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P2-27

Standardise fire control switches and keys

Grenfell Tower Inquiry · Grenfell Tower Inquiry: Phase 2 Report · Issued 4 September 2024 · Addressed to: UK Government

Government responseUK Government: Accepted (Feb 2025)

DeliveryMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local Government says completed (Sep 2026)

Recommendation, verbatim from the inquiry

●Inquiry recommendation

Accordingly, we are not in a position to determine whether greater standardisation of fire control switches and keys is required. We therefore recommend that the government seeks urgent advice from the Building Safety Regulator and the National Fire Chiefs Council on the nature and scale of the problem and the appropriate response to it. (113.43)

Grenfell Tower Inquiry, Grenfell Tower Inquiry: Phase 2 Report · 4 Sep 2024 Source PDF →

Published evidence summary

AI-generated evidence summary

The Inquiry recommended that the government seek urgent advice on standardising fire control switches and keys. In September 2026, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government stated that the recommendation was "complete and has been fully discharged" (Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Sep 2026). The department had reported in February 2026 that the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) published updated national guidance on lift keys in October 2025 after consulting the Building Safety Regulator, with related learning materials expected before the end of March 2026 (Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, Feb 2026).

AI-generated summary of the record on this page, checked by a second model and automatic checks, 19 Oct 2026.

Government response

●UK Government · Accepted · 26 Feb 2025

Words of: HM Government, Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 2 Report: Government response (CP 1248), presented to Parliament by the Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, 26 February 2025

The government accepts this recommendation. The National Fire Chiefs Council are reviewing the guidance for the provision of lift fire control switches with the Building Safety Regulator to support a view on standardisation in buildings. They are also surveying fire and rescue services to establish how lift keys, and the type of key, are distributed to firefighters.

Extract from: Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 2 Report: Government response (HTML version)

Site note: This is the government's response to the Phase 2 report (CP 1248, published 26 February 2025). It prints each recommendation and then the response to it. Where the recommendation is addressed to a body outside government, the response prints that body's own acceptance (the Architects Registration Board and RIBA, HMICFRS, London Fire Brigade, the National Fire Chiefs Council, the British Standards Institution, the National Police Chiefs' Council), and the row is filed under that body.

Delivery

●Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government says completed · 10 Sep 2026

This recommendation is complete and has been fully discharged.

From: Progress report September 2026: the construction industry (part of Grenfell Tower Inquiry Government Progress Report: September 2026)

Site note: This is the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government's progress report of September 2026 on the Grenfell Tower Inquiry recommendations. Where the passage describes work by another body, such as the National Fire Chiefs Council, London Fire Brigade, fire and rescue services, the British Standards Institution or the Cabinet Office, it is the Ministry's account of that body's progress, and the row is filed under the Ministry.

Earlier statements on delivery (0)

●Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government · 20 May 2026

Since the Annual Report published in February 2026, we have completed a further 9 recommendations. Recommendations 22, 23, 27 and 28 are related to the construction industry, and 51, 52, 53, 54 and 55 are related to response and recovery.

From: Progress report May 2026: summary update (part of Grenfell Tower Inquiry Government Progress Report: May 2026)

●Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government · 25 Feb 2026

In April, the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) created an action and delivery plan after surveying fire and rescue services and setting a baseline.

By September, as outlined in our update, we reported that NFCC had reviewed relevant regulations, guidance, and standards, agreed a position through its Protection Committee, and drafted proposals for changes. These proposals included promoting consistent testing, ensuring access to lift keys, and as supported from the Lift and Escalators Industry Association, omitting car key switches in new firefighters’ lifts.

In October, as reported in our December update, NFCC confirmed with the Building Safety Regulator that it would consider the NFCC position and handle the matter internally. Approval to publish updated national guidance relating to lift keys was obtained at the Operational Preparedness, Response and Resilience Committee, following endorsement by the Operational Guidance Forum. The guidance went live on 23 October.

Now that the amended guidance has been published, the NFCC Organisational Learning Team will review and update related learning materials. This is expected to be completed before the end of March 2026.

From: Annual Report February 2026: the construction industry (part of Grenfell Tower Inquiry Government Annual Report: February 2026)

Site note: This is the annex of the government's Phase 2 annual report (CP 1512, published 25 February 2026) as GOV.UK publishes it, one page per theme: the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government's account. Where the passage describes work by another body, such as the National Fire Chiefs Council, London Fire Brigade, the British Standards Institution, the Health and Safety Executive or the Cabinet Office, it is the report's account of that body's progress, and the row is filed under the Ministry. The status is what the passage says: completed only where it says the recommendation is complete or closed.

How this page is built

The recommendation and the government responses are verbatim from primary documents. Delivery statements and other bodies' findings are shown in their own words, each with its source. The summary is written by this site and labelled as such. The Index does not paraphrase sources or characterise intent; it records what has been published.