Skip to main content
Gifts from The Morning Star
Grenfell five years on – forever in our hearts
There is an acute sense of abandonment in North Kensington, where the worst post-war fire in Britain has left a legacy of distrust between residents and an uncaring local authority. ANN CZERNIK reports
The Grenfell Memorial Wall in the grounds of Kensington Aldridge Academy, London.

ON JUNE 14 2017, in the early hours of the morning, an ordinary kitchen fire was the catalyst for a social catastrophe of an unprecedented scale. 

The effects of this extraordinary occurence upon the communities living in close proximity to the Grenfell fire disaster will not be fully understood for decades to come. 

This event took place in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea where some of the world’s wealthiest and Britain’s poorest coexist in an atmostphere of mistrust, mutual contempt and suspicion. 

The 95th Anniversary Appeal
Support the Morning Star
You have reached the free limit.
Subscribe to continue reading.
More from this author
ABUSE IGNORED: Children walk through Rotherham, one of the many northern towns ripped apart by decades of systematic grooming
Features / 20 June 2025
20 June 2025

To quell the public anger and silence the far right, Labour has rushed out a report so that it can launch a National Inquiry — ANN CZERNIK examines Baroness Casey’s incendiary audit and finds fatal flaws that fail to 'draw a line' under the scandal as hoped
 

BETTER LATE THAN NEVER: Roheez Khan, left, and Mustaq Ahmed,
Features / 15 March 2025
15 March 2025
ANN CZERNIK concludes her three-part series on the hidden scale of child sexual exploitation in Britain
CALLS FOR ACCOUNTABILITY: The Home Office is under pressure
Features / 8 March 2025
8 March 2025
Campaigners have been battling for an investigation into police failings in Keighley on child abuse for almost 25 years – but what is it about this West Yorkshire town that’s led to it becoming such a hub for grooming gangs? ANN CZERNIK investigates
Rotherham minster, in the centre of a town at the heart of t
Features / 1 March 2025
1 March 2025
Victims were forgotten until a far-right billionaire posted a series of tweets on Britain’s grooming gangs. ANN CZERNIK separates the grains of truth from the chaff of media frenzy in the story that has appalled one and all
Similar stories
JUSTICE DENIED: People take part in a silent march near Gren
Features / 7 September 2024
7 September 2024
DIANE ABBOTT MP argues we need unlimited fines and jail time for the guilty firms that dodged responsibility through legal loopholes — but most of all we need an end to the ‘bonfire of red tape’ and deadly Thatcherite ideology
JUSTICE DENIED: Matt Wrack speaking in front of Grenfell yes
Features / 5 September 2024
5 September 2024
Despite the damning report, cladding fires continue to threaten lives, and justice has not been done. MATT WRACK demands a radical overhaul of building safety regulations and public ownership of the inspection system