Elspeth Grant – Grenfell Inquiry
Letter from Elspeth Grant of Triple A Solutions:
Draft response to letter from Elspeth Grant of Triple A Solutions.
The Module will run until May next year and will involve a detailed study of central and local government’s role in the disaster and will also examine the existing regime for testing, certification and classification of materials for use in external cladding systems.
Original Fire Safety in Purpose Built Blocks of Flats guidance
The Rt Hon Sir Martin Moore-Bick, Chairman, Phase 1 Inquiry Recommendations
33 .22 There were no plans in place for evacuating Grenfell Tower should the need arise. I therefore recommend:
- that the government develop national guidelines for carrying out partial or total evacuations of high-rise residential buildings, such guidelines to include the means of protecting fire exit routes and procedures for evacuating persons who are unable to use the stairs in an emergency, or who may require assistance (such as disabled people, older people and young children);
- that fire and rescue services develop policies for partial and total evacuation of high-rise residential buildings and training to support them;
- that the owner and manager of every high-rise residential building be required by law to draw up and keep under regular review evacuation plans, copies of which are to be provided in electronic and paper form to their local fire and rescue service and placed in an information box on the premises;
- that all high-rise residential buildings (both those already in existence and those built in the future) be equipped with facilities for use by the fire and rescue services enabling them to send an evacuation signal to the whole or a selected part of the building by means of sounders or similar devices;
- that the owner and manager of every high-rise residential building be required by law to prepare personal emergency evacuation plans (PEEPs) for all residents whose ability to self-evacuate may be compromised (such as persons with reduced mobility or cognition);
- that the owner and manager of every high-rise residential building be required by law to include up-to-date information about persons with reduced mobility and their associated PEEPs in the premises information box;
- that all fire and rescue services be equipped with smoke hoods to assist in the evacuation of occupants through smoke-filled exit routes.