The UK government has announced debarment investigations for the architecture and construction firms related to the deadly Grenfell Tower fire, as well as building safety reforms.
Earlier this week, the government published its response to the Grenfell Tower Inquiry’s final report, accepting 49 of the report’s 58 recommendations in full and the remaining nine in principle.
Seven firms involved in Grenfell Tower refurbishment to be investigated
As part of the government’s plans to act on the recommendations, seven architecture and construction firms that were criticised in the inquiry’s report in September 2024 will be investigated and face possible debarment from public contracts.
This includes Studio E, architecture studio on the refurbishment project that saw highly flammable cladding installed on Grenfell Tower’s exterior.
Other firms that worked on the Grenfell Tower refurbishment and are facing debarment are the project contractor Rydon, cladding sub-contractor Harley, fire-safety consultant Exova, and manufacturers of the cladding and insulation products – Arconic Architectural Products, Kingspan, and Saint-Gobain Construction Products, which was previously owned by Celotex.
The seven firms will be investigated under the Procurement Act 2023, which came into effect on 24 February 2025. If found to have engaged in professional misconduct, they will be added to a debarment list, which must be taken into account by contracting authorities when awarding new contracts.
Started by a faulty fridge-freezer, the fire rapidly spread up and around the Grenfell Tower social-housing block in London in the early hours of 14 June 2017, killing 72 people.
The devastating fire spread via the external cladding system that was installed as part of a refurbishment project to the 1970s building, which was completed just a year earlier.
Government announced “tough action” on building reform
In its response to the Grenfell Tower inquiry report, the government set out reforms to construction, building and fire safety that will start being implemented in 2028.
“The Grenfell Tower tragedy claimed 72 innocent lives in a disaster that should never have happened,” said deputy prime minister Angela Rayner.
“The final report exposed in stark and devastating detail the shocking industry behaviour and wider failures that led to the fire, and the deep injustices endured by the bereaved, survivors, and residents.”
“We are acting on all of the inquiry’s findings, and today set out our full response, detailing the tough action we are taking to drive change and reform the system to ensure no community will ever have to face a tragedy like Grenfell ever again,” she continued.
“That means greater accountability, stronger regulation, and putting residents at the heart of decision-making. We must deliver the fundamental change required. We owe that to the Grenfell community, to the country, and to the memory of those who lost their lives.”
The reforms include introducing a single construction regulator with the aim to combat fragmentation and ensure accountability for those responsible for building safety.
“Tougher oversight” will be brought to the testing, certification, manufacture and use of construction products, with “serious consequences for those who break the rules”, the government announced.
It backed a new Hillsborough Law, which would mean public authorities had a legal duty to be truthful and transparent about major incidents, and the creation of a publicly accessible record of all public inquiry recommendations.
Grenfell Tower to be demolished
Improved legal rights and training programmes for residents were also outlined in the government’s announcement, with the aim of “empowering social housing residents to challenge landlords and demand safe, high-quality housing”.
Earlier this month, Rayner told effected families that Grenfell Tower will be demolished, after years of debate over the buliding’s future.
A shortlist of five studios has been announced as in contention to design a memorial for the victims of the fire, which were selected by The Grenfell Tower Memorial Commission and the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA).
The top photo is by Narain Jashanmal.
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