Legal aid cuts have left residents no way to challenge sub-standard housing – The Guardian

‘The Grenfell Tower action group had no access to legal aid. Residents at risk in their homes want straightforward, enforceable legal remedies to keep them safe.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 26th June 2017

Source: www.theguardian.com

Prosecutors are considering manslaughter charges after Grenfell Tower disaster, Keir Starmer reveals – Daily Telegraph

‘Criminal investigation into the Grenfell Tower tragedy is looking into manslaughter charges, Sir Keir Starmer has said.’

Full Story

Daily Telegraph, 18th June 2017

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Southwark council fined £570,000 over fatal tower block fire – The Guardian

Posted February 28th, 2017 in costs, fines, fire, health & safety, housing, local government, news by sally

‘The London fire brigade has said it hopes “lessons are learned” after a council was fined £570,000 over safety failings at a 14-storey block of flats where six people died in a fire.’

Full story

The Guardian, 28th February 2017

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Southwark LBC v Various Lessees of the St Saviours Estate – Arden Chambers

Posted January 27th, 2017 in fire, landlord & tenant, news, repairs by sally

‘The Upper Tribunal has held, in dismissing the authority’s appeal, that a front entrance or communal door within a block of flats is not in disrepair merely because it has been modified or replaced. A door, which was designed to provide 20 or 30 minutes’ fire resistance, will only cease to be in repair if there is evidence, following an assessment by an expert in fire resistance, that the physical condition of the door is such that it is no longer able to provide the same fire resistance as when originally constructed.’

Full story

Arden Chambers, January 2017

Source: www.ardenchambers.com

IPCC rules out inquiry into police over Bradford City stadium fire – The Guardian

‘The Independent Police Complaints Commission has ruled out an inquiry into potential misconduct by police during the Bradford City stadium fire that killed 56 people.’

Full story

The Guardian, 26th January 2017

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Dressing gown loophole: Outdated laws let shops sell highly flammable robes – Daily Telegraph

Posted October 21st, 2016 in consumer protection, fire, health & safety, news by sally

‘Dressing gown owners are being warned to stay away from candles and open fires while wearing them, as a loophole in UK safety law means they can be made with highly flammable material.’

Full story

Daily Telegraph, 20th October 2016

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Prison’s gross failures contributed to death of inmate, inquest finds – The Guardian

‘A catastrophic series of failures contributed to the death of a prisoner, who died after setting fire to his cell, an inquest jury ruled.’

Full story

The Guardian, 26th July 2016

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Bradford City stadium fire: ‘Police were to blame’ for most life lost in tragedy – The Independent

Posted November 12th, 2015 in fire, inquiries, news, police, sport by sally

‘The Home Secretary, Theresa May, has been told that Bradford City fans were wrongly held responsible for deaths in the stadium fire on 11 May 1985 which killed 56 people, in an echo of the way that Liverpool supporters were blamed for the Hillsborough disaster four years later.’

Full story

The Independent, 10th November 2015

Source: www.independent.co.uk

IPCC could investigate Bradford City fire after police referral – BBC News

Posted November 9th, 2015 in complaints, fire, inquiries, news, ombudsmen, police, sport by sally

‘West Yorkshire Police has referred itself to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) over the 1985 Bradford City fire disaster.’

Full story

BBC News, 6th November 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Mayfair squatters granted extension in court battle against landlord – The Guardian

Posted May 27th, 2015 in fire, firearms, homelessness, human rights, news, repossession, squatting by sally

‘About 40 homeless people squatting in an empty building in one of London’s most upmarket areas have won the first round of a legal fight with a landlord.’

Full story

The Guardian, 26th May 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Bradford fire: Sir Oliver Popplewell defends 1985 inquiry – interview in full – The Guardian

Posted April 28th, 2015 in fire, inquiries, judges, news, sport by sally

‘Sir Oliver Popplewell, who presided over the Bradford fire inquiry, speaks at length to the Guardian’s chief football correspondent about revelations in survivor Martin Fletcher’s book and why he sees no need for a fresh investigation.’

Full story

The Guardian, 27th April 2015

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Not So Alarming – Nearly Legal

‘There are new provisions requiring smoke and carbon monoxide detectors in residential properties.’

Full story

Nearly Legal, 24th March 2015

Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk

Strangeways riot: Ex-inmates recall siege, 25 years on – BBC News

‘The Strangeways riot was the longest in British penal history and dramatically changed the way UK prisons were run. Twenty-five years on, four people at the centre of the siege explain their part in the drawn-out drama.’

Full story

BBC News, 23rd March 2015

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Fire safety – a hot topic! – Park Square Barristers

Posted March 19th, 2015 in appeals, fire, health & safety, news, regulations by sally

‘A recent case on the issue of fire safety — or, more exactly, the provisions of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 — has proved both interesting and instructive on the desirability and necessity of precision when drafting an indictment for proceedings brought before the Crown Court.’

Full story

Park Square Barristers, 4th MArch 2015

Source: www.parksquarebarristers.co.uk

Graham v Commercial Bodyworks Ltd – WLR Daily

Posted February 11th, 2015 in appeals, employment, fire, law reports, personal injuries, vicarious liability by sally

Graham v Commercial Bodyworks Ltd [2015] EWCA Civ 47; [2015] WLR (D) 50

‘Where an employee, while at work, had perpetrated against his friend and colleague what was apparently intended to be a prank, by putting highly inflammable thinning agent on to his clothes and then igniting them, the employer was not vicariously liable.’

WLR Daily, 5th February 2015

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Double trouble: Disaster can strike businesses twice – Hardwicke Chambers

Posted November 18th, 2014 in fire, insurance, news by sally

‘ASOS, the well-known online fashion retailer, was forced to suspend its website and stop taking orders after a fire at the firm’s distribution warehouse last month. It suffered the same fate when its former warehouse in Hemel Hempstead was damaged by the explosion at Buncefield oil depot in 2005. After that incident, the firm suspended its shares and had to refund 19,000 orders.’

Full story

Hardwicke Chambers, 16th October 2014

Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk

Legal Update: disclosure, formats and context – Law Society’s Gazette

‘Disclosure of information about children, pursuant to a request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FoI), is always a difficult issue and the natural reaction of public authorities is to err on the side of caution.’

Full story

Law Society’s Gazette, 1st September 2014

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Leicester fire deaths: Eight people found guilty – BBC News

Posted June 24th, 2014 in conspiracy, fire, homicide, murder, news by sally

‘Seven men and a teenager have been convicted for their part in a revenge arson attack that killed four people.’

Full story

BBC News,

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Two men guilty of murdering a mother and children in botched revenge attack – The Guardian

Posted June 24th, 2014 in conspiracy, fire, homicide, murder, news by sally

‘Two men have been found guilty of murdering a mother and her three children in a botched revenge attack.’

Full story

The Guardian, 23rd June 2014

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Coroner criticises MoD over Afghanistan fire deaths – BBC News

Posted May 23rd, 2014 in armed forces, fire, health & safety, inquests, news by sally

‘A coroner has criticised the MoD for a series of failures over the deaths of two soldiers in a fire as they slept in a tent at Camp Bastion in Afghanistan.’

Full story

BBC News, 22nd May 2014

Source: www.bbc.co.uk