The disaster at Grenfell Tower in the early hours of 14 June 2017 shook the UK and much of the world to the core: the deaths of 72 residents in a high-rise block of apartments in the capital of the fifth largest economy on the planet sent ripples across the whole of society from the highest political leadership to the two million residents in the UK currently living in high-rise tower blocks. The fire reached a magnitude not seen previously in peace time in country and resulted in the highest loss of life in a fire in a century. This book takes a wider and longer-term perspective on the Grenfell Tower fire, not confining itself solely to the events of the night and their aftermath but trying to understand how the effects of seemingly unconnected events over the last half-century came together on a summer's night in 2017. It looks at a number of earlier fires which could have served as warnings that an even larger tragedy was possible, and explores the societal and legal context surrounding the response to those fires. The book considers the social housing sector in the UK and the demands placed on government, local authorities, designers, suppliers and builders to deliver suitable housing for a growing population with ever-increasing expectations. It examines the wider context of building legislation in the UK and building regulations in particular. It looks at the interrelationship between domestic fire safety and legislative fire safety and how the changing focus-may have inadvertently created a greater risk in non-domestic, larger, complex buildings, including high-rise blocks of apartments or tower blocks. No doubt much will be written about the events at the Grenfell Tower on that fateful night, and its consequences will be felt and discussed for many years to come. This book hopes to be part of that dialogue, to help us learn valuable lessons, and with luck to help prevent another tragedy on the same scale from ever happening again. Book jacket.