London’s Deputy Mayor for Fire and Resilience, Dr Fiona Twycross, has visited Wennington to see the impact of last year’s tragic fires, almost a year on.
The visit took place on Wednesday (23 May 2023) after being invited by the Chief Executive, Andrew Blake-Herbert, to discuss how the Greater London Authority (GLA) can support the continued recovery work taking place.
They were also keen to look at how Havering, and London, can be better prepared for any possible future climatic events than can lead to devastation to communities.
Attendees included the Leader of the Council, Councillor Ray Morgon, as well as the London Fire Brigade and key officers involved in responding to the crisis.
The Deputy Mayor saw first-hand how the fire spread and the damage it caused. She also heard how the Blue Light Services, the Council, wider community and charities responded and worked together.
This comes at a time when work continues to rebuild the community with the planning application for new properties to replace Marine Cottages, which were completely destroyed by the fire, now submitted.
The Council has also agreed to make the village green a protected space so that it can be safeguarded for future generations.
The Leader of the Council, Councillor Ray Morgon, said:
“We were really pleased to welcome the Deputy Mayor to Havering and show her first-hand how sudden climatic events can cause so much devastation to our communities.
It was agreed that more support needs to be given to boroughs, like Havering, which has also seen other events such as flooding putting pressure on local services as they support residents who have suffered.
“It was also agreed that the Government needs to do more to prepare urgent support, such as funding when needed, as current schemes or funding pots are not geared up for emergencies such as this.
We therefore look forward to working with the Deputy Mayor and the GLA for better understanding of these issues in the future.”
Deputy Mayor for Fire and Resilience, Fiona Twycross, said:
“Last summer, we all saw how devastating these fires can be to homes, businesses and precious green spaces. It is clear the climate emergency is increasing the pressure on London Fire Brigade and presenting new challenges.
The Mayor is committed to protecting our vital services and allocated additional City Hall funding for the Brigade in his budget, to help boost recruitment, provide new training kit and ensure the fire service is better prepared to deal with extreme weather events.
The Mayor and I are also continuing to call on the Government to ensure it provides the support the fire service deserves.”