Leaseholders in Luton forced to pay for fire safety work

Leaseholders have described their dismay at facing "unaffordable" increases in charges to pay for the removal of cladding on their building. Joseph Brown, 63, has owned a flat in Harrowden Court, Luton, for more than 30 years. He has been told the cost of his service charge and sinking fund contributions, which pay for the building's maintenance, would increase by more than £500 a month from April, which have caused him "significant anxiety and stress". Hastoe Group, which manages Harrowden Court, said: "This increase is intended to cover the costs of the fire safety remediation works [and the] removal of the cladding in 2027-28." Brown's neighbour, Thomas DeRonde, 36, bought his flat in Harrowden Court in 2018 with money he had saved from serving in the Army. Following the 2017 Grenfell Tower fire - where cladding caused a fire to spread rapidly and led to the deaths of 72 people - DeRonde said in February 2025 he received a £65,000 bill for the fire safety remediation works and the removal of the cladding his housing association installed. In July the government said it would provide funding on a "strictly exceptional basis" to multi-occupied residential buildings under 11m (36ft