Grenfell Tower: London Fire Brigade ‘too slow to learn lessons from disaster’, says watchdog

‘Wasteful’ practices, insufficiently trained staff and failure to follow national guidance still a problem two and a half years on from Grenfell tragedy, says HMICFRS

Inspector of Constabulary Matt Parr went as far as to say he was 'disappointed' in the LFB (Getty)

The London Fire Brigade (LFB) has been too slow to learn lessons from the Grenfell tragedy, with “wasteful” practices, insufficiently trained staff and failure to follow national guidance still being a problem in the organisation two and a half years on, a watchdog has warned.

London fire officers are attending call-outs without adequate training and the brigade is “needlessly” wasting resources due to a failure by the organisation to modernise, according to Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS).

Inspector of Constabulary Matt Parr went as far as to say he was “disappointed” in the organisation, adding: “The LFB has learned many of the lessons of Grenfell​, but there has been slow progress in implementing some of these things, many of which they’ve been aware of for some time. They know, but they’re very slow at learning the lessons.”

While stating that there were some “great people determined to do a great job for the people they serve” in the brigade, Mr Parr said the organisation was “not well run or well scrutinised” and at times fell below the standards set by its own policies or national guidance.

It comes less than two weeks after the LFB commissioner Dany Cotton announced she was to resign early amid controversy surrounding the Grenfell fire, following damning findings by the inquiry into the blaze, which killed 72 people in June 2017.

In October, phase one of the Grenfell Inquiry concluded that fewer people may have died in the fire had the brigade not stuck so rigidly to its “stay put” policy, and evacuated the block instead.

It also criticised the LFB for not educating its firefighters in the dangers associated with combustible cladding systems and for failing visit the block following the refurbishment to ensure the assessment of the risks it presented was accurate and up to date.

The HMICFRS report, published alongside reports of all fire and rescue services across the UK, did not examine the LFB’s conduct in relation to Grenfell, but makes reference to changes the brigade has failed to implement following the tragedy.

It found that the LFB had a “significant” backlog of training for staff, with some fire engine drivers not having had any refresher training or reassessment for 20 years, despite national guidance stating that they must do so every five years, and no individual reassessment at all for incident commanding officers – a point inspectors said should be addressed “immediately”.

Mr Parr said: “The competences of people who are commanding incidents cannot be assured. The kind of training they go through and the assessment of their competences are not where they are in other fire and rescue services, and we think the brigade needs to get on with addressing this very quickly.”

Inspectors also noted that while all fire and rescue services across the UK were short of resources, the shortcomings in the LFB were less about a lack of funding but more a failure to manage its resources and prevent wasteful spending, such as attending a large volume of false alarms.

In the year to 31 March 2019, the brigade received 40,804 automatic fire alarm requests for assistance, of which just 3.7 per cent (1,516) weren’t attended, which inspectors said was “surprisingly low” when compared with the average of 30 per cent for England. In all, 48 per cent of all LFB call-outs the brigade attends are false alarms.

“It’s wasteful in turning up unnecessarily to false alarms. And many of the LFB’s projects are wasteful – they get started and stalled. Contracts get signed off without significant consideration to value for money – they don’t deliver what they’re supposed to deliver,” said Mr Parr.

“The level of funding is not the issue. The issue is do you get best value for money out of every pound you spend, and it is very difficult to argue that in the case of the LFB.”

The report also states that the LFB is the only fire brigade in the UK that doesn’t follow national operational guidance on how incidents should be managed and how risk should be managed at the scene of incidents, which inspectors said was “worrying”, and required “immediate attention”.

The brigade was also criticised for having a “worrying culture” of discouraging staff from using operational discretion – which allows incident commanders to disregard policies, such as “stay put” – in cases where they are not working or are unnecessary.

Out of around 32,000 incidents the LFB attended in two years, operational discretion was used only six times, a figure Mr Parr described as “strikingly low” compared to any other fire and rescue service, adding “It doesn’t strike me as a hallmark of a learning organisation.”

Matt Wrack, Fire Brigades Union (FBU) general secretary, said the findings would "make worrying reading" for firefighters in London and be "deeply concerning" for the Grenfell community and all of the capital.

“Grenfell must be a turning point for UK fire safety – anything less is completely unacceptable. The inquiry’s vital recommendations must be implemented quickly in London, but they also must be implemented in every fire and rescue service in the country," he added.

Andy Roe, who has been appointed as the new London Fire Commissioner and will take up his post from 1 January, said he recognised that what was been highlighted in the report was “not good enough” and committed to making the “necessary improvements” when he takes up the post.

“We are already delivering some of the key improvements they have highlighted and are doing everything we can to provide the best possible service to the people of London and keep them safe,” he added.

“Training our staff is a priority and we are heavily investing to make sure our firefighters have the right skills to carry out their roles effectively ... We learn from every incident we attend and have introduced a range of new procedures and equipment, especially since the Grenfell Tower fire.

“All of our staff are dedicated to keeping Londoners safe and they are out in the community every day saving lies. We are committed to improving how we do things and to providing the best service we can to the people of London.”