Council appointment of housing boss criticised for role in Grenfell disaster 'appalling'

Laura Johnson has been given the permanent position of group director of development and property at The Barnet Group, reports Joe Ives, Local Democracy Reporter

Laura Johnson (inset, credit Grenfell Tower Inquiry) is now in a senior housing role overseeing Barnet Homes

Barnet Council’s appointment of the housing boss at Kensington and Chelsea during the Grenfell Tower fire is “appalling”, according to a Green councillor.

Laura Johnson was director of housing at the West London council in June 2017, when 72 people died in the fire at the tower block in North Kensington.

The senior officer, later criticised by a public inquiry into the deadly incident, had served in the role since 2009.

On Monday (24th), the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) broke the news that Johnson had recently been awarded a senior housing role by Barnet Council “on merit”.

Speaking to the LDRS this week, Barnet’s only Green councillor, Charli Thompson, questioned how the local authority could regard Johnson’s appointment as “anything other than appalling”.

Johnson has been given the permanent position of group director of development and property at The Barnet Group, the council-owned company which operates Barnet Homes.

Barnet Homes, an arm’s length management organisation (Almo), is responsible for more than 14,000 council-owned properties across the borough

In June 2024, Johnson was controversially appointed by council-run Barnet Homes as a senior ‘interim’ housing officer in June 2024. In her new role, the senior officer could be remunerated with a salary worth up to £157,078 per year.

Responding to Johnson’s appointment, Cllr Thompson said: “Whoever holds a safety-critical position of this kind needs to bring total public confidence in their judgement.”

The borough’s only Green councillor added: “Handing [Johnson] one of the most senior, highly paid roles delivering services for Barnet Council, with responsibility for thousands of homes, shows that no matter how serious the consequences of her previous decisions, there is no accountability.”

The Grenfell Tower Inquiry, created to examine the circumstances leading up to and surrounding the June 2017 fire, found that Johnson intervened to demand that works carried out on the tower were retendered due to their high cost.

The company which subsequently won the retendered contract on a “value for money” basis replaced metal cladding with the combustible plastic panels that fuelled the fire.

The public inquiry also heard how the then Kensington and Chelsea housing boss slowed down the installation of self-closing mechanisms on fire doors at Grenfell for “financial and practical reasons”.

Cllr Thompson said: “The Grenfell Inquiry made serious findings about decisions Laura Johnson took in her role as director of housing at Kensington and Chelsea.

“Nine years on, the bereaved families and survivors of Grenfell are still waiting for justice.”

Cllr Thompson also described the appointment as an example “of a local government system so disconnected from the public it’s meant to serve, that it has lost the ability to see itself as others do”.

Defending Johnson’s appointment, a spokesperson for Barnet Council told the LDRS: “The role of group director of development and property at The Barnet Group was publicly advertised and attracted a competitive field of candidates.

“A robust recruitment process was undertaken to assess applicants against the requirements of the role, and Laura Johnson was appointed on merit as the strongest candidate, and she has subsequently been appointed to the role on a permanent basis.

“Barnet Homes and Barnet Council will not discuss matters relating to members of staff which took place during previous employment.”

The spokesperson added: “Our thoughts remain with the survivors and family and friends of all those affected by the tragic Grenfell Tower fire. The safety and wellbeing of our residents is our top priority.

“Following an inspection in 2025, Barnet Council received a C1 grading from the Regulator of Social Housing, the highest possible rating for landlords of social housing. Laura Johnson played an intrinsic role in securing this rating, placing Barnet Homes among the top tier of social housing providers in the capital.

“The regulator found that the council and Barnet Homes have a good understanding of the condition of the council’s homes and are taking all reasonable steps to comply with statutory health and safety requirements.

“The judgement also recognised the collaborative approach taken by the council and Barnet Homes to identify issues and implement plans that continue to improve outcomes for residents.”

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