Grenfell campaigners hold protest outside Celotex factory as survivors mark four and half years since fire

A silent walk tonight will mark four and a half years since the disaster

Grenfell protesters blocked lorries at a Celotex factory (supplied)

Grenfell campaigners have held a protest outside a firm it accuses of breaking safety regulations in the refurbishment of the tower.

A dozen protesters gathered outside the Celotex factory in Ipswich, calling for justice and blocking lorries from leaving the industrial estate.

Campaigners travelled from London on Tuesday with banners reading “Celotex you have the blood of 72 on your hands”, and alleging that the firm is among “the worst culprits” of the tragedy.

A public inquiry into the blaze is ongoing, which Celotex said it is cooperating with “fully and openly”.

Leearna Oliffe, an organiser of the protest, accused Celotex of breaking fire safety regulations when it provided insulation for the tower.

“We all had to watch the tower burn that night — it was awful,” she told The Independent.

“We know the inquiry is coming to an end in June/July but yet there have been no prosecutions. All the evidence has been revealed and we wanted to target one of the main culprits.

Protest banners read ‘Celotex you have the blood of 72 on your hands' (supplied)

“We wanted to make sure that Celotex knew that we’re not going away, we won’t forget or forgive what’s been done - we want justice as in prosecutions, we want jail time.”

During the inquiry, Celotex employees have faced questions about the manipulation of a fire safety test to secure a pass for its combustible Rs5000 product for use on high-rise buildings.

In a statement earlier this year, the firm said during its investigations after the Grenfell blaze “certain issues emerged concerning the testing, certification and marketing of Celotex’s products” which involved “unacceptable conduct on the part of a number of employees”.

It added: “They should not have happened and Celotex has taken concerted steps to ensure that no such issues reoccur.”

It comes as the Grenfell community prepares for its first public silent walk since the start of the pandemic, marking four and a half years since the devastating fire killed 72 people.

The walk comes exactly a week after the government apologised as part of the public inquiry into the fire, for past failures in oversight of the system regulating safety within the construction industry and the supervision of building control bodies.

Module six of the second phase is concerned with building regulations and the published guidance on fire safety, including detailed consideration of government policy in this area.

Grenfell United said it would be calling for “additional actions in the pursuit of justice” as well as its continued call for “truth and change”, adding that it would reveal the new actions on the night of the walk.

A spokesman for Celotex said: “There was a small group of peaceful protesters at the Hadleigh site today who we spoke with.

“Celotex continues to cooperate fully and openly with the Grenfell Tower Inquiry which is considering a wide range of complex questions of how the tragic fire at Grenfell Tower started and spread.

“Since the Grenfell Tower fire, Celotex has undertaken a review of its process controls, quality management and approach to marketing to address issues discovered as part of its investigations following the Grenfell Tower fire, and to ensure that no such issues reoccur.

“Celotex does not design or install cladding systems and did not do so at Grenfell Tower.”