DUDLEY Council has stated it dose not need to claim from the Government's £400 million fund to help local authorities make tower blocks safe in the wake of the Grenfell Tower disaster.

The cash comes 11 months after the firestorm that claimed 72 lives in June last year, when flames ripped through the Kensington and Chelsea high rise block.

The cause of the disaster was later identified as cladding panels on the outside of the building which were not fire resistant.

Councillor Laura Taylor, cabinet member for housing, said the borough does not have cladding on any of the 21 high-rise blocks, adding: "As such, we have no need to apply as a council for cash from this new Government fund.

"The safety of our tenants is of paramount importance to us, and all of our blocks are inspected daily by appropriate staff.

"We have also been working with West Midlands Fire Service to complete fire audits on all of our blocks, and we carry out regular technical checks and more in-depth quarterly rolling inspections.

"We have not incurred any extra costs as an authority since Grenfell, with the funds for the above coming from our rolling planned maintenance budget for those buildings."