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Petition on fire safety signed by 100,000
A 100,000-signature petition on fire safety has been delivered to the government.
The petition, written by a man working near Grenfell Tower, demands that the government implement recommendations made in 2013 after the 2009 Lakanal House fire.
After that fire in Southwark, the coroner made a series of recommendations on fire safety, most of which have not been implemented. Inside Housing is running its Never Again campaign calling for action on fire safety, with the implementation of these recommendations as one of the primary demands.
The coroner, Frances Kirkham, recommended a number of measures to prevent any fire of that kind happening again.
She also advised enhancing fire risk assessments, reviewing the ‘stay put’ policy for tenants caught up in fire, and giving fire safety training to staff involved in procuring refurbishment work.
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Many of these recommendations specifically relate to issues relevant to the fire at Grenfell Tower two months ago. There, fire risk assessments did not include the flammable cladding that had been installed on the building, residents were told to stay in their flats even after compartmentation had been compromised and the government had previously said the cladding used was not compliant with building regulations.
John Tyson, who wrote the petition, said: “This is a massive movement of people who want change – not in the future but now. People want action to be sure that there’s not another Grenfell in eight years.”
The Department for Communities and Local Government declined to comment.
