The government is planning to introduce personal emergency evacuation plans (PEEPs) for disabled residents, five years after they were recommended by the first Grenfell Tower Inquiry report.
The Inside Housing website reported that Rushanara Ali, the building safety minister, confirmed in a statement to parliament that plans for “residential PEEPs” would be brought forward by the Home Office in the autumn.
Under the plans, residents with disabilities and impairments will be entitled to a “person-centred risk assessment” to identify appropriate equipment and adjustments to aid their fire safety or evacuation.
They will also be entitled to a residential PEEPs statement that records what vulnerable residents should do in the event of a fire.
Ms Ali said the government “has committed funding next year to begin this important work by supporting social housing providers to deliver residential PEEPs for their renters”.
She added that funding for future years will be confirmed at the Spending Review on 30 October.
Inside Housing reported that PEEPs for all disabled residents in high-rise buildings were recommended in the phase-one report of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry in 2019. A total of 15 of the 72 victims of the Grenfell fire were disabled, and none of them had been provided with PEEPs.
