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Safety fears remain for residents of four Camden tower blocks

Camden Council has insisted it is safe for residents to return to their flats in the Chalcots Estate, after four weeks of urgent safety works.

Hundred of households were relocated to hotel rooms after four tower blocks failed fire safety tests following the Grenfell Tower fire.

Inspection teams found multiple fire safety failures within the buildings, as well as identifying problems with the external cladding, which failed combustibility tests.

The council has now said it is safe to return to the building, but many residents are unhappy with the quality of the work.

Steve Pirolli and his family have lived on the fourth floor of Taplow Tower for 17 years. He showed us some of the work carried out inside, including new sealant around fire doors, extra fire exit signs and expandable foam around gas pipes.

"To be honest the work they've done is just shoddy, it's really, really shoddy and I've spoke to people in the building trade that renovate houses into student flats and they have to have everything has to be exactly right, and they say the work is just Mickey Mouse," Steve explained.

Another resident, 72-year-old Shirley Phillips, who featured on Sky News the night the towers were evacuated, is also unhappy.

She and her dog Tilly spent the night outside after being told to leave her flat.

But four weeks in a hotel room have caused Shirley immense stress.

"It's been awful" she said tearfully. "I get up with a headache and it just doesn't go away, even taking tablets."

Like other residents, Shirley doesn't think the work is good enough.

"They reckon it's going to take another six weeks to get the fire doors and possibly another nine months before the cladding's removed, so how is that safe?" she said.

Some residents are reportedly refusing to return until the council provides independent assurance the blocks are safe. They are advising other unhappy tenants to contact local solicitors.

In a statement the Leader of Camden Council, Georgia Gould, said: "We will go over and above these works to enhance safety measures, but the London Fire Brigade have informed us that they are content that sufficient progress has been made to allow a phased return home for residents.

"We'll continue to work relentlessly, floor by floor, until the works the fire brigade have specified are complete."

It's still unclear when the cladding will be removed.

Across England, 263 residential buildings failed combustibility tests. The work to replace or remove cladding will take months.

As people return to their homes in Camden, many are still questioning how safe they are living in tower blocks.