Reviewing the work undertaken following the Grenfell Tower fire

This report outlines the work that Healthwatch Central West London (Healthwatch CWL) has done to date to ensure that the concerns and questions heard from local people affected by the Grenfell Tower fire were addressed and responded to by the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea council (RBKC) and West London Clinical Commissioning Group (WLCCG). Following the Grenfell Tower fire, Healthwatch CWL heard from local people that many of the local community’s questions and concerns had gone unanswered by public bodies.

From 28 July to 8 September 2017, Healthwatch CWL collected local people’s questions and concerns around health and social care provision following the fire. These were then formally submitted to WLCCG and RBKC council for an official response within the required 20 working days.

HW provided an overview of the answers along with an indication of the support and services now available or being developed. Further recommendations were made by HW to ensure that local people are given the information and services they need and are included in decisions being made on the health and care resources that will impact on the lives of the community.

Some of the concerns raised were: Information was not reaching everyone who needed it, survivors of the fire were concerned for their own and others’ emotional and mental wellbeing following the fire. Questions regarding emotional support, mental health services and wellbeing were asked in all six weeks that HW collected questions and concerns. How local people could be involved in decision making was a common theme across all weeks, particularly regarding the design of services for those affected by the fire. Answers ranged from concrete examples of how people have been and can be involved, to more vague answers regarding commitments to community engagement without evidence or contact details.

From the work that outlined in this report it is apparent that following the Grenfell Tower fire local people are likely to have on-going needs for information, support and services to ensure their emotional and physical wellbeing in the coming years. In addition, given the distrust of official bodies still felt by parts of the local community it was recommend that work which is now needed to evaluate the quality of what is currently available and monitoring quality and accessibility of new provision into the future, should be overseen by a local, trusted, and independent organisation.