{"id":36206,"date":"2017-11-07T12:17:26","date_gmt":"2017-11-07T12:17:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pbctoday.co.uk\/news\/?p=36206"},"modified":"2017-11-07T12:17:26","modified_gmt":"2017-11-07T12:17:26","slug":"report-condemns-grenfell-council-for-failing-its-community","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pbctoday.co.uk\/news\/building-control-news\/report-condemns-grenfell-council-for-failing-its-community\/36206\/","title":{"rendered":"Report condemns Grenfell council for \u2018failing its community\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Initial findings from the Independent Grenfell Task Force appear to confirm that Kensington and Chelsea Council had neither the breadth of skills nor the competence to cope<\/h2>\n

Kensington & Chelsea Borough Council <\/a>\u201cfailed its community\u201d over the Grenfell disaster <\/a>and must meet a series of recommendations to raise the ongoing recovery programme, a report from the Independent Grenfell Task Force has revealed.<\/p>\n

The Independent Grenfell Task Force found that prior to the fire the council was distant from its residents; highly traditional in its operational behaviours; limited in its understanding of collaborative working and inward-looking, despite cross borough agreements; and deficit in its understanding of modern public service delivery.<\/p>\n

As a result, the report says the task force had the impression of council having neither the breadth of skills or the competence to organise, manage and drive through an immediate and significant change in operational delivery in the days and weeks immediately following the disaster.<\/p>\n

The council\u2019s immediate response alone is criticised as \u201cat best disjointed and seemingly rudderless.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rehousing is recognised as a \u201csubstantial and immediate\u201d challenge with 320 households still in hotel accommodation and attempts to temporarily and permanently rehouse them is proving to be a complex exercise.<\/p>\n

The circumstances for rehousing are said to be \u201cunprecedented\u201d at this scale and the rehousing response must be equally unprecedented in its attention to the personal needs and aspirations of each family.<\/p>\n

With the decision made to end the contract with Kensington & Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation (KCTMO), the task force is \u201cunconvinced\u201d that the council offers any better option as landlord \u2013 particularly in the medium to long term.<\/p>\n

Here, the report recommends a full options appraisal for the future ownership and management of housing stock \u2013 either as a whole or in smaller parcels\/packages.<\/p>\n

The council now has three months to demonstrate the instigation of initial action on the report\u2019s recommendations.<\/p>\n

Amongst these is the covering of the tower as soon as possible, with it being \u201creprehensible\u201d to have remained uncovered for so long.<\/p>\n

Following a significant change of senior leadership, the report recognises the council as \u201cworking hard\u201d to develop and deliver effective support and services to survivors and the wider community \u2013 and is doing so while undergoing a fundamental change in the way it delivers its functions and its organisational culture.<\/p>\n

The report identifies four themes to drive the ongoing recovery effort:<\/p>\n