Arrangements revealed for publication of Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 2 report

As has been the case with all previous Inquiry hearings, the publication statement will be live-streamed on http://www.youtube.com/@GrenfellTowerInquiry

Sir Martin Moore-Bick firmly believes it’s hugely important that all those most affected by the fire and its aftermath have the opportunity to read and absorb the Phase 2 report in their own time before its contents are made public.

To this end, the chair and the Inquiry Panel will meet in private with the bereaved, survivors and residents on 3 September at a West London location in order to introduce the report, which will then be made available to all core participants in confidence.

Back in June, the Inquiry team stated: “On the seventh anniversary of the terrible fire at Grenfell Tower, the Inquiry Panel and all of the members of the Inquiry team offer their heartfelt sympathy to the bereaved, survivors and all those whose lives were irrevocably changed by the disaster.”

Inquiry statistics

Over the course of Phase One and Phase Two, the Inquiry has disclosed over 320,000 documents to core participants, received upwards of 1,600 witness statements and orchestrated more than 300 public hearings.

Hearings for Phase 1 were held in June-December 2018 in Holborn, central London. The report on the findings of Phase 1 was published on 30 October 2019. The Phase 2 hearings commenced on 28 January 2020 at a location in London’s Paddington. Hearings post-16 March 2020 were suspended until further COVID-19 resilient arrangements could be put in place.

History of Grenfell

The 24-storey Grenfell Tower residential block was completed in 1974 as part of the first phase of the Lancaster West Estate. The concrete structure’s uppermost 20 storeys consisted of 120 flats, with a total of 200 bedrooms. Its first four storeys were non-residential until the most recent refurbishment project in 2015-2016, which converted two of them into residential use, bringing the building up to a total of 127 flats and 227 bedrooms.

At that time, the structure also received new plastic-framed windows and cladding complete with thermal insulation.

The catastrophic and tragic fire that seriously damaged the building on 14 June 2017 realised the deaths of 72 of the 293 people who were believed to be in the 129-flat tower on that night.