FOCUS
Fundamental reform Reflecting on Grenfell Tower one year later,
Mark Shepherd argues that a comprehensive reform of building regulations is the only option to prevent such disasters in future
in fl ames, causing 71 deaths and more than 70 injuries – were shocking beyond belief. The Grenfell Tower disaster will live long in the memory, and quite simply must lead to fundamental change of the building control system in England. A system that Dame Judith Hackitt, in her Independent Review of Building Regulations and Fire Safety: Interim Report, described as ‘not fi t for purpose’. A failure to enact fundamental change
T
is quite simply not an option. This tragic incident should not have happened, and as an industry that is relied upon to provide cover for people’s homes, businesses and personal possessions, insurers have an integral interest in ensuring the delivery of fi t for purpose building regulations that effectively protect lives and property from the risk of fi re. That is why the ABI has worked closely and assiduously with the Hackitt Review team, our members and wider stakeholders to make the case for an effective regulatory system.
18 JUNE 2018
www.frmjournal.com
HE EVENTS of 14 June 2017 – when a 24 storey residential tower block in North Kensington became completely engulfed
It is vital that the required reform is not rolled
back from, that momentum is maintained and that responsibilities are not shirked, so that a proper control system is put in place which better protects people who live and work in our modern and diverse built environment from the risk of fi re.
Learning lessons
Looking back in history, the insurance industry and fire are intimately linked, going right back to the Great Fire of London in 1666 and the subsequent establishment of fire insurance companies. In the aftermath of the Great Fire, and with the benefi t of hindsight, it became apparent that the lack of thinking about the design and layout of London was one of the key issues that had facilitated the rapid and catastrophic spread of the fire across the city. The streets of the old city were lined with buildings constructed from wood and plaster, many with thatch or wood shingle roofs extending over the pavements of narrow
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64
