After Years of Campaigning, Government Acts to Improve Fire Safety for Disabled Residents

Back in 2019 the Grenfell Tower Inquiry recommended that Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans (PEEPs) be put in place for Disabled people needing assistance to exit high rise buildings in the event of fire. Some fire safety experts argued that existing fire safety laws and the Equality Act already required such action to be taken, however, the Inquiry made it explicit. 

It has taken 7 years since the Grenfell Tower fire and almost 5 years since the Inquiry recommendations for the UK Government to commit to taking action on PEEPS. The previous government held multiple consultations, rejected PEEPs and then proceeded to do nothing for two years. 

The breakthrough came on Monday 2 September, when the Minister for Building Safety and Homelessness, Rushanara Ali, announced: 

“The Home Office will bring forward proposals in the autumn, to improve fire safety and evacuation of Disabled and vulnerable residents in high rise and higher risk residential buildings in England in response to the Grenfell Tower Inquiry phase 1 recommendations that relate to Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans (PEEPs). These proposals will be called Residential PEEPs. 

Through them, residents with disability or impairments will be entitled to a Person Centred Risk Assessment, to identify appropriate equipment and adjustments    to aid their fire safety/evacuation, as well as a Residential PEEPs Statement, that records what vulnerable residents should do in the event of a fire.” 

You can read the full statement on this Parliamentary website. 

Fazilet Hadi, Head of Policy at Disability Rights UK said: “The campaign for PEEPs by Grenfell Survivors and bereaved families, Grenfell support organisations, Disabled leaseholders and residents and DPOs, has been strong and persistent over many years. It has kept the issue alive and on the agenda - refusing to accept government inaction.  

Disabled residents and non-disabled people who supported them, lost their lives in the Grenfell Tower fire, partly due to the lack of evacuation plans. Yet, for the past four years, the previous government refused to act. 

The announcement by the Minister is warmly welcomed and comes two days before the launch of the final Grenfell Tower Inquiry report. After years of delay that put Disabled lives at risk, we now need to see speedy action by private and public landlords and by freeholders to implement fire risk assessments and evacuation plans for all Disabled residents who need them.”