Sir Ken Knight was commissioner of London Fire Brigade from 2001 to 2007. He then became Chief Fire and Rescue Adviser (CFRA) serving in this role until January 2013.
As CFRA, Knight’s role included advising ministers on emerging issues of national significance in the fire and rescue service, as well as providing guidance to services.
While giving evidence to the Grenfell inquiry, Knight was asked about his role as CFRA and what he knew of the dangers of the use of combustible materials in external wall constructions and what action he took, if any, to inform and support fire and rescue services.
The inquiry heard how, after the Lakanal House fire in 2009 in which six people lost their lives, Knight failed to press government to instruct housing providers to actively check the walls of their buildings for compliance with the building regulations.
This was despite receiving a letter from then LFB commissioner Ron Dobson warning Knight that tests on the external wall panels revealed they did not have adequate fire safety properties and that housing providers ought to check their own buildings.
Instead, the letter sent by government to local housing authorities merely encouraged them to check if they had concerns and not as a matter of course.
He could not give a reason as to why he omitted to reference the importance of training as highlighted in the report
Knight agreed that if housing providers chose to do nothing, the risk of another similar fire increased.
Another missed opportunity came after the Atherstone-on-Stour fire of November 2007 in which four firefighters lost their lives.
Findings of the investigation into the fire were published in "FRS safety critical issues" and sent to Knight.
The investigation called for incident commanders to be familiar with building construction types and risks arising from various different types of construction, and that this should have an impact on initial and continuation training requirements for firefighters.
Lack of training for firefighters on different types of construction was identified as a key failure in LFB’s pre-planning for Grenfell Tower.
But Knight made no mention of the training aspect in his circular 18/2009 in March 2009. He said that although it is not expressly addressed, the fire and rescue authority has a responsibility to keep firefighters safe and through that should be carrying out suitable training.
He could not give a reason as to why he omitted to reference the importance of training as highlighted in the report.
Knight is currently chair of the independent expert advisory panel formed in the immediate aftermath of Grenfell by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities to advise on fire safety.
