to the inquiry, to prevent the council repeating its mistakes elsewhere, like in St Jude’s. Council flats there need urgent structural repairs as some of the walls are “insufficiently” attached to the floors.
She added: “The other thing I’m very disappointed about is the political games from Labour, the Greens and the Conservatives, about Barton House. When the [evacuation] happened, Labour was in charge, and they completely ignored us. When the Greens took over, they promised us band one priority, for which we’re still waiting. I don’t want Barton House to be a political game.
“It’s not a political game, it’s real people who are trying to have a stable and safe home. Even though I am getting rehoused, I’m not backing down, I’m still helping the residents. We need to make sure that the council does the independent investigation properly.
“All of the mayor’s messages and emails should be available so that we know exactly what happened. There was a failure of the council. All these things need to come out so that this doesn’t happen to other people, like in St Jude’s.”