Commenting on the news that a door from Grenfell Tower resisted fire for half as long as it was meant to, housing law expert at the University Professor Helen Carr comments that ‘we have to empower those who live in tower blocks to take effective legal action to ensure their homes are safe
‘It’s not surprising that residents of tower blocks are concerned about the poor fire resistance of the doors to their homes – many respondents in the consultation for our report ‘Closing the Gaps’ were worried about the adequacy of the doors to their properties.
‘Fire resistant doors are a crucial element of the compartmentation that is the basis of fire safety in any building other than standard low rise homes. Fire resistant doors, along with fire resistant floors and walls, prevent the spread of fire and save lives.
‘But, as we pointed out in ‘Closing the Gaps’, doors are a weak link in this chain of passive fire protection. It’s difficult for an occupier to know whether their door is fire resistant, and it’s difficult for freeholders to force leaseholders to change doors which appear to be inadequate. And now it appears that even doors which apparently provide 30 minutes of protection from the spread of fire do not do so.
‘Our current system of health and safety in the home is dependent upon trust. Residents have to trust that doors, cladding, fire risk assessments etc all conform to regulatory requirements. And they have to trust that the regulations are written to ensure their health and safety.
‘Yet, since Grenfell, trust has been eroded as it becomes apparent that no one has overall responsibility for ensuring that the system has integrity. The Communities Secretary Sajid Javid has assured Parliament that the problems revealed since Grenfell do not pose a systemic risk to residents.
‘It’s difficult to feel confident about such a reassurance when we appear to live in a culture of short-cuts, carelessness, mistakes and possibly regulatory capture. And if we can’t trust manufacturers of fire resistant goods or managers of building projects, then what we have to do is to empower those who live in tower blocks to take effective legal action to ensure their homes are safe.’
Professor Helen Carr
This comment is from Professor Helen Carr, who is an expert in the fields of housing, social welfare and public law with contributions from Dr Ed Kirton-Darling and Laura Binger, all Kent Law School.