Misery of London tenants as tower block wrapped in scaffolding for over six years

North Londoners whose high-rise has been covered in scaffolding for over six years have accused their landlord of keeping them in the dark about when it will come down as they face break-ins and fears for their safety.

Occupants from the Archway Heights tower block in Islington have urged their housing association to act over the temporary structure due to severe loss of light and now trespassing.

The building was wrapped in scaffolding at least six years ago – though estimates vary – due to remedial cladding works, following the Grenfell tragedy in 2017.

Dwayne Lewis, 50, said that despite the scaffolding pre-dating his move to the building in 2023, aside from some new mesh netting for the frame, “no work has been done for years”.

Residents have also repeatedly complained about disrepair, including leaks from vandalised skylights, long-term heating outages and security issues leading to break-ins. The Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) was given two separate reports of people defecating in the building’s stairwell and outside its communal bike area.

The landlord, Places for People, says it cannot start work until it has been given consent by the Building Safety Regulator, and that this has seen delays due to factors it cannot control.

Speaking to the LDRS, resident Natasha Dyett said she and fellow tenants were now “ready to fight” the landlord to force action.

The scaffolding has been around the block for over six years

LDRS

‘He watched me in bed’

The occupants report that the scaffolding, along with other security faults in the building, have led to it becoming a hotspot for anti-social behaviour, as intruders have gained access to the communal bike room.

One night in July, Ms Dyett said she woke up to see a man standing outside her window. “He was watching me while I was lying in my bed. I have never been so scared in my entire life,” she said. The motion-sensor light and alarms, she added, had not been triggered during the intrusion.

“The scaffolding has become a platform for people to get into the building,” said Mr Lewis, who lives on the sixth floor.

Mr Lewis told the LDRS he believes the building is being “managed into decline”, even as tenants like himself see their rents continue to rise each year.

“Post-Grenfell, surely the priority must be to change the cladding as fast as possible to a suitable standard? It’s just dragging on,” he said. The cost of keeping scaffolding erected has not been established by the landlord. The resident claimed that staff had floated the figure of £500,000 per year.

Archway Heights’ previous landlord, Origin Housing Ltd, was subsumed by Places for People following a two-year merger process, with the latter taking over the building in April 2026. Origin was downgraded by the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) in 2023, when the watchdog designated it as non-compliant.

Natasha Dyett said she and fellow tenants were now “ready to fight” the landlord to force action.

LDRS

The tenants’ new landlord said it expects a Building Safety Regulator decision on the works in November, with remediation works estimated to take 12 months. The social enterprise has given goodwill payments to its tenants twice a year while their building has been scaffolded, with each property receiving £317.50 in October 2026.

“Places for People made loads of promises to us, including to be better at communicating, and to give a monthly block update. They’ve not kept that promise,” Ms Dyett claimed.

Though the residents have secured some improvements around security, including new access controls, this has not quelled wider concerns over their block. Now, they are campaigning as part of ACORN renters’ union, knocking on neighbours’ doors throughout the building to sign up residents to “go up against” the landlord.

ACORN has organised meetings with residents and protested outside the landlord’s HQ elsewhere in the borough. The renters’ union gave them a deadline of Thursday, October 15 to respond to their latest demands for repairs and safety investigations. The LDRS understands the housing association has since replied.

Natasha Dyett said she and fellow tenants were now ‘ready to fight’ the landlord to force action

LDRS

An ACORN spokesperson said: “Our members at Archway Heights have been left in unsafe conditions, have not been receiving services that they are paying for and have been left in the dark, quite literally, on what is actually going to be done to allow them to live dignified lives.”

A Places for People spokesperson said the building’s challenges were “complex, multi-faceted and will take time to resolve” but accepted residents’ frustration.

“Many of these issues are out of our control, but there are other things we could have done differently. The scaffolding is a necessary safety measure to protect residents and the public during essential building safety updates. This work cannot begin until we receive approval from the Building Safety Regulator, which has taken far longer than we anticipated.

“These delays are nationwide and affecting high-rise buildings across the country. Despite this, we have provided goodwill payments in recognition of the disruption. There is a programme of regular checks in place to ensure the building meets fire safety standards,” the spokesperson said.

The housing association added that it inspected any heating outages, had installed new entrance and lobby doors and upgraded the access controls, worked with local partners to address anti-social behaviour, and introduced temporary overnight security.