Grenfell fire and PEEPs: 'I want to escape a burning building, not sit and wait'

Fleeing a burning building is a natural instinct, but for many disabled people it might be impossible to get out unaided. Following the Grenfell Tower fire, recommendations were made to create evacuation plans for residents who need extra assistance to escape, so why did the government go against it?

When Joe Kimber goes to bed at night he worries about what will happen if a fire takes hold of his block of flats.

The west Londoner lives on the third floor with his partner, Liz. Following a complex brain injury he struggles to walk, often uses a wheelchair, and is unable to get up if he falls. It begs the question - how would he escape in an emergency?

"If there's a fire, there's no plan to get me out the building. The fear of being cremated alive is horrendous," he told the BBC Access All podcast.

This is a fear for many disabled people in high-rise flats who would be unable to escape without extra assistance. Currently, there is no legislation ensuring they can get out safely and instead they are told to "stay put" and wait for help.

Last week that fear intensified when a recommendation to make it mandatory for building owners to arrange evacuation plans - known as PEEPs - was turned down by the government.

"I find it mind-boggling that we're having a conversation about getting disabled people out of a burning building" Joe says.

The recommendation to introduce PEEPs had come from the first Grenfell Tower Inquiry (GTI) report which looked into the circumstances of the June 2017 fire, where no evacuation plans were in place.

It found that the "stay put" advice - which works on the premise that it is generally safer to stay in a flat where the walls, floors, and doors are designed to contain fire - had failed because the ACM cladding had acted as a source of fuel.

But when it was realised "stay put" was ineffectual, there was no time to help people escape.

In total, 72 people lost their lives, including 15 disabled residents.

Grenfell United summed it up by saying: "It left them with no personal evacuation plan and no means of escape. They didn't stand a chance."

The GTI report advised the government to place a legal obligation on building owners to implement Personal Emergency Evacuation Plans or PEEP.

A PEEP is a tailored plan between an individual, who cannot get themselves out of a building unaided, and the person responsible for fire-safety. It is often used by those with mobility issues, cognitive, visual or hearing impairments.

At its most basic, it's a conversation about the safest route out of a building and might simply include ensuring a deaf resident has an appropriate alarm.

Crucially, it is about quickly evacuating rather than waiting for the fire service to rescue you when they arrive.

Many disabled people will be familiar with PEEPs as they are a legal requirement in the work place - failure to have one breaches the Equality Act 2010 and is considered discrimination.

But it isn't required in residential blocks.

The Grenfell inquiry's recommendation then, was a hope for many disabled people. A follow-up consultation last summer backed the inquiry's findings as 83% of respondents - including building owners and construction companies - agreed PEEPs should be implemented.

But last week the government announced it would "propose to deliver against the Grenfell Tower Inquiry" and the subsequent consultation, on PEEPs.

"We are utterly appalled," says Georgie Hulme, co-founder of Claddag an organisation fighting for PEEPs to be made mandatory. "Why undertake any consultation or public inquiry, if the results or recommendations are just ignored":[]}