The Metropolitan Police has submitted its final investigation file into the Grenfell Tower fire to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), seeking charges against 20 companies and 54 individuals. The file includes evidence related to corporate manslaughter, gross negligence manslaughter, health and safety offences, fraud and fraud-related offences, and misconduct in public office. The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC) and the Department of Housing have also been referred to the CPS for investigation. The CPS will make charging decisions before the 10th anniversary of the disaster, which is on 14 June 2027.

The public inquiry report released in 2024 found the fire was avoidable and highlighted a chain of failures across government and the private sector. The Met's investigation, Operation Northleigh, ran in parallel with the public inquiry but waited for its findings before completing its work. Some bereaved families and survivors have criticized the delay, but it allowed police to consider the inquiry's technical conclusions. Grenfell United, a bereaved families and survivors group, said 'no family should have to fight this hard, for this long, for justice.'

Housing Secretary Angela Rayner confirmed that the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government had been under investigation since 2023. She acknowledged the government's failure to keep residents safe and expressed regret for the lives lost. The Met has investigated the actions of 15,000 people across 700 organisations or companies and taken 14,700 statements. The investigation has also examined 45,000 documents, images and exhibits. The files sent to the CPS include examples of this evidence, as well as reports containing more than two million words.

Deputy assistant commissioner Kevin Southworth said a team of 220 investigators had worked hard on the case but appreciated 'it has taken nine years to get to this point.' He described the investigation as 'one of the most complex investigations ever undertaken by any UK law enforcement agency.' The CPS will decide whether there is a realistic prospect of conviction and whether bringing charges is in the public interest. In anticipation of possible criminal proceedings, the Met is building a £2m replica of a section of the tower to help future jurors understand its layout.

Frank Ferguson, head of the CPS special crime and counter-terrorism division, said it marked 'an important step.' He added that charging decisions will be made independently by CPS prosecutors following a thorough and careful review of all the evidence gathered by the Metropolitan Police Service. Grenfell United reiterated its demand for justice, stating 'we want those responsible to face justice. If people are found guilty of crimes that cost our loved ones their lives, we want to see them behind bars.'

The Met has also not disclosed the location of the warehouse where evidence from the fire is stored. The charred remains of Grenfell Tower were a crime scene for 14 months, during which forensic teams scoured the building for evidence of why the fire spread so quickly. Detectives commissioned their own laboratory tests and examined thousands of pieces of debris from the fire, including the fridge which malfunctioned in a fourth-floor flat, from where the flames spread rapidly to the rest of the building.

The evidence has been kept in a warehouse at a secret location, which the BBC visited last year. The Met has not disclosed the location of the warehouse where evidence from the fire is stored. The files sent to the CPS include examples of this evidence, as well as reports containing more than two million words. The Met has not disclosed the location of the warehouse where evidence from the fire is stored. The files sent to the CPS include examples of this evidence, as well as reports containing more than two million words.