Council members have voted to begin proceedings that will result in the removal of eight high-rise buildings and revealed that occupants have already begun relocating to alternative accommodation.

Brighton and Hove City Council’s executive body formally sanctioned the tearing down of St James’ House in Kemp Town, Nettleton Court and Dudeney Lodge in Hollingdean, along with five structures at the summit of Whitehawk.

The plan received backing during a gathering at Hove Town Hall on Thursday, 19 March, when Labour member Gill Williams acknowledged residents for their collaboration throughout the proceedings.

She noted that staff had visited each household to ensure inhabitants comprehended the situation.

Councillor Williams, the authority’s spokesperson for housing matters, stated that no one could fully appreciate how traumatic and unsettling it is to be forced from one’s residence because this is precisely what is occurring.

Despite being inevitable, the council must simply navigate through this as smoothly as possible. She had personally observed how the community was coping.

There exists profound sorrow because families have resided there for several generations. It remains deeply regrettable yet there is also considerable strength and determination on display. It proves genuinely moving.

Fellow Labour representative Alan Robins urged colleagues to consider how the transition affected elderly inhabitants.

Councillor Robins remarked that for certain individuals, returning might never happen. Someone of his age, if required to vacate for a decade, would be 80 upon any potential return.

He referenced William Blake’s observation that during seed time we learn, at harvest we teach and during winter we enjoy – a metaphor for life indicating that as people age, they should take things more gently.

Those who had spent their entire lives there must find it tremendously taxing.

The eight residential buildings comprised concrete constructed using large panel systems techniques which have existed for over half a century yet fail to meet contemporary safety requirements.

Apprehensions emerged following inspections conducted in the aftermath of the tragedy at Grenfell Tower in London during 2017, where 72 individuals lost their lives.

A group of housing specialists is presently being assembled to assist hundreds of inhabitants as they seek alternative accommodation.

The Labour council leader Bella Sankey mentioned that she had participated in neighbourhood gatherings and encountered residents’ varied reactions.

Councillor Sankey expressed that the worry and ambiguity the circumstance generates is fully acknowledged by the authority.

The council would persist in striving to comprehend people’s worries and collaborate with them to prepare for what lies ahead.

She indicated that the support package extended to residents proved encouraging.

Those residing in the affected buildings would receive an offer of a property matching their current dimensions, with the opportunity to select something smaller if preferred.

Everyone would maintain entitlement to move back into the new developments once finished.

Freehold owners would have their apartments repurchased and the authority was piloting a scheme to assist those exercising their right to buy entitlement with deposits, allocating £400,000 to cover ten grants of £40,000 each.

The relocation initiative and proposed buybacks were anticipated to be financed through an existing allocation of £7.5 million sanctioned the previous July.

The initial demolition authorisation spans seven years although Councillor Williams indicated the operation was projected to require five years.