The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBK&C) has committed to driving up safety standards following extensive criticism by the Grenfell Tower inquiry phase 2 report.
Kensington Town Hall, London
In a response presented to a full council meeting last month, RBK&C re-iterated its acceptance of the inquiry’s findings, saying that it failed in some of its most basic duties, such as keeping its residents safe, listening to and acting on their concerns, and responding effectively when disaster struck. It accepted the inquiry’s findings of shortcomings across several areas, including a breakdown in relationships with residents, a lack of professional competence in critical functions such as building control and emergency planning, and failures of leadership and governance.
Since the fire in 2017, RBK&C has committed to spending more than £350 million on improving housing and safety, and has established a dedicated in-house fire safety team, with fire risk assessments carried out by external experts. But the council conceded that too few residents can see and feel the changes it has made since 2017 concerning safety, the quality of the council’s services, social and racial discrimination and its willingness to listen and learn. Its response, therefore, is based on three core principles: resident power and participation; independent challenge and oversight; and high standards and technical excellence.
In its response, the council made specific commitments to safety and skills-related objectives, including:
In other areas, the council committed to sharing information and performance data openly and transparently, and ensuring senior leaders maintain regular direct contact with communities, focusing on social housing residents and areas where trust needs rebuilding. Also proposed is an independent external review of the culture within RBK&C, primarily to examine the relationships with its residents.
Because of the time constraints of responding within three months from the publication of the inquiry’s phase 2 report, the council said it will publish a more detailed action plan in early 2025 setting out timescales, roles and responsibilities. It acknowledges that the proposed reforms and commitments are fundamental and will take time, and that further work will be needed to plan and implement specific changes.
Summarising its proposals on high standards and technical excellence, the council’s response said:
“We commit to being an organisation founded on the highest standards of individual professional competence and collective service standards for our residents. That means investing in our workforce through recruitment, training and development; establishing clear standards and robust performance management; and creating systems that support and reward expertise and competence.
“We must create a culture where standards are upheld without compromise, where projects and priorities are delivered with sustained effort, pace and urgency, and where safety, responsiveness and quality are prioritised over convenience and cost.”
FURTHER GRENFELL INQUIRY ANALYSIS
Click here to read Ron Alalouff’s first piece of analysis into the inquiry.
Click here to read Ron’s second piece of analysis on the role of the local authority in the tragedy.
Click here to read Ron’s third piece of analysis on the role of central government in the tragedy.
Click here to read Ron’s fourth piece of analysis on the role of the manufacturers in the tragedy.
Click here to read Ron’s sixth piece analysing London Fire Brigade’s response.
Click here to read a legal take on the Report by Annie Davies at Addleshaw Goddard.
