Mark Langabeer (Hastings and Rye CLP) reviews the Channel 4 programme, first broadcast on 8th September 2021 (click here)
This documentary interviewed a number of former residents of Grenfell Tower. It was a moving account of many residents’ experiences with the authorities and the friendships between the tenants.
Grenfell Tower was built in 1974 and was in need of refurbishment. In 2014, the flats were given the go ahead for a £10 million redevelopment. The Tenant Management Organisation (TMO) oversaw the refurbishment of the block and was responsible for the residents’ health and safety. They appointed a construction company called Rydon to act as the lead contractor, who were appointed simply because they were the cheapest. At the beginning, many were excited by the refurbishment but this quickly changed.
Blackmailing tactics
A tenant of the Tower for 41 years stated that her flat was freezing, due to poorly fitted windows. The TMO would even employ blackmailing tactics against residents. For example, new boilers were installed in the hallways, rather than the kitchen, where they were previously positioned. When residents requested a change, the contractors would claim that water supply would be turned off for five days. This proved to be an entirely erroneous claim, as some tenants still wanted their boilers in the kitchen and only lost water supply for the duration of the fitting.
The complaints made against Rydon are too many to mention in one short article. Meetings were organised between the TMO and the residents action group which demanded an independent investigation into the affairs of the TMO and Rydon, but this was never granted.
Tragedy could have been avoided
At some of the meetings, the local Tory MP at the time (Victoria Borwick) was present. She was clearly on the side of the boss of the TMO and stated that it was unrealistic to expect ‘perfection’. As one resident stated, if they had listened to the tenants, then the tragedy that followed could have been avoided. The refurbishment was finally completed around a year before the fire, which resulted in 72 deaths, of which 18 were children.
There had already been a warning of what could happen, less than a mile away in Shepherds Bush. A faulty tumble dryer caused a fire that affected at least four floors above the flat that caught fire. The London Fire Brigade had sent a circular about the need to review fire precautions. The response from the TMO was that the work met building regulations.
£300,000 saving
It’s widely known that the cladding was the cause of the spreading of the fire that engulfed the whole building. A faulty fridge fire grew rapidly because of the combustible nature of the materials used in the cladding. It also caused toxic fumes that turned into cyanide. What is not so known, was the fact that a more fire-resistant cladding was planned for. It was replaced in the specification because it saved nearly £300,000. The stay-at-home policy, which also cost lives, was premised on the belief that fires would be largely contained in the flat or floor of the tower block. This proved false because of the combustible nature of the cladding.
The enquiry into the Grenfell tragedy is still on-going. To date, neither the TMO or Rydon have accepted responsibility for the fire. The programme reports that even after four years, thousands of residents live in flats that have combustible cladding, similar to Grenfell. As one resident stated, the reason for this tragedy was that profit was put before people’s well-being.
