GHA carrying out checks after damage at Rue Jamouneau
Investigations are taking place to ensure there are no further problems with the Rue Jamouneau and Rue Sarchet estate off the Grand Bouet after a piece of external render-board crashed into the road during Storm Ciaran.
No one was injured in the incident and no one needed to move out. But it raised questions about the estate, which was built 10 years ago.
The site is owned by Guernsey Housing Association, and chief executive Vic Slade said she was very grateful to JW Rihoy’s staff for coming so quickly to deal with the damage.
She noted that this highlighted the advantages of using a local contractor for the original build.
GHA staff have since been checking sites, to ensure there was no further damage that needed repairs.
The worry is that a small area of damage could get much bigger if Guernsey faces more storms, so it was important to tackle any issues quickly.
There are also people looking into the recent damage.
‘We do want to make sure we properly understand what happened and why, so we’re working with our construction contractor to investigate, both for this home and more widely,’ Ms Slade said.
‘The render-board isn’t structural, but will need to be replaced. We’re grateful to the tenant for getting in touch with us straight away, and that the contractor was able to attend so quickly, despite the conditions.’
The matter is now with GHA’s insurers to understand if this was a one-off problem or if there was a wider issue.
The new build estate, which officially opened in 2014, replaced the Grand Bouet estate, which was States housing, built in the 1960s.
Comprised of 80 homes, it has a mix of one, two, three, and four-bed houses and apartments, and a mix of rented and partial ownership.
The States’ Environment Department set the brief for the original development, which included high energy efficiency standards, so the design included solar panels, high levels of insulation and triple glazing.
The type of construction used, which helped to meet those energy efficiency aspirations, was timber frame with structurally-insulated panels, with an external render board and render coat.
Not only is it used for energy efficiency reasons, but also for quicker construction times compared to traditional means.
This type of construction is used widely in Europe and the UK, and has been used in Guernsey, for many years.
The contract for the build was awarded to JW Rihoy, who used Innovare, a UK company, to supply and fit the structural insulated panels, while purchasing the render board themselves and using local firm P3 to fit it.
