of concern, with a wide range of issues such as the ease of access for arsonists to the rubbish chutes of the maisonettes, which posed a safety hazard to residents. Issues regarding the construction of the buildings were noticed early into the estate's life. In the early 1970s, many homes were starting to experience damp and others were flooded as a result of leaking roofs. In the maisonettes, heating bills were between £300–500 quarterly and the homes remained cold in the winter. These issues regarding the construction were not confined to just the estate, but most other estates constructed in the Bison construction system. Birmingham City Council was eventually depleted of funds for the maintenance of the blocks and lift breakdowns became common, and were further aggravated by repairers refusing to work without security enforcement. They were also reports of teenage troublemakers setting fire to the staircases in the tower blocks. In 1991, a large concrete panel fell from one of the tower blocks and, although nobody was injured, it was reported locally and helped spark efforts for the regeneration of the estate to begin. Regeneration Establishing the Housing Action Trust The state of Castle Vale became a serious concern for Birmingham City Council and in July 1991, Derek Waddington, the then director of housing for Birmingham City Council, heard about a Housing Action Trust in North Hull. After further research, he recommended this to Dick Knowles, then leader of Birmingham City Council, for Castle Vale. He produced a presentation to the council in Autumn 1991 to convince the council of the potential of the scheme. The following day, the council approached the Department for the Environment, the predecessor to the Department for Communities and Local Government, on how to approach the establishment of a Housing Action Trust at Castle Vale. In December 1991, Michael Heseltine announced to Parliament that Castle Vale had become the latest candidate for Housing Action Trust status. In 1992, Richard Temple Cox, a local architect, was appointed shadow chairman for the Housing Action Trust and was given the job of persuading residents on the estate to vote in favour of establishing the HAT. He entered negotiations with a Community Action Team, which had been established for the estate in 1992, to determine the size and composition of the board for the HAT. They agreed on a board of twelve members, with four resident representatives, three