'Mum lost everything in retirement village blaze'

Families and former residents of a retirement complex that burned down nearly six years ago have been left frustrated nobody has been held accountable.

Beechmere retirement village, in Crewe, Cheshire, housed about 150 residents and was destroyed by a fire on 8 August 2019.

A legal case over alleged breaches of fire safety regulations collapsed earlier this month, after the fire service said it was "regrettably" withdrawing its prosecution of four firms.

Residents had hoped the trial might help bring closure, but the decision to drop the case means nobody has been found responsible.

Six firms were initially pursued over the blaze, but action by Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service was discontinued against two ahead of the trial, before proceedings against the other four were dropped earlier this month – with not guilty verdicts recorded against all of the firms.

The fire service said it understood former residents would be disappointed, but that after two days of hearing evidence it became clear there was no "realistic prospect of securing convictions".

Former Beechmere resident Diane Anderson said she remembered feeling "total devastation" as the building went up in flames before her eyes.

"It was unbelievable, we were out on the car park and the way that it just went so quickly – because, of course, it was a wooden building," she said.

"At the time, none of us realised the dangers."

She said a residents' committee had asked for sprinklers to be installed in the building, but the request was refused because it wasn't then a legal requirement.

Ms Anderson said she was not surprised to hear the trial was no longer going ahead.

"I thought, 'I don't think we're in for any hope here'," she said.

Tony Whittaker, whose mum Rita lived at Beechmere but has since died, said "it doesn't feel right" that nobody had been held responsible.

"This might not have been a criminal act, but somebody's to blame and it's not my mum," he said.

"She suffered the consequence of somebody else's action, or lack thereof, and we lost everything that she owned – every last possession apart from the clothes that she stood up in.

"She lost her community and local group of friends - and nobody seems, or wants to be, able to take responsibility for that."

He said he was angry that residents had no recourse over it.

Ellie Faulkner lived nearby at the time and was one of scores of local people who came out to help on the night the complex caught fire.

"The whole community effort was inspiring to see. It's something that I won't forget easily," she said.

However, she added there seemed to be little understanding about the impact the fire had had on the residents and their families.

"I think it's terrible. These are elderly people, it was meant to be their safe haven," she said.

"It feels like a bit of a kick in the face for people."

Cheshire's Chief Fire Officer Alex Waller, said the decision to withdraw the prosecution was taken as it was unlikely the service would have been able to sufficiently demonstrate the independence of its expert fire officers.

"Despite the case being discontinued, our investigation and follow-up work led to significant improvements in fire safety measures at Your Housing's four other similarly-constructed 'mere' complexes in Cheshire," he said.

This included better compartmentation, smoke control and fire alarm systems, as well as the installation of sprinklers, he said.

"The Beechmere fire had a profound impact on the community and was life-changing for many, so it was right that we did everything possible to hold those with responsibilities to account," he said.

He added the case had potential implications for future cases, which they would share with other fire agencies.

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