The London Assembly has today raised serious
concerns about the Government's Fire Safety (Residential
Evacuation Plans) Regulations 2025, due to come into force in
April 2026. Members have warned they fall far short of
protecting Deaf and Disabled residents who may struggle to
self-evacuate in a fire.
The Assembly has called for the regulations to be developed in
consultation with Deaf and Disabled People's Organisations, and
to bring them into line with the Grenfell Tower Inquiry's
recommendation for a clear legal duty to provide personal
emergency evacuation plans for those who need them.
OBE
AM, who proposed the motion, said:
"After the tragedy of Grenfell, the Inquiry recommended
evacuation plans for residents who cannot
self-evacuate.
“The new regulations fall far short of delivering that in
practice, placing too much responsibility on Disabled residents
to identify themselves and not enough duty on building managers
to proactively plan for their safety.
“This motion calls on the Mayor to push for stronger and
clearer rules so Disabled Londoners are not left at risk in an
emergency.”
The full text of the motion is:
The Fire Safety (Residential Evacuation Plans) (England)
Regulations 2025 are due to come into effect on
6th April 2026. They aim to improve the fire
safety and evacuation of disabled residents in specified
residential buildings in England who would have difficulties
evacuating a building by themselves in the event of a
fire.
This Assembly notes numerous concerns held by Deaf and
Disabled Peoples' Organisations (DDPOs) across
London regarding the incoming regulations. The
Government's plans for Residential Personal Emergency Evacuation
Plans (RPEEPs) fall far short of what is needed – and what has
been called for by the Grenfell Inquiry -
to ensure the safety of Deaf and Disabled people in London
and across the country.
This Assembly notes the following issues with regard
to the incoming regulations:
- DDPOs were assured that the term
“best endeavours” would be used to describe the duty of a
Responsible Person (RP) to identify residents who may
need PEEPs. However, “reasonable endeavours” is the term that has
been used throughout the regulations, these terms carry different
legal implications, and the change is a significant weakening of
the duty placed on building owners and managers.
- The regulations assume RPs
know their residents and have engaged with them
to establish their needs, and require RPs to
offer Person-Centred Fire Risk Assessments (PCFRAs) to residents
who may need them.
- However, the regulations only
require an RP to produce a RPEEP statement if the resident
gives explicit consent. While RPs are required
to offer a PCFRA, they are under no obligation
to actually carry one out unless the resident
requests it. This places the entire burden of initiating
protection onto the individual at risk. Consent must never be
used as a barrier to protection, especially as no framework is
outlined as to how consent should be obtained, and many RPs do
not communicate with their residents in an accessible way.
- The regulations do not require the
PCFRAs to be carried out by trained or accredited professionals,
and RPs are only required to share very minimal
information about what support the resident might need in case of
a fire.
- There is no obligation for RPs to
provide equipment or support. The regulations could lead to
situations in which RPs deem a mitigation measure
“reasonable and proportionate” only if the Disabled resident pays
for it, meaning if they cannot, it will not be implemented.
- They are restricted only to certain
types of housing, arbitrarily basing safety planning on such
aspects as building height, rather than purely on individual
need.
- Disabled residents in private and
leasehold housing are set to be left behind, with funding only
provided for those in social housing.
Therefore, this Assembly resolves to:
- Request the Chair of the Assembly
writes to the Minister for Housing, Communities and Local
Government (MHCLG), asking him to urgently re-think these
regulations regarding RPEEPs, and in consultation with DDPOs,
formulate a new set of regulations that addresses the issues
outlined above.
- Call upon the Mayor to
join the Assembly's request to MCHLG by also
writing to the Minister calling for the Government to re-think
these regulations on behalf of London's Deaf and Disabled
community.
- Call on the Mayor to
write to RPs, requesting they work in good faith and in the best
interests of Deaf and Disabled Londoners when it comes to
interpreting less clear elements of the RPEEP
regulations.
- Also call upon the London Fire
Commissioner to write formally to MHCLG to explicitly remind them
of the recommendation made by the Grenfell Tower Inquiry: a call
for a new legal duty on owners or managers of high-rise
residential buildings to prepare a personal emergency evacuation
plan (PEEP) for all residents who might find it difficult to
“self-evacuate”. These regulations fall far short of this.
Notes to editors:
- The Motion was agreed by 13 votes for and 0 against.
