The Metropolitan Police has submitted all of its Grenfell Tower investigation files to the Crown Prosecution Service, asking prosecutors to consider potential criminal charges relating to 54 individuals and 20 companies and organisations. The Metropolitan Police confirmed on 30 September 2026 that the offences under consideration include corporate manslaughter, gross negligence manslaughter, health and safety offences, fraud and fraud-related offences and misconduct in public office. No charging decisions have yet been made. The CPS has committed to making those decisions before the tenth anniversary of the fire in June 2027.
Image: Metropolitan Police. Source:
Met submits all Grenfell files to the CPS for charging decisions
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What the Met has sent to prosecutors
The submission consists of 20 case files together with 14 overarching evidence files. According to the Met, its summary reports alone run to more than four million words across 12,600 pages and reference more than 45,000 documents, images and exhibits. Investigators examined the roles of more than 15,000 individuals and 700 organisations before identifying the 54 people and 20 organisations now covered by the files sent to prosecutors. The investigation collected 165 million electronic files, took 14,700 statements and retains more than 27,000 physical exhibits including cladding, insulation, doors, windows and smaller building components.
Grenfell Tower itself remained a police crime scene for 14 months. The Met said forensic teams examined about 15 tonnes of debris on each floor during the recovery and evidence-gathering operation. Deputy Assistant Commissioner Kevin Southworth described the case as “one of the most complex investigations ever undertaken by any UK law enforcement agency”. The scale also explains why the criminal process has continued long after the publication of the public inquiry findings. London Construction Magazine has separately been tracking the continuing implementation of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry recommendations affecting construction and building control.
Inquiry findings are not charging decisions
A key distinction is required between the findings of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry and the criminal files now being considered by the CPS. The Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 2 report, published in September 2024, made extensive findings about the refurbishment, building control, product testing, certification and the manufacture and marketing of materials used in the external wall.
The Inquiry found that a major reason combustible materials came to be used on Grenfell Tower was systematic dishonesty by some manufacturers. Its report contains detailed findings concerning Arconic Architectural Products, Celotex and Kingspan, including the testing and marketing of Reynobond 55 PE, Celotex RS5000 and Kingspan K15. It also examined the roles of the principal contractor, façade subcontractor, designers, fire consultants, building control and testing and certification bodies.
Those Inquiry findings do not themselves amount to criminal convictions or CPS charging decisions. Nor has the Met's 30 September statement published the identities of all 20 companies and organisations covered by its criminal referral. London Construction Magazine is therefore not treating every company or organisation criticised by the Inquiry as a confirmed member of the 20 organisations now before prosecutors. That distinction matters. The public inquiry was established to determine what happened, why it happened and what should change. The CPS must separately decide whether the evidence relating to each suspect and each potential offence meets the legal test required for prosecution.
MHCLG confirms its own file is with the CPS
One organisation that has publicly confirmed its position is the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. In a statement issued on 30 September, MHCLG said the Metropolitan Police had notified the department in 2023 that it was under investigation. The department said the Met has now confirmed that a file relating to MHCLG has been referred to the CPS for an independent review of whether the evidential requirements have been reached in relation to a potential breach of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. That is not confirmation that MHCLG will be charged. It confirms that evidence relating to the department is now part of the CPS review. The Met's published announcement does not provide a complete named list of the other organisations covered by the 20 files.
Construction reform is still running in parallel
The criminal investigation is proceeding separately from the regulatory changes introduced and proposed since the fire. The government's September 2026 Grenfell construction progress report records 28 construction-industry recommendations, of which nine are complete and 19 remain in progress. Those outstanding reforms include the creation of a Single Construction Regulator, further work on Approved Document B, construction product reform, changes affecting fire engineering and consideration of stronger accountability and licensing requirements for principal contractors working on higher-risk buildings.
The Building Safety Regulator became a standalone arm's-length body sponsored by MHCLG in January 2026, with staff formally transferred from the Health and Safety Executive in June. London Construction Magazine examined what the standalone Building Safety Regulator means for contractors when the institutional change took effect. For current higher-risk building work, the practical regulatory consequences are already visible through tighter dutyholder responsibilities, evidence requirements and building control approval. LCM's Gateway 2 guide explains the hard stop before regulated building work starts and the distinction between planning, contractor appointment and Building Safety Regulator approval.
What happens next
The CPS will now review the evidence against each potential suspect and offence. Under the Code for Crown Prosecutors, the Full Code Test requires sufficient evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction before prosecutors move to the public-interest stage. Referral by the police is therefore not the same as being charged and does not establish guilt. The next confirmed milestone is the CPS charging decision process. The Met says the CPS has committed to reaching those decisions before the tenth anniversary of the Grenfell Tower fire in June 2027. Until those decisions are announced, the identities of individuals or organisations not officially confirmed should not be presented as defendants or as having been selected for prosecution.
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Expert Verification & Authorship: Mihai Chelmus Founder & Editor, London Construction Magazine | Construction Testing & Investigation Specialist |