Kensington and Chelsea Council's Overview & Scrutiny Committee recently reviewed the impact and lessons learned from the Grenfell Recovery Programme, a £50 million initiative that ran from 2019 to 2024. The programme aimed to support the long-term recovery of bereaved families, survivors, and the local community following the Grenfell Tower fire1.
The Grenfell Recovery Programme offered a range of support, including personalised assistance from dedicated service workers, individual service budgets, personal budgets, educational support for children, and facilitated peer support groups. Key successes included reaching 748 bereaved individuals and survivors with the Dedicated Service and securing permanent accommodation for all 201 households from Grenfell Tower and Grenfell Walk.
The committee met on Wednesday, 8 October 2025, to discuss the programme's delivery, reach, and impact, as detailed in the final report. The report included information about the transition of each workstream, reflections on the experience of delivering the programme, and lessons learned. The report also reflects on challenges such as the need to adapt and change, while acknowledging that not everything was perfect.
Nelsa, a group of councillors, introduced the report, noting it was the third and final one on the Grenfell recovery programme. She highlighted the key information about the programme's delivery, reach and impact. She also noted that the report includes information about the transition of each work stream and reflects on the experience with delivering the programme and the lessons learned.
Joe, Director of Grenfell Legacy and Public Strategy, added that the report's delay allowed for more systematic reflection on the programme's successes and areas for improvement. He emphasized the importance of reflecting on decisions made since Grenfell, stating, It's the reflections which really matter because other people looking at disaster and recovery, et cetera, would be able to look at this and we didn't want it to be all shiny and this is all fantastic. And some things which work better than others.
Councillor Claire Simmons, Chair of the Housing and Communities Select Committee, emphasized the importance of the report's detailed learning section, particularly regarding aspects of the original recovery strategy that caused harm. She noted, if there were having to be another disaster, I think it would be really important in terms of preventing further harms. other people might not make that same mistake, because some people, as we know, some residents did not survive that harm. So it's actually critically important there.
Councillor Simmons also stated that some aspects of the original recovery strategy caused harm, the legacy of which is still being addressed.
Councillor Gregory Hammond, Chair of the Environment Select Committee, asked about the top three pieces of advice for another borough facing similar circumstances. Joe responded that it would be about listening to people, taking time, and reflecting on the nature of the tragedy itself.
Councillor Lucy Knight, Chair of the Adult Social Care and Health Select Committee, raised questions about mentoring, job creation, and healthcare access. Joe responded that the mentoring programme was specifically on the Lancaster West Estate with the housing legacy fund. He also noted that public health colleagues are working closely with the NHS to look at population wide monitoring, and also to try and make sure that people are made aware of the support that is available and that they are followed up with routinely. While there are plans for population-wide monitoring of key health trends with NHS involvement, challenges remain in ensuring every survivor receives follow-up care.
Councillor Will Pascall raised the point that the lessons learned should not just start, that obviously we would be focused on Grenfell and Grenfell community, but the lessons needed to go wider. Joe responded that the fact that we had a sort of dedicated Grenfell director at your right, it did create kind of focus. It created focus on people rather than sort of services.
The Overview and Scrutiny Committee recommended that officers produce a short summary of the work across the five years of the programme, with key headlines, themes, and lessons learned.
The Public reports pack provides further details on the Grenfell Recovery Programme and other topics discussed at the meeting.
