We have published a film today to mark seven years since the Grenfell Tower fire tragically took 72 lives.
The film features several of the Memorial Commission’s community representatives: Hanan Wahabi, Sandra Ruiz and Susan Al-Safadi. Between them, they represent the bereaved families, the survivors, and the local residents who live close to Grenfell Tower. It also features Mary White from Latymer Community Church and ACAVA Shoots photographers, Jason Garcia and Andreia Sofia Leitão. They speak powerfully and thoughtfully about the importance of preserving and capturing the spontaneous messages and other expressions of loss, grief and anguish, left by the affected community in the hours, days and weeks after the tragedy.
The 'prayer boards' featured in the film are currently being housed by the Bishopsgate Institute in London, where part of the film was shot alongside several locations in North Kensington.
Within the Memorial Commission’s recommendations for a future memorial, published in our November 2023 report, we recommended the development of an archive beyond the site of Grenfell Tower. We said that some elements of the archive would potentially only be accessible to bereaved family members and survivors. We also recommended that a sensitive and reflective digital archive should be curated with family members and survivors, and a long-term public exhibition. Together, these will help to tell the story of the tragedy and provide a lasting record for generations to come.
Our recommendations to develop such archives have been informed by the views we have heard from the Grenfell community, and also by the beautiful archiving work of other notable memorial teams, such as the Aberfan Archive at the National Library in Aberystwyth, the Manchester Together Archive, the September 11 Digital Archive and the 4.16 Memory Archives in remembrance of the MW Sewol ferry tragedy. You can find out more about the Memorial Commission's reflections on these archives in Susan Al-Safadi's blog post.
The film ends with a tribute to the 72 loved ones who lost their lives.
You can also watch the Memorial Commission's previous anniversary films from 2021, 2022 and 2023.
Press and media
Please see the full media statement below.
For all media enquiries, please:
- email: GTMCSecretariat@levellingup.gov.uk
- phone: 0303 444 4831