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Bellway has said it is co-operating with the investigation looking into the cause of the fire which ravaged more than 20 flats in east London over the weekend.

The housebuilder said the fire at Samuel Garside House in Barking was 鈥渁 very serious issue and we are working with all parties to establish how this happened鈥�.

Bellway said it was working with Barking and Dagenham council to secure alternative temporary accommodation for affected residents and 鈥渙ffering our support to help remediate the damaged apartments鈥�.

But it did not say how far this work had progressed or how many residents were being temporarily re-housed and for how long.

In a statement Bellway said: 鈥淲e understand that the blaze was contained to the external envelope of the eastern elevation of the building, with initial reports suggesting that it was caused by a barbecue on a resident鈥檚 balcony.

鈥淲e are relieved that the fire protection measures within the building, which received all regulatory approvals, ensured that occupants were safely evacuated.

鈥淏ellway continues to take the issue of fire safety extremely seriously and will work with all involved to ensure that affected residents are properly supported during this difficult time.鈥�

Residents in the development have said they had , but had been assured by the housebuilder that the development was safe.

Meanwhile Bellway issued a trading update for the four months to 2 June, reporting what it called a 鈥渞esponsible approach to growth and high levels of customer satisfaction鈥�, resulting in the company retaining its status as a five-star house builder as measured by the Home Builders鈥� Federation customer satisfaction survey.

The group said it had seen strong sales demand in the period, with a 4.7% increase in the reservation rate to 244 per week, plus a strong forward order book, with the number of plots rising by 2.7% to 6,312 homes.

The firm is due to unveil its annual results for the year to 31 July on 15 October.