‘Sprinklers will be fully explored’: Mayor responds to Hackney Citizen’s petition

Grenfell Tower fire. Photograph: Grenfell Action Group

Mayor Philip Glanville has responded to the Hackney Citizen‘s petition calling on the council to fit fire sprinklers in all its tower blocks taller than 30 metres.

The petition, launched on 38 Degrees in the wake of the Grenfell tragedy, has been signed by 1,640 people.

The Citizen revealed last month that just two of Hackney’s 181 medium to high-rise blocks have sprinklers installed – Exbury and Scotney on the Frampton Park Estate.

Among those backing the petition is Hackney Green Party, whose spokesperson said: “No-one should have to worry about the safety of their home and their family. Hackney Council and other landlords need to set out how they are going to meet this and other recommendations from the 2009 Lakanal Fire, as well as commit to fully implementing the recommendations that come out of the Grenfell Tower investigation.”

The over-50’s club from Gascoyne 2 Tenants and Residents Association also said it “agrees wholeheartedly with the Citizen‘s campaign”.

Mayor of Hackney Philip Glanville

Mayor Glanville said: “Following the tragic events at the Grenfell Tower, we’ve put in place a number of measures regarding the fire safety of council blocks across the borough such as by undertaking a comprehensive fire safety review, as well as a review of cladding used on council blocks to provide residents with added reassurance.

“Sprinklers will be fully explored as part of these reviews and we will move to install them if recommended to do so by our independent fire adviser or following advice from the London Fire Brigade. In addition we will await with keen interest any interim findings and recommendations from the Public Inquiry into Grenfell and, as we did following the Lakanal House tragedy, respond quickly to them.

“Following the Lakanal enquiry, all low, medium and high-rise estate blocks were fire risk assessed, other work was also undertaken such as the hard wiring of smoke alarms and the upgrading and installation of fire safety doors and lighting – all of which fully met the recommendations. The council has also continued to invest millions of pounds over the last five years to upgrade fire safety measures across all housing estates while carrying out annual Fire Risk Assessments to ensure that estates meet nationally-set fire regulations.

“We have robust procedures in place to ensure all blocks have an up-to-date fire risk assessment and we are reviewing these for medium to high rise blocks of five storeys or more and we are publishing them online. We are also meeting with Housing Associations to discuss fire safety.

“We completed an initial inspection of cladding within 48 hours of the fire, and we confirmed to the Department of Communities and Local Government that we have no blocks with cladding made of Aluminium Composite Material – the type used at Grenfell. We have also undertaken an independent review of all cladding on estate blocks.

“We have written to all estate residents to make sure they are kept fully informed of what actions we are taking to keep them safe while answering the most commonly asked fire safety questions, providing fire safety advice and council contact details if they wish to raise any further questions or concerns.

“Following the comprehensive fire safety review, we are committed to keeping residents informed about what recommendations are being taken forward, including any decisions about the installation of sprinklers across estate blocks.”

Hackney Citizen editor Keith Magnum said: “We thank the Mayor for his response to the petition, and also everyone who signed it. Sadly, there is nothing in it that he has not already said. However, we look forward to him taking prompt action on the recommendations from both the council’s independent fire adviser and the Grenfell inquiry.”