To:
Angela Rayner MP, The Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government;
James Asser MP, Member of Parliament for West Ham and Beckton;
Forhad Hussain, Mayor of Newham;
Dr Rohit K Dasgupta.

Dear Secretary of State, Mr Asser, Mayor Hussain and Dr Rohit K Dasgupta,

My name is Giorgio Tarantino, and I am a resident of Centurion Tower, one of the buildings evacuated on Thursday 22 October alongside Sovereign Tower and St Vincent Court. Or perhaps I should say I was a resident. Further evacuation notices have also been issued on Friday 30 October for Thanet Tower and Prince Court, putting a further 200+ residents out of their homes.

I am writing this letter with tears in my eyes, a knot in my throat, and the desperation of someone who, like more than 600 fellow residents, leaseholders and independent business owners, has lost the place he has called home for over seven years, without knowing where to go or how long this situation will last.

I am sure you are all aware of the situation, and I recognise that several parties are working to understand the full extent of the structural issues affecting our buildings. However, I cannot shake the unsettling feeling that, amid the investigations, technical assessments and public statements, both our developer, a joint venture of Galliard Homes, and the local authorities have lost sight of the most important thing: the people.

Residents like me have had to evacuate in panic and distress, packing our belongings in a matter of hours and leaving behind homes we have absolutely no idea when, or indeed whether, we will ever be able to return to.

When structural engineers look at our buildings, they see concrete, bricks and serious problems to solve. Journalists see a story to report. When we look at those buildings, we see our homes, our community, our place of work, our livelihood. 

We see the places where we made friends, shared laughter and shed tears. Where couples built their lives together and started families, sometimes while expecting or raising their first baby, like Anna and Liam. Where young professionals invested everything they had, sometimes including family savings accumulated over a lifetime, like my friend Giorgos. Where young people have rented for years, working hard to create a safe haven in this hectic, wonderful city. Where parents would drop off their kids in the capable hands of the GoldenSparks nursery, grab a delicious bite at MYMA, go for a climb at Rise or practise yoga and pilates at Luv Yourself Space and GARNET Studio. Our community also includes an 86-year-old resident and a young woman who gave birth less than two weeks ago. It is a community of owners, renters, families, young professionals and local businesses, all of whom have built their lives around this place.

It is a unique and beautiful community that has now been shattered.

Since the evacuation, residents have been left without adequate, sustained support to secure alternative accommodation.

Some residents were initially offered the possibility of staying at The Learning Zone, and later Beckton community centres. However, these temporary arrangements were available only for the first couple of nights, and residents have since been left to find their own short-term solutions.

Despite public statements and promises of support from Newham council and local government representatives, many of us are still waiting for tangible action. Newham council, which is also a freeholder of the land upon which our development stands, have yet to confirm whether affected residents will receive exemption from council tax while we are unable to live in our homes.

 

At the same time, Galliard Homes' silence is deafening.

To date, we have received no meaningful communication from the developer acknowledging the situation and explaining what support, if any, will be provided. No hotel accommodation or alternative housing has been offered to us by the developer, and no clear information has been provided about whether any emergency accommodation or associated expenses will be covered.

Galliard Homes writes on their website that they are “Professional in our approach, entrepreneurial in our thinking and loyal in our relationships, Galliard is all about mutual benefit. A family business run with family values.” Where is their loyalty, their professionalism, their family values towards our community, as we have been left with no meaningful certainty about our immediate future?

A precedent exists in Stratford Halo, another development affected by serious transfer slab issues, where Notting Hill Genesis funded serviced accommodation for affected residents. Why is comparable support not being provided to the residents of Royal Gateway?

Many renters have only just paid their monthly rent. Owners must continue to meet their mortgage payments. We are suddenly facing the prospect of paying for accommodation elsewhere while continuing to shoulder the financial commitments associated with homes we have been forced to leave. In a city as expensive as London, amid an ongoing cost-of-living crisis, the harsh reality is that the vast majority of residents simply cannot afford to pay for a second home or a hotel indefinitely.

Some residents are already considering returning to their flats despite explicit warnings that doing so could put their lives at risk. They are not necessarily doing so because they underestimate the danger, but because they cannot see another way to keep a roof over their heads. No one should be forced to choose between the risk of returning to an unsafe building and the prospect of having nowhere to live. Providing safe alternative accommodation is therefore not simply an act of goodwill. It is an urgent necessity.

Despite the buildings having been declared "an imminent threat to life", Newham Council has not even issued a prohibition order. Yet residents remain without adequate arrangements for alternative accommodation. The urgency of the safety concerns must be matched by the urgency of the response to the people affected.

The impact of this crisis also extends beyond residents. The commercial units within our development were home to several independently run businesses, amongst them: a nursery, a restaurant, a mental health charity, a bouldering centre, yoga and Pilates centres, and other businesses that were preparing to open. These businesses are owned and operated by hardworking people who had become an integral part of our community. They were not simply commercial premises; they were local businesses built through years of dedication, serving residents and contributing to the unique sense of community that Royal Gateway represents, or perhaps represented. Their livelihoods have been put on the line too, and their circumstances must not be overlooked. They deserve support and consideration alongside the residents affected.

For you, this may be an urgent matter requiring investigations, meetings and difficult decisions. For us, it is the loss of our sanctuary: the place we return to at the end of the day, where our belongings are, where our lives unfold and where we feel safe.

We have lost that sanctuary through no fault of our own. We have no clear timeline for its return, no certainty about what will happen to our homes and, for many of us, no viable alternative place to live.

I am therefore asking you to take urgent, coordinated action to support the residents of Royal Gateway. Specifically, I ask that you:

• Engage directly with Galliard Homes and the other responsible parties to establish what practical and financial support they will provide to affected residents. This should include exploring whether Galliard can make vacant properties available as temporary accommodation for displaced residents.
• Help secure safe alternative accommodation for affected residents, for as long as they are unable to return to their homes, particularly those who cannot afford to arrange accommodation independently.
• Urge mortgage lenders to provide temporary relief to affected homeowners, by securing a six-month mortgage payment holiday, with the possibility of a further six-month extension if necessary. This would give homeowners vital breathing space to meet the costs of alternative accommodation and manage the financial consequences of being displaced through no fault of their own.
• Push for an immediate freeze on council tax and ground rent for affected residents, for the entire period during which they are unable to occupy their homes. Residents should not be expected to continue paying council tax on homes they cannot live in or ground rent on properties from which they have been forcibly displaced. Also, clarify what emergency financial assistance and other relief are available to affected residents and businesses.
• Mobilise private-sector resources in support of evacuated residents, including by engaging with property groups, the hospitality sector and transport providers to secure preferential rates and discounted services for displaced residents.

I ask for a prompt written response explaining what immediate measures can be taken, who is responsible for coordinating them and when residents can expect further information.

We are not simply numbers on an evacuation report. We are not just taxpayers, nor are we sensational headlines for the daily news cycle.

We are people. Hundreds of people who have lost our homes, our stability and our sense of security. People who contribute every day to making London the city it is. People with families, jobs, financial commitments and lives that cannot simply be put on hold while the future of our buildings is determined.

We did not choose this situation, and we should not be left to bear its consequences alone.

We need more than statements of sympathy and promises of support. We need tangible help, clear communication and urgent action.

Please do not let the human cost of this crisis become an afterthought.

Yours faithfully,
Giorgio Tarantino, Former resident of Centurion Tower

On behalf of the residents of Royal Gateway and all those who support our call for urgent action by signing the letter and petition.