What's happened
Police have submitted their full case files to the Crown Prosecution Service for charging decisions ahead of the 10th anniversary of the Grenfell Tower fire. The CPS says decisions will be made before June 2027. The investigation examines 54 individuals and 20 organisations, with potential charges including corporate manslaughter and health and safety offences. Trials are unlikely before 2028.
What's behind the headline?
Analysis
- The investigation is approaching a pivotal juncture as charging decisions loom ahead of the 10th anniversary.
- The sheer scale, involving thousands of people and hundreds of organisations, underscores the complexity and the high evidentiary bar for criminal charges like corporate manslaughter.
- A rapid progression to charges could reframe public accountability after years of inquiry, but delays risk eroding trust among bereaved families.
What to watch: whether the CPS aligns with the Met on the most prosecutable counts and whether corporate bodies will face penalties beyond Health and Safety Act breaches.
How we got here
The Grenfell Tower fire in 2017 killed 72 people and prompted a long-running public inquiry that found decades of failures by government, regulators and companies involved in refurbishment. The Met has collected extensive evidence, archived millions of electronic files, and built scale models as part of one of the most complex investigations in British history.
Our analysis
The Guardian reports that the CPS will decide charges by June 2027, with the Met describing the process as a milestone. Reuters confirms the case files have been submitted and outlines the breadth of evidence gathered. Both note the potential for corporate and individual accountability, and the likelihood that trials will not occur until 2028 at the earliest.
Go deeper
- Will charging decisions accelerate after June 2027 if no trials occur sooner?
- Which companies or individuals are most likely to face charges, and what offences are being considered?
More on these topics
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Crown Prosecution Service - Public agency
The Crown Prosecution Service is the principal public agency for conducting criminal prosecutions in England and Wales. It is headed by the Director of Public Prosecutions.
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Grenfell Tower - Residential tower in London known for the 14 June 2017 fire
Grenfell Tower is a derelict 24-storey residential tower block in North Kensington in West London, England. The tower was completed in 1974 as part of the first phase of the Lancaster West Estate. Most of the tower was destroyed in a severe fire on 14 June 2017. The building's top 20 storeys consisted of 120 flats, with six per floor – two flats with one bedroom each and four flats with two bedrooms each – with a total of 200 bedrooms. Its first four storeys were non-residential until its most recent refurbishment, from 2015 to 2016, when two storeys were converted to residential use, bringing it up to 127 flats and 227 bedrooms; six of the new flats had four bedrooms each and one flat had three bedrooms. It also received new windows and new cladding with thermal insulation during this refurbishment. The fire gutted the building and killed 72 people, including a stillbirth. In early 2018, it was announced that, following demolition of the tower, the site will be replaced by a memorial to those killed in the fire. The demolition of Grenfell Tower began in September 2025 and is expected to take two years.