Barnet Council has discovered that hundreds of its low-rise timber-frame homes were fitted with plastic cladding that poses an extreme fire risk, warning that the affected homes are “just the tip of the iceberg”.

The local authority found that 586 of its low-rise homes had been fitted with plastic UPVC cladding panels which can spread fire.

Barnet Council’s investigation was prompted after a fire destroyed a row of four terraced homes at Moss Hall Grove in North Finchley, in June 2023. One house was completely destroyed by the fire, while most of the adjoining houses were gutted by the fire.