Deaths foreseen Warnings, risks and regulations

1991

Fire spread from the bottom to the top of 11-storey Knowsley Heights in Liverpool causing serious damage

1999

Flames ripped through nine floors of a 14-storey tower block, right, in Irvine, Ayrshire on June 11, killing a disabled man and injuring five other people

2000

House of Commons committee warned: “We do not believe that it should take a serious fire in which many people are killed before all reasonable steps are taken towards minimising the risks”

2004

Report commissioned by the Office for the Deputy Prime Minister said water sprinklers were probably cost-effective for blocks over 11-storeys high

2005

Sprinklers were required to be fitted in all new blocks of flats higher than 18 metres in Scotland

2006

The Government, under Tony Blair, insisted on sprinklers in new blocks of flats higher than 30 metres (about 11 storeys). But the regulations were not retrospective

2010

Two firefighters died tackling a blaze at Shirley Towers in Southampton in April. The coroner recommended sprinklers be fitted into existing high-rise blocks

2013

Six people died and more than 20 were injured when Lakanal House, right, in Camberwell, south London, caught fire. Another recommendation for sprinklers was made

2014

Brandon Lewis, then Conservative housing minister, refused to change fire safety regulations to force building developers to fit sprinklers, saying it could discourage house building

2015

London Fire Brigade ordered the Kensington and Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation to make safety improvements to two other tower blocks after an arson attack at Adair Tower.

Jan 2016

In Wales, a new law required sprinklers in all new or converted homes

April 2016

The Building Research Establishment warned of an “increase in the volume of potentially combustible materials being applied” to buildings

Nov 2016

The Grenfell Action Group raised several concerns, saying the block’s manager was “playing with fire” after the £10million refurbishment