Grenfell Health Recovery Network

1.     Introduction

Since the Grenfell Tower fire in June 2017, the NHS has continued to work alongside the North Kensington community to respond to the long-term health and wellbeing needs arising from the tragedy. This has included working closely with bereaved families, survivor residents and local residents to develop and improve Grenfell-specific health services.

2026/27 marks an important transition year for the North Kensington Recovery (NKR) Health Programme. As services move towards longer-term arrangements, NHS partners, health providers and local authority partners have established the North Kensington Recovery Committee to provide strategic leadership, oversight and coordination of Grenfell-specific health services.

Alongside the North Kensington Recovery Committee, we are establishing the Grenfell Health Recovery Network to ensure that the lived experience and voices of bereaved families, survivors and residents remain at the heart of shaping and influencing the future of Grenfell-specific health services.

Through conversations with bereaved families, survivors and residents during the development of the 2024–2025 North Kensington Recovery Business Case and transition planning (referenced here), we consistently heard that Community-Led Recovery must remain at the heart of future arrangements. We heard clearly that lived experience should continue to influence, shape and inform decisions about Grenfell-specific health services.

The establishment of the Grenfell Health Recovery Network is a successor to the Health Partners of North Kensington initiative. The Network will work alongside the North Kensington Recovery Committee through clear arrangements for influence and ensure transparency and accountability of the Programme.  Those working directly with survivors, bereaved and residents on Grenfell specific health services will find the Network of greatest benefit.

2.     Dual-structure governance model for North Kensington Recovery Health Programme

The model establishes two inter-dependent but distinct structures:

A.    North Kensington Committee
  • Strategic leadership, direction, coordination, oversight and alignment, related to Grenfell-specific health services.
  • Comprised of statutory health providers, commissioners and local authority partners.
B.    Grenfell Health Recovery Network
  • Community-led body – supported by ICB commissioners to enable functioning and ‘secretariat’.
  • The bereaved families, the Survivors residents and associations representing and or working with Grenfell impacted communities.

3.     Grenfell Health Recovery Network

The Network will

  • Identify and articulate Grenfell-specific health priorities through the transition year.
  • Ensuring that the transition year and any Grenfell service change are guided and structured through the lived experience.
  • Provide structured input into the functioning of the North Kensington Recovery Committee.
  • Review and respond to proposed policies and interventions.
  • Act as a mechanism to ensure transparency and accountability.
Attendance at Network meetings would include
  • Survivors and bereaved families or their associations.
  • Local residents or associations (reflecting demographic diversity.)
  • Representatives from Voluntary, Community and Faith Sector (VCFS) organisations, working on Grenfell issues.
  • Trusted community Influencers.
Network Priorities
  • Will be aligned to that of the Committee.
  • Periodic external review of effectiveness and impact of the Network.
  • Clear escalation pathways for urgent issues.
  • Ensure that programme governance structure is responsive to concerns.
The Committee

  • Committee is required to provide formal responses to Network’s recommendations.

  • Committee to clearly state actions taken or reasons for non-adoption of any Network recommendations.

  • The Committee reports are in accessible (i.e. language) formats as necessary when shared with the Network

4.     Finally

  • A dual-structure approach enables the preservation of community voice while ensuring it exerts real influence on decision-making within the North Kensington Recovery Committee on Grenfell specific health and wellbeing matters.
  • The effectiveness of this model will depend not on its design alone, but on sustained commitment to transparency, accountability, and redistribution of influence (power) within the health recovery system.

If you have any questions, or / and wish to attend the Network meetings, please contact Mr. Abdurahman Sayed, and Mr. Krishna Sarda, at the email address: nhsnwl.nkrt@nhs.net

North Kensington Recovery health programme team.