MALLARD PLACE
REGULATIONS FOR CONTRACTORS OPERATING ON THE ESTATE
INTRODUCTION & APPLICABILITY:
The Mallard Place Estate (Estate) consists of 102 properties, the majority of which are leasehold flats and maisonettes. The Estate is managed by a limited liability company, RIPA Residents Society Limited (RIPA), in which each owner has a share. RIPA owns all the common areas of the Estate, including the freeholds and common parts of the buildings in which the leasehold flats and maisonettes are situated, and the Estate roadways, gardens, swimming pool and pontoons.
As manager of the Estate, it is an important responsibility of RIPA to ensure that residents are not disturbed unreasonably by the activities of other residents, and that the fabric and amenity of the Estate is preserved from damage and disruption.
RIPA has the power, under its constitution, to put in place bye-laws which are binding on all owners, residents and visitors to the Estate. This bye-law, originally introduced in September 2003, has been approved by the board of directors of RIPA and, in consequence, must be complied with by all owners, residents and visitors. Non-compliance may lead to legal proceedings (which, in certain circumstances, might involve seeking an injunction and the payment of damages) and, in the case of visitors such as contractors, exclusion from the Estate.
This bye-law applies to all Works of whatever nature within the Estate. Works means any property-related task, operation or activity carried out on, within or around a property on the Estate. The identity of the person carrying out the Works is not relevant. It may be an owner, tenant or resident carrying out DIY, for example, or it may equally be an external contractor carrying out work for an owner, tenant or resident, including (without limitation) builders, painters, plumbers, electricians, glaziers, removal men, carpet and floor layers, plasterers, pest control specialists, gardeners and window-cleaners. It should be noted that, where an external contractor is engaged to do Works, the relevant owner, tenant or resident is responsible as a matter of law for ensuring that they are familiar with, and comply with, this bye-law.
NOISE:
Any Works involving any noise which could be heard by another resident of the Estate may not commence before 8am on weekdays, or 9am at weekends or on bank holidays and must always finish by 6pm. There is no exception to this. Those carrying out Works must take all steps to minimise noise which could be heard by other residents of the Estate at any time. No radio or other sound equipment may ever be played so as to be audible to others.
ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS:
No Works which may create any noxious fumes in the Estate may be carried out. All possible steps must be taken to eliminate or reduce to an absolute minimum any dust created by any Works activities inside or outside a property – if necessary, dust suppression equipment or damping down must be used. No substance other than water, or water containing small quantities of detergent, may be disposed of in, or allowed to enter, the Estate drains (and, in particular, no plaster, cement, paint or thinners may be poured into the Estate drains).
Where Works lead to any rubbish, dust or any other substance anywhere on the Estate, this must be cleaned up promptly and removed in its entirety for proper disposal arranged by the person carrying out the Works – if necessary, pressurised water must be used to clean up any affected area. No rubbish or rubble may be left overnight in a common area of the Estate. No Works of any kind may be carried out on any grassed area of the Estate, except gardening work by authorised RIPA contractors.
SAFETY:
External contractors may operate on the Estate only if they follow the highest safety standards. No tools, equipment or substances may ever be left unattended in any outside area. Electric flexes used outside must be properly guarded. All ladders and scaffolding (including tower scaffolds) must be safely erected and properly fixed in place where required. Ladders may never be left in place overnight and upper layers of scaffolding must be inaccessible to other persons.
External contractors must carry third party liability insurance where it is appropriate to their activities and RIPA reserves the right to inspect, through a representative, evidence of any such insurance upon reasonable notice. If a contractor is unable to produce such evidence, they will be required to leave the Estate immediately.
PARKING/SKIPS:
Contractors must make every effort to park in designated visitors’ parking areas or in the private driveway of the property in which they are working. If this is not possible, no roadway may ever be blocked. There are no exceptions to this requirement. Skips may be left only in the private driveway of the relevant property. If this is not reasonably possible, a written request must be made well in advance to the Company Secretary of RIPA (currently at 72 Mallard Place) for a skip to be sited elsewhere on the Estate – consent to this by RIPA, if given, will be on such terms as RIPA sees fit.
REPORTING:
Any damage or spillage of any nature on, or to, any common area of the Estate (for example, to a tree or shrub or the Estate roadways) caused by Works must be reported immediately, however trivial it may seem, to the Company Secretary.
Any Works in any common areas of the Estate may be inspected at any time by a Director or other representative of RIPA to verify that they are being carried out in compliance with this bye-law.
FURTHER GUIDANCE:
Other than compliance with this bye-law, a person carrying out Works on the Estate may need to comply with the following further requirements:
- The leasehold flats and maisonettes are subject to a significant number of RIPA covenants which may relate to Works, such as a prohibition on wooden flooring, and a prohibition on any piercing of an external wall without the consent of RIPA. These must be complied with in full. Any proposals for anything other than minor Works must be submitted well in advance for comment and approval to the RIPA Flats and Maisonettes Committee.
- The freehold houses are also subject to RIPA covenants which may relate to Works, and these must, again, be complied with in full. No change at all may be made to the exterior of a freehold house. In addition, the Estate itself is a conservation area, and the river-fronting freehold houses are listed as having townscape merit which means that there are Richmond Council planning constraints which, effectively, prevent any changes to their external appearance.
If you are in any doubt at all about what you can or cannot do, or the consents which might be required from RIPA for any proposed Works, you must contact a member of the Flats and Maisonettes Committee (for leasehold flats and maisonettes) or the Company Secretary at the earliest opportunity.
BY ORDER OF THE DIRECTORS, RIPA RESIDENTS SOCIETY LIMITED – December 2018
Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net
