Planners nowadays are much more aware of the safety and security aspects of buildings than they used to be. Half a century ago there was not the keen attention paid to fire risk. If there had been, it is unlikely that a complex of bungalows for older people at Queensbury would have been built with the living rooms opening directly on to the bedrooms, allowing no potential escape route via a hallway and front door if a fire broke out.

Those are the sort of bungalows in which residents of Ashbourne Crescent at Queensbury find themselves living. It is understandable that they are concerned about the fire risk, particularly as they say that the double-glazed windows installed by the Council nine years ago do not open wide enough to allow them to climb out.

It is a shame that no-one considered this aspect when the windows were being installed. If the Ashbourne Crescent residents are having to live with this situation, how many others are there in similar homes?

The Council says that it has no more money for major refurbishments. It should try harder to find some, for the sake of the peace of mind and safety of the residents of Ashbourne Crescent.

And it should take steps to ensure that windows of this type are never installed again.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.