Relatives of people killed in London tower block fire say they are not being heard

This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

Families have called on the public inquiry into the Grenfell fire which killed 72 people to make major changes to its procedures, amid mounting concerns that their voices are not being heard.

A report published on Wednesday documents families’ frustrations with perceived failings in the inquiry process.

Entitled Family Reflections on Grenfell: No Voice Left Unheard, compiled by the charity Inquest, criticises the first phase of the inquiry and raises concerns about how the second phase will be organised.

The report includes contributions from 55 bereaved family members representing 72 people who died when the tower block in Kensington, west London, caught fire on 14 June 2017.

One bereaved relative, Sadik Kelbeto, said: “My whole family was wiped out by the fire. Their voices can no longer be heard. I have to represent them. I owe it to them. This report is important because these are our words and our voices. The government have an obligation to listen to us. If they don’t listen to us, then who will they listen to?”

The report comes after letters were sent to the inquiry by lawyers representing Grenfell families, expressing concerns about the process and calling for major changes.

Key demands of Grenfell families in the report include:

The need for an independent, diverse decision-making inquiry panel.

Re-examination of procedures for questioning witnesses to enable family lawyers to ask questions directly.

Adoption of a duty of candour by public authorities and public entities.

They also propose a blueprint for the handling of future disasters, calling for a coordinated response from central and local government and emergency services, and recommending a central point of support be set up for families to contact about missing relatives and for help and information.

They suggest those dealing with families should receive proper training and every family should have a key worker, independent of the council, with responsibility to communicate information and developments and ensure families have the resources they need after a disaster.

The report criticises the choice of inquiry venue at Holborn Bars, convenient for lawyers in central London but well removed from the site of the fire, with a layout and facilities that left relatives feeling “distanced” from proceedings.

“Families [wanted] to be situated in front of those speaking, so they could see their faces as they spoke, and believed anyone being questioned should do so while face to face with those bereaved by the fire,” the report says.

However, families did praise the pen portrait section of the inquiry, where the bereaved could pay tribute to the dead.

The report says the inquiry’s failure, so far, to produce any interim recommendations or report is a “farce”. Many core participants were “left questioning the effectiveness of an inquiry that is failing to recommend life-saving changes as early as possible”.

One of the letters sent to the inquiry, from Marcia Willis Stewart at Birnberg Peirce, which is representing 48 survivors and relatives from the tower, expresses dismay at the lack of communication and public engagement with families this year. Willis Stewart said in her letter that confidence in the inquiry’s ability to deliver justice transparently and in a timely manner was “wearing thin”.

Deborah Coles, the director of Inquest, said: “It is high time the inquiry team and the government listened to these voices and provide an inclusive and truthful inquiry that delivers structural change and accountability.”

A spokesperson for the inquiry said: “Making the inquiry as accessible as possible has always been a priority. The inquiry has welcomed feedback and made changes as a result, including changes to the layout of the hearing room, providing additional facilities and finding a new location for the inquiry in west London.

“The inquiry continues to publish information about its work on the website and to hold regular meetings with core participants, their legal representatives, local residents’ associations and other representative groups.”

• This article was amended on 9 May 2019. An earlier version referred to the report containing contributions from 33 bereaved family members representing 46 people who lost their lives. Inquest say those figures are 55 and 72 respectively.