GUEST ARTICLE: Grenfell Report – industry reaction

The Grenfell Inquiry’s final report has set out how a number of failures across government and the private sector led to the Grenfell Tower becoming so deadly.

In 2017, the fire killed 72 people – the cladding was already found to be the ‘principal’ reason for the rapid spread of the blaze.

Yesterday, the final 1,700-page report of the six-year public inquiry was published.

The following is a range of industry reactions to the report…

Systemic failure of construction sector

A professor from the Centre for Future Homes has called for a united response from the UK housing industry to address failures outlined in the final report.

Professor Mike Leonard from Birmingham City University (BCU) helped to set up a fire engineering degree apprenticeship in 2022 in the wake of initial Grenfell report recommendations – the first degree of its kind in the UK.  

Seven years after the tragic Grenfell fire, he is still calling for the housing industry to do more: “Todays report has outlined the systemic failures of a construction sector driven by a race to the bottom, incompetence, very poor behaviour and inadequate regulation and control

“As we reflect on the loss life, we must fully embrace the new legislation and effect a major cultural change, putting life safety and quality first. Our buildings should be non- combustible and resilient to the effects of climate change including overheating, wind, flood and wildfires.

“Birmingham City University and The Awarding Body for the Built Environment (ABBE) will continue to work with industry to develop routes to ensure people are competent in their roles and can demonstrate the right behaviours.

“Our thoughts are with those who lost their lives and with their families. We must never forget the human cost of this wholly avoidable event.”

Competence must be embedded from the ground up

The damning final report of the Grenfell Inquiry has shown the need for competence but there is still a great deal of work to do, says the Federation of Master Builders (FMB).

Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) (pictured above), says: “While the nation’s local builders are, for the most part, far removed from work that has been investigated as part of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry, it does not mean they are precluded from improving industry standards. Domestic builders do not have minimum competence levels; they are not a protected profession like plumbers or electricians. If industry and government are serious about delivering competence, then introducing minimum standards for entry into domestic building work is a must – this is competence from the ground up.

“The new government needs to turn away from a culture of cutting regulation, which in part has led to poor building safety, and license domestic builders, underpinning the building regime with minimum standards. Why should homeowners not share in the safety net implemented post-Grenfell? Without minimum standards, unregulated or ‘dodgy’ building work will continue, and the industry will not shake off its poor reputation, which is driven by rogue operators plying their trade free from consequence.”

“However, where government has tried to regulate domestic builders, through the Building Safety Act, mostly for work involving building control, they have only outlined high level requirements without any underpinning competence. This has left builders confused and worried about committing to work they feel they may no longer be competent to do. The new Government must address this immediately, so industry has clear guidance.”

‘Shocked’ by poor project management

Gill Hancock, Head of Technical Content at the Association for Project Management (APM), says: “Today’s publication of the final report of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry is a long-awaited milestone in the response to the tragic loss of 72 lives in June 2017. APM would like to extend our sympathy to all the families impacted by this tragedy.

“As the chartered membership organisation for the project profession, APM is shocked by the report’s findings and the many examples of bad project management practice applied at Grenfell that contributed to the tragedy.

These include…

– Numerous failures to appoint competent project professionals with the relevant training and experience of managing large projects such as the Grenfell Tower

– Not establishing the scope of the work to be undertaken before finalising the budget available or being clear on the focus of the project

– Lack of project management capabilities, including no clear responsibilities, failure of information management and no change control

– Appointing sub-contractors and project teams that did not have the relevant competence

“The competence framework for managing projects in the built environment, which APM helped to create, is a good step on the journey to ensuring a tragedy like Grenfell never happens again. However, we acknowledge it is only one step. Businesses operating in the built environment sector must recognise the importance of appointing dedicated project experts. Not only that, but they must ensure these people are competent and have the right level of qualifications and training in place.

“Many are doing so already. APM’s goal now is to work with the public and private sector as a whole to ensure this understanding is embedded across industry, so businesses can be confident they are appointing the right people to manage construction projects of all sizes.

“It will take time for the project profession to give careful consideration to the recommendations set out by Sir Martin Moore-Bick in the report and that lessons are learnt. We will continue to work with our members, the wider industry and government to develop appropriate responses and implement the necessary changes.”

‘Catalyst for change’

Mark Snelling, President of The Association for Project Safety (APS), says: “In the coming days, APS will forensically study the report findings and will then be in a position to make a more detailed assessment.

“What is clear, following this morning’s publication, is that the findings and recommendations contained within this report are of critical importance to the future of the UK built environment. 

“The scale of The Grenfell tragedy will profoundly impact the approach to future construction safety and the report reinforces an APS commitment to ensure the safety of those living in our communities is robustly upheld.”