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Grenfell Tower:

August 2017 / Issue 28

What happens next?

Easy News, August 20172

On Wednesday 14th June, a fire broke out at a block of flats called Grenfell Tower. The tower is in a part of London called Kensington and Chelsea.

The fire started because of a problem with a fridge in a flat on the 4th floor of the building. The fire quickly spread across the block of flats.

People think the cladding, which covered the outside of the building, helped to spread the fire. The Government is holding an investigation. This is called a Public Inquiry.

The Government carried out fire safety tests on buildings covered in cladding and more than 259 failed. A hospital building in Oxford has closed because it is not safe.

Grenfell Tower update

© Danny Lawson/PA Wire/PA Images


The fire at Grenfell Tower caused at least 80 deaths and over 70 people have been injured. Everyone who lived in the tower lost their homes and needs new places to live.

It is Kensington and Chelsea council’s job to find new homes for people who lost their homes in the fire. The Government have also given £700,000 to the survivors.

Lots of people are still waiting for new homes. They do not want the homes that the council has offered them, because they are not right for them.

People are very angry with the Government and the council, because they think they have not done enough to look after the victims of the fire. There was a big protest in London on 21st June called the ‘Day of Rage’.© Garry Knight/Flickr


Baby Charlie Gard was born on 4th August 2016 with a rare illness which affects his muscles and body organs.

He had been treated at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH), a children’s hospital in London.

Doctors at GOSH say Charlie had suffered brain damage and he could not breathe on his own. GOSH said that nothing could be done to make Charlie better and that it was kinder to him to turn off the life support machine which was keeping him alive.

Charlie’s parents wanted to take him to the United States of America (USA) to try a new ‘experimental treatment’ which they believed could help him. They raised a lot of money in a campaign to take him to the USA.

Baby Charlie Gard court case

Great Ormond Street

© Masuti/istock

© PA Images


Charlie’s parents turned to 3 different courts to try to continue his medical treatment, but they all agreed with GOSH not to continue.

President of the USA, Donald Trump, and the Pope, sent messages of support to Charlie’s parents and offered to help.

On Monday 24th July, Charlie’s parents decided to stop fighting to save Charlie’s life, after an American doctor said it was too late for him to have experimental treatment.

The courts agreed Charlie should be moved to a hospice. This is a place which helps people and their families when someone is going to die. Sadly Charlie Gard died on Friday 28th July a few days before his 1st birthday.

© Catholic Church England/Flickr


Political update

The Queen has given a speech to let people know what the Government plan to do next for the United Kingdom (UK). This is called The Queen’s Speech.

The Queen’s Speech is written by the Government. There was not a lot of detail about what the Government planned to do. It was mostly about Brexit.

After the Queen’s Speech, the Prime Minister finished talks with the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP). They agreed a deal to make a minority government with the Conservative Party. This means together they have just enough MPs to go ahead with their plans.

The DUP is a political party for the people of Northern Ireland which is part of the UK.

© DUP Photos/Flickr


The Conservatives gave the DUP £1.5 billion so that they could work together to lead the UK Government.

The DUP wants to use the money to help with health care, schools and road travel in Northern Ireland.

Political parties in Scotland and Wales are not happy with the DUP deal because they also want money from the Government.

The DUP will now start to help the Conservative Party do things, by voting for what they want in the House of Commons. This is where MPs make important decisions that affect the whole country.

© UK Parliament/Flickr


Brexit talks begin

The Prime Minister, Theresa May, works with a team of people known as the Cabinet. She has changed around some of the people in her Cabinet. This is called a reshuffle.

The Cabinet reshuffle has been done to make sure the UK gets a good deal when it leaves the European Union (EU). The process of the UK leaving the EU is called Brexit.

After triggering Brexit the government published a repeal bill. The repeal bill will turn European law into UK law. This means the UK will have the same laws after it leaves the EU, but the UK will be able to control the laws itself.

The Scottish and Welsh governments want to stop the repeal bill. They are worried that Scotland and Wales will have less control over the laws, because they will have to work with the UK government to make changes.© Plaid Cymru - the Party of Wales


On Friday 23rd June 2017, Theresa May met over dinner with the other EU leaders at the EU Summit. She offered a deal to people from the EU who live in the UK.

