‘Professional buck-passers’: why the excoriating Grenfell report was right to damn architects

The Grenfell Tower fire inquiry report has placed significant blame on the architecture practice Studio E for the 2015 refurbishment, citing numerous failures that led to the tragic event. The report states that the architect bears a "very significant degree of responsibility for the disaster" due to errors in the design of the new cladding, which had "catastrophic consequences." The architect's lack of knowledge of building regulations, reliance on subcontractors, and fundamental design errors contributed to the disaster. The report also highlights a widespread failure among the profession, with architects increasingly detached from the realities of construction. This detachment stems from the erosion of their status, as they are now surrounded by specialist subconsultants who handle various aspects of the design process. The architect's role has become that of an ineffective middleman, with little technical knowledge of the multiple specialisms involved. The Grenfell report illustrates this, showing how technical queries from the cladding subcontractor were passed on to fire consultants without the architect's direct involvement. The ultimate responsibility for the tower's safety lay with the architect, who failed to ensure the design and construction met safety standards. The report's findings underscore the need for architects to regain control of the design process and take responsibility for the safety of their buildings.