Require voluntary sector partnerships in contingency planning
Grenfell Tower Inquiry · Grenfell Tower Inquiry: Phase 2 Report · Issued 4 September 2024 · Addressed to: UK Government
Source — verbatim from the inquiry
●Inquiry recommendation
Regulation 23 of the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 (Contingency Planning) Regulations 2005 requires a Category 1 responder to have regard when making its plans to the activities of relevant voluntary organisations. We therefore recommend that the regulation be amended to require Category 1 responders to establish and maintain partnerships with the voluntary, community and faith organisations in the areas in which they are responsible for preparing for and responding to emergencies. (113.68)
Grenfell Tower Inquiry, Grenfell Tower Inquiry: Phase 2 Report · 4 Sep 2024 Source PDF →
Published evidence summary
Publicly available evidence relating to this recommendation:
- The government's annual report stated a consultation called "Stronger Partnerships" received 165 responses and the government published its public response on 16 December 2025 (Annual Report on Progress, MHCLG, February 2026).
Response — verbatim from government
●UK Government — initial response
The government accepts this recommendation in principle. We acknowledge the vital role of the voluntary, community and faith sector (VCFS) in all aspects of resilience and are committed to building stronger relationships and collaboration with these groups. However, due to the diverse nature of the sector, we propose a rapid consultation and will confirm the outcome later in 2025. We must consider if placing a statutory duty is the best means to achieve stronger engagement and what burdens any new statutory duty might have on both emergency responders and VCFS organisations themselves, especially on those small organisations embedded in communities, like those that were so critical in supporting the Grenfell community.
UK Government · 16 Jan 2025 Written response →
●UK Government — follow-up
The government accepts this recommendation in principle. We acknowledge the vital role of the voluntary, community and faith sector (VCFS) in all aspects of resilience and are committed to building stronger relationships and collaboration with these groups. However, due to the diverse nature of the sector, we propose a rapid consultation and will confirm the outcome later in 2025. We must consider if placing a statutory duty is the best means to achieve stronger engagement and what burdens any new statutory duty might have on both emergency responders and VCFS organisations themselves, especially on those small organisations embedded in communities, like those that were so critical in supporting the Grenfell community.
UK Government · 26 Feb 2025 Written response →
Evidence trail — what's actually happened since
- 1 Feb 2026 A consultation called Stronger Partnerships" received 165 responses. The government published its public response on 16 December 2025 and will consider regulatory changes while conducting impact evaluation in 2026." Source →
Each entry above links to a primary source — gov.uk written statement, consultation response document, or inspection report. The Index does not characterise government intent; it tracks what has been published.
How this page is built
Source and Response are verbatim from primary documents. The Evidence trail records published activity since — written statements, consultation outcomes, inspection findings, parliamentary references. The Index does not paraphrase or characterise intent; it tracks what has been published. Where the evidence is the absence of action (a missed deadline, a slipped timetable), that absence is documented from primary sources rather than inferred.
This recommendation's data is verified periodically against primary sources. The Index is monitored for staleness weekly.