The deal would give people from the EU who have lived in the UK for 5 years the same rights as British citizens.

German Prime Minister, Angela Merkel, said this was a good 1st offer but things still need to be talked about.

There will be lots more talks between the UK and the EU about what Brexit will mean. The UK Government has said it must all be sorted out by the year 2022.

© JouWatch/Flickr


On 13th July 2017, 2 people on mopeds, a type of motorbike, drove around north London and attacked 5 people with acid.

In the attacks, the victims had acid thrown and sprayed in their faces. The acid burnt their skin and left them with life-long injuries.

One victim was helped by a shop keeper. He poured water onto the victim to wash off the acid.

2 boys aged 15 and 16 years old have been arrested.

Acid attacks


In November 2016 a delivery driver was attacked with acid by a group of young people.

The number of acid attacks in England have doubled since 2012. Many of the people carrying out the attacks were under 18 years old.

At the moment the acids are easy to buy as household cleaning products. Some people want the law to change to make it harder to buy acid.

People want the punishment for acid attacks to change so that the attackers get longer prison sentences.


The relationship between the United States of America (USA) and North Korea, has recently got much worse.

This is partly because Otto Warmbier, a student from the USA, died on 19th June 2017 after being imprisoned in North Korea for over 15 months.

Otto was sentenced to 15 years’ hard labour because he stole a poster from a hotel room in January 2016. This means he had to do very hard work in prison as punishment. He became very ill in prison and was sent back to the USA on 13th June 2017.

Otto could not speak or see when he got back home. Otto’s father, Fred Warmbier, is very upset and angry that his son did not get the medical treatment he needed in North Korea.

USA and North Korea news

© USA TODAY Network/SIPA USA/PA Images


The Government of the USA is also very angry. President Donald Trump said that North Korea is a ‘brutal regime’.

The relationship between the 2 countries has become worse because North Korea keep testing missiles that experts believe could reach the USA. A missile could be used to carry a nuclear weapon which can cause a lot of deaths.

This has made many other countries angry because the United Nations (UN) has banned testing missiles like this. The United Nations is an organisation which tries to keep peace between countries.

USA President, Donald Trump, has warned North Korea that if they threaten the USA with nuclear weapons, the USA will fight back. The world is waiting to see what will happen next.

© prosiaczeq/Flickr

© Michelangelus/istock

© The clear communication people/Flickr


Quick news

New Party leader

Sir Vince Cable MP has been elected as the leader for the Liberal Democrats Party. He had been acting as the Deputy Leader.

He does not think that Britain should leave the EU and wants another referendum.

Egypt holiday attack

2 German women were stabbed to death by a man at a beach in Egypt while they were on holiday.

The man also hurt 4 other people. The Egyptian police are still trying to find out why he did it.

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© Liberal Democrats/Flickr


Quick news

Female Doctor Who

Doctor Who is a popular British TV programme. Since it started in 1963, there have been 12 different male actors who have played the main character Doctor Who.

Now for the 1st time the Doctor Who will be played by a female actor. The woman who has been given the part is an actress called Jodie Whittaker.

Germany gets pandas

2 Giant Pandas have been moved from China to Berlin Zoo, Germany.

China hopes that the gift will help improve relations with Germany.

© Flickr / Smithsonian’s National Zoo

© Victoria Jones/PA Wire/PA Image

© ColobusYeti/istock


Wimbledon Tennis 2017

Johanna Konta was the 1st British woman to get to the semi-finals of the Wimbledon tennis tournament for 39 years. The winner was Garbiñe Muguruza from Spain.

Roger Federer won the men’s singles title for the 8th time. This is a world record.

British players won the men’s wheelchair doubles, the women’s wheelchair doubles and the mixed doubles.

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Translated into Easy Read by UR Consultants and produced by United Response. Registered charity no. 365249, a company by guarantee, registered in England no. 1133776. With thanks to Kaliya Franklin and Photosymbols. Care has been taken to present this information factually. Content does not necessarily reflect the views of United Response

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Cover photo: David Mirzoeff/PA Wire/PA Images

© Anthony Devlin/PA Archive/PA Images

© Flickr / xhan104

© Flickr / carine06

grenfell tower - through the maze · garbiñe muguruza from spain. roger federer won the men’s...

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