Safety of life
Commitment 1
Ban contractors and products implicated in the Grenfell Tower fire from use by the council. Maintain complete ban on combustible materials in external walls.
Lead
Cross-council
Our progress
The project is now complete
Next steps
There will be some additional ongoing work as there have been changes to legislation and the banned supplier list.
This project is now complete.
Commitment 2
Implement new protocol for sharing information between departments about vulnerable residents.
Lead
Cross-council (Housing, Adult Social Care and Children's)
Our progress
All vulnerable residents in council-owned housing who self-identify are provided with a Person-Centred Fire Risk Assessment (PCRFA) and Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan if deemed necessary. Adult Social Care refers vulnerable clients to the London Fire Brigade for PCFRAs. We have also developed a cross-departmental working group which meets monthly to overcome internal hurdles to cross-departmental referrals.
Next steps
We are reviewing existing plans for sharing data in emergencies and looking to improve data sharing between council departments. We are seeking national and regional guidance on gathering and sharing data.
We will review our plans and put a new protocol in place by March 2026.
Commitment 3
Speak directly to vulnerable residents about their experience of housing safety through surveys and focus groups.
Lead
Housing Management and Housing Needs
Our progress
Our Housing Needs team is working with residents through the bi-monthly Resident Reference Group to talk about their experiences.
The Housing Management Resident Safety Panel was set up again in March 2025.
Surveys are also carried out annually with people living in temporary accommodation.
Next steps
Our new disabled residents forum has been established in November 2025 and will include a focus on issues of safety.
Commitment 4
Ensure fire safety materials are accessible and available in multiple languages.
Lead
Housing Management
Our progress
This information is published annually and sent out to all homes.
Next steps
We are currently translating on a request-by-request basis, and we are aiming to link this to people's stated communications preferences.
In Autumn 2025 we began a review of our systems and working practices to understand the feasibility of automating language preferences for communications.
Commitment 13
Ensure 100 per cent of building control staff complete required accreditation and training.
Lead
Building Control
Our progress
This commitment has been successfully embedded in the work of Building Control staff.
All building control surveyors and other applicable staff are registered as building inspectors with the Building Safety Regulator (BSR). This was undertaken in October 2024.
As of 1 January 2026 all building control surveyors undertaking ‘restricted activities’ are Class 2 or Class 3 in accordance with the Building Inspector Competence Framework (BICoF).
Next steps
Training: all staff continue to undertake the required Continuing Professional Development necessary to maintain their corporate membership with their professional body:
- Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS)
- Chartered Association of Building Engineers (CABE)
- Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB)
This standard is now embedded within the council.
Commitment 14
Support government review of building control sector and implement reforms.
Lead
Building Control
Our progress
Discussions across local government networks have been undertaken throughout 2025.
RBKC met with the independent panel to review Building Control in September 2025 to discuss suggested improvements to the building control system that could be implemented by government.
To assist in improving the current building control system RBKC met the Chair of the Building Safety Regulator and officials from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government in October 2025. A further meeting with the Chair of the BSR was held in December 2025 and a meeting with the CEO of the BSR was held in January 2026. Subsequent to these meetings RBKC has been invited to industry working group meetings convened by the Building Safety Regulator to drive forward further changes to the building control system. Meetings have so far been held in January and February 2026.
RBKC is currently piloting new ways of working with the BSR on “batch applications” and “new build”, with the aim that these new ways of working could be rolled out across London.
Next steps
The Independent Panel report and the government response will be published at the same time in early 2026.
RBKC will take stock of these reports and consult with London Boroughs and overarching organisations (London Councils, LABC) accordingly.
Commitment 15
Implement all Inquiry recommendations on emergency planning and response.
Lead
Resilience / cross-council
Our progress
Where possible the Inquiry recommendations have been factored into the independent review of resilience commissioned by the council and our existing emergency planning and preparedness activity.
Since 2017, the council has achieved substantial progress in the areas raised by the Inquiry including:
- humanitarian assistance
- community resilience
- data collection and dissemination with emergency rest centres
- financial aid
- quick provision of temporary accommodation for residents affected by emergencies
Next steps
All staff will continue to undertake the required Continuing Professional Development necessary to maintain their corporate membership.
We continue to strengthen our internal processes for the distribution and monitoring of financial resources in emergencies.
While we have created our own local processes and guidance around the Inquiry recommendations, we continue to influence and lobby regional resilience structures to ensure there is a standard approach across London, this includes coordination with emergency services.
A progress update will be provided in the next annual resilience report in April 2026.
Commitment 16
Include resilience responsibilities in senior contracts and recruitment.
Lead
Resilience / HR
Our progress
Gold, silver and bronze responsibilities are part of the command structure that is implemented in emergencies.
The recruitment team has been including council silver and gold post holder responsibilities in employment contracts as a standard practice for the past two years. The list of these post holders is maintained jointly by the HR and Resilience Teams.
The incorporation of resilience-related responsibilities in job descriptions is also now in place.
All silver and gold commanders were invited to take part in a resilience and emergency testing exercise during September 2025 as part of an annual activity.
This project is now complete.
Commitment 17
Review emergency planning function comprehensively.
Lead
Resilience
Our progress
The review is now complete and the final report has been received.
Next steps
An action plan will be implemented and monitored as part of the work of the Contingency Planning Assurance Group and reported on in future Annual Resilience Reports.
This project is now complete.
Commitment 18
Deepen community partnerships for emergency response.
Lead
Resilience
Our progress
This is activity that is regularly updated on as part of routine reports to the council's senior management team. The council's Leadership Team receives an annual resilience report, including a self-assessment against the Resilience Standards for London. This was part of the external resilience review.
Since 2017, engagement with civil society and faith groups in emergency planning has increased significantly:
over 30 emergency rest centres have been established in the Voluntary and Community Sector (VCS) and places of worship a community resilience post was created in the Resilience Team in 2022 and has built up good relationships with key groups in the borough annual community resilience events are held at local and pan-London levels and promoted to local groups.
Next steps
Progress on this commitment is reported as part of the Annual Resilience Report and Contingency Planning Assurance Group.
The council will need to consider any recommendations from the resilience review relating to community partnerships and incorporate these into a future action plan. This action plan will be implemented by September 2026.