Meeting to be held on 16 December 2024
Contact for further information – Deputy Chief Fire Officer, Steve Healey
Tel: 01772 866801
Executive SummaryThis report summarises the Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 1 and 2 reports including the progress that the Service has made in relation to Phase 1 recommendations and a forward look to the recommendations made under Phase 2. Further detail will be provided in a slide presentation to Members at the meeting.
RecommendationThe Authority is asked to note the report and the contents of the associated slide presentation.
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On June 14 2017, Grenfell Tower, a high-rise residential building in London, was engulfed by fire, tragically resulting in the loss of 72 lives. The Grenfell Tower Inquiry, led by Sir Martin Moore-Bick, released the Phase 1 report on October 30, 2019. The report, comprising of six parts, primarily examined the events on the night of the fire. Despite the scope of Phase 1 being limited to that night's events, it highlighted the necessity for significant improvements in fire safety measures, particularly in the London Fire Brigade's and other fire and rescue services' responses to major disasters, including high-rise fires.
Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service's (LFRS’s) reaction to the Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 1 involved receiving and reviewing the recommendations to implement necessary enhancements. LFRS identified 75 actions and categorised these within various themes which included; training, equipment, vehicles, systems, and resourcing. All actions were placed on the services Assurance Monitoring System (AMS) with relevant owners assigned, who provided updates and attached evidence to support progress. The LFRS Organisational Assurance Group, which is made up of stakeholders from across the Service provided oversight and scrutiny on each actions progress and collectively agreed the sign off of each recommendation once satisfied.
All 75 actions relating to the Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 1 have now been implemented.
The Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 2 was published on the 4th September 2024. The report comprised of fourteen parts, and covers the course of events leading up to the fire; it has 58 recommendations. Although there are fewer recommendations than anticipated, many of the recommendations are broad with significant implications for a number of stakeholders with some requiring legislative change. These stakeholders include: Central Government, Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Council, Tenant Management Organisations (TMO), private companies involved in the design and refurbishment, product manufacturers and those involved in testing materials, and the London Fire Brigade (LFB) in relation to its planning and preparedness.
The recommendations will have significant implications across Lancashire in the short, medium and long term. Although many of the recommendations are not directed at Fire and Rescue Services, they will still have an impact on LFRS such as changes to Building Control processes or how Local Authorities prepare and respond to an incident similar to the fire at Grenfell.
LFRS will now review our previous actions under Phase 1 within the context of the Phase 2 recommendations made to LFB and Fire and Rescue Services, to provide additional assurance and identify where further work may be required. The National Fire Chiefs Council are also reviewing the recommendations and LFRS will monitor their updates closely. As with Phase 1, all relevant recommendations will be added to, and tracked on, our AMS, with the Organisational Assurance Group providing internal scrutiny and oversight.
Although the inquiry's recommendations are not legally binding, an incident and inquiry of this magnitude is such that not implementing recommendations without a justifiable position could cause reputational damage.
None identified at this stage.
Any new proposals associated with the recommendations of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry have an individual equality impact assessment.
Data Protection (GDPR)
Will the proposal(s) involve the processing of personal data? Y/N
If the answer is yes, please contact a member of the Democratic Services Team to assist with the appropriate exemption clause for confidential consideration under part 2 of the agenda.
None identified at this stage.
Any financial implications associated with the recommendations of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry are accounted for through individual proposals and are managed through the various governance structures within LFRS.
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Reason for inclusion in Part 2 if appropriate: