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Grenfell Inquiry report delayed until October
The publication of the first report from the inquiry looking into the reasons behind the Grenfell Tower tragedy will not be published until October, it has been revealed.
The Grenfell Inquiry team confirmed that Sir Martin Moore-Bick, the inquiry’s chair, would not publish his first phase report looking into the events on the night of the fire before October, much later than the initial spring date given by the inquiry team.
The news was confirmed in a letter sent to core participants this afternoon by Sir Martin’s solicitor Caroline Featherstone, which said that the report was proving to be more complex and time-consuming than expected.
Yesterday Inside Housing revealed that the report would not be ready before the second-year anniversary of the Grenfell Tower fire that killed 72 people.
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In a letter sent last month, and seen by Inside Housing, Ms Featherstone also confirmed that the report would not make recommendations on a range of fire safety issues.
The decision today to delay has been branded “disgraceful” by survivor groups and stakeholders closely involved.
Natasha Elcock, chair of Grenfell United, the survivors and bereaved family group, said: "It’s disgraceful the inquiry have underestimated the complexity of the evidence that was produced in Phase 1 and have further delayed the report until Autumn.
"That we are only finding this out now, when we were expecting the report to be published ahead of the two year anniversary, shows how they continue to disregard survivors and bereaved through this process.
The inquiry team confirmed to Inside Housing that the timeline for the second phase of the inquiry would not change despite the delay. Phase two of the inquiry is not due to start until the end of the year and could last for up to two years.
In an update by the inquiry published this afternoon, it said the first phase report would include a “minute-by-minute” account of what happened on the night, how it spread and what was happening on each floor.
It will also include a detailed description of what was happening in the incident control room and the response from the emergency services.
However, it stressed that conclusions from Mr Moore-Bick would be “firmly grounded” in the evidence presented in phase one and would be limited to what occurred on the night of the fire.
This comes despite a number of survivor groups and experts calling for “urgent and very far-reaching reform”.
The chair will begin the rule 13 process, or Maxwellisation, in July. This process requires Sir Martin to send warning letters to individuals and organisations that may be subject to criticism so they can respond.
In total the inquiry has received more than 36,100 documents relating to phase two, with more expected throughout the year. The next tranches of disclosure will include building control documents, mechanical and engineering documents relating to the lift and smoke control system, and documents relating to the Fire Risk Assessment.
