HOSPITAL FIRE SAFETY: Southampton General Hospital Trust Board and Council of Governors Answer Andrew Pope's Questions on Sprinklers

Andrew Pope After Council of Governors Meeting
Photo: Southampton Independents (AP)

After the Hospital's Trust Board refused to let him speak (yes, really) at their meeting, Andrew attended the Hospital's Council of Governors meeting. He still was not allowed to speak (yes, really) at the meeting. 

At the meeting, Andrew's questions that he had to send in and put prior to the meeting in writing, were answered by the Trust Board and Council of Governors. These are two separate committees. The latter are elected to represent patients and staff.

None of the Governors spoke in support of Andrew's request for sprinklers. 

None of the Governors asked questions of the members of the Trust Board present to hold them to account on fire safety.

Only the official response was read out as below, seemingly on behalf of the governors too who are supposed to hold the Hospital's Trust Board to account.

What do you think of all of this?

Do you agree with their answers? 

Get in touch to tell us what you think. And if you want to get involved in the campaign, or our campaigning more widely, get in touch.

 

Andrew Pope's Question 1

    Sprinklers save lives and property. In just a few weeks, over a hundred people - hospital staff, patients, and the public - have signed my petition for sprinklers at the SGH, and to make it mandatory in law. I received no direct response to my emailed questions to the Chief Executive and Chief Medical Officer about the lack of sprinklers in the part of the hospital where the devastating and highly disruptive Major Incident fire occurred that destroyed the endoscopy unit and which took firefighters hours to control and resulted in hundreds of patients being moved and huge disruption to the entire Region of the NHS. I asked Emily Hudson and Joe Campbell of BBC South to find out if there were sprinklers, and there were not. Instead, what amounted to excuses were made in writing to me by Corporate Affairs. I tried to ask at the recent Trust Board but the Chair prevented me from speaking - a member of the public at a public meeting of a public service, funded by public money. Will the Council of Governors ensure that I get a written answer from the Trust Board now please, instead of Corporate Affairs and public relations people?

Trust Board and Council of Governors Response

You have previously sent a number of questions to the Trust on this matter. The response you refer to in your question was provided from the Corporate Affairs email address, which is managed by the Company Secretary's office on behalf of the Trust Board. This response was provided on 13 February 2026.

As was explained by the Chair at the Board meeting held on 10 March 2026, the 'open' session of the Board meeting is a meeting 'in public' rather than a 'public meeting'. As such, members of the public attend as observers, not as participants in the meeting.

Andrew Pope's Question 2

 

Will the Council of Governors please commit now to ensure that sprinklers are installed in all buildings at the Southampton General Hospital, and give a deadline by which this will be done? This will protect patients, staff, firefighters, property and local residents. It will also save money and disruption, as confirmed to me directly by Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service when I spoke with them after the recent incident at Shirley Towers,

Trust Board and Council of Governors Response

"The installation of sprinkler systems at Southampton General Hospital would not be viable. There are a number of reasons for this approach:

    Installation of sprinkler systems would go against technical guidance. Given the height of the hospital, guidance does not recommend the installation of sprinkler systems. In part this is because the fire service is able to tackle any fires below 32 metres.
    The hospital has a working passive alarm system. This proved highly effective during the fire on 1 February 2026, alerting the Trust and supporting the safe evacuation of 502 patients.
    Sprinkler systems cause extensive damage - whether through false activation or when in response to a fire. In the management of the fire on 1 February, there was extensive water damage, which has caused the Trust to have to take the ward below the site of the fire out of action for over six months to repair the water damage. Sprinkler systems do not solely address the seat of the fire and therefore the resultant water damage would likely have been more significant and widespread, which would have resulted in more beds and facilities being taken out of action.
    The cost of retrofitting a sprinkler system across the Trust's estate would be tens of millions. This is not an effective use of public funds.

 

With regard to the minutes from the Council of Governors’ meeting held on 22 April 2026, these will be included in the papers for the next Council of Governors’ meeting approximately five days before the meeting which is scheduled for Wednesday, 8 July."

Refused permission to speak at Hospital Trust Board about Major Incident Fire

 

Andrew Pope at Southampton General Hospital
Photo: Southampton Independents

Andrew Pope reports from University Hospitals Southampton (UHS) site Southampton General Hospital (SGH). He says: 

In 2010, my Masters dissertation was titled: "How Democratic Are NHS Foundation Trusts?". On what happened today, the answer was: "Not very!".

I tried to speak at the Trust Board meeting today.

It had been very difficult to get information about attending the meeting and speaking at it.

I walked from Shirley to the Hospital, and eventually managed to find the room. I had to ask several staff, some of whom sent me to the wrong floor.

When I got there, I asked the Chair to speak at the meeting about the lack of sprinklers. She refused to allow me to speak!

That's right, public money funds these people, but they don't want to listen to the public or answer questions about their failings to protect staff, patients, the public and firefighters.

I sat outside the meeting room, and then someone from PR (a.k.a. BS) turned up. She claimed that "everybody accepts" that the public cannot speak at these meetings. She also was not keen on being quoted saying this.

Incredible!

Please sign and share this petition.

We will make these people listen.

P.S. The photo was taken by two ladies that I spoke to outside the Hospital afterwards. They were very shocked with what I told them happened.

EXCLUSIVE: Will the SGH Get A New Endoscopy Unit? Yes... but where?

Southampton General Hospital
Photo: Southampton Independents

In the recent Major Incident fire at Southampton General Hospital, the Endoscopy Unit was completely destroyed. 

In an apology on the Hospital's Gastroenterology website, they have said this happend "unfortunately".

Huge Impact of Fire 

As reported widely, hundreds of patients had to be evacuated and over one hundred firefighters struggled to get the incident under control for several hours. 

Hospital staff have verified to Southampton Independents that vulnerable patients have suffered their health as a result of the incident. It is worth noting from huge bodies of clinical evidence, that it is a clinical fact that moving vulnerable people when ill, can negatively affect their health.

Southampton Independents is verifying with patients what impacts this might be, for example from smoke inhalation, and verifying with staff. 

The Incident has affected the entire Region of the NHS. It has also affected the City Council, according to the Local Democracy Reporter Jason Lewis. 

No Sprinklers and No Adequate Fire Safety Measures and No Major Incident Practice 

In the opinion of fire safety campaigner Andrew Pope, he says: 

"The fire could have been much less worse if they had had sprinklers, and possibly avoided completely if they had adequate fire safety measures in place. But they didn't. Today, I have discovered that they had not practiced for a Major Incident for some time. This is in the agenda and minutes of today's Trust Board. And it was identified at the November Trust Board to be "looked at". This is the language of dither and delay, not of safety critical action."

Will the SGH get a new endoscopy unit?

Yes, Southampton Independents can exclusively reveal. Andrew Pope has learned from sources close to the Hospital that a new endoscopy unit is being created. It is being installed using mobile units at the Hospital and at Adanac Park.

Andrew says:

Andrew Pope Pointing Out Fire Safety Breaches in Shirley Towers
Photo: Southampton Independents

"You will never guess where this endoscopy unit is being built! 

Where else have I been investigating the Park and Ride? At Adanac Park! 

A source told me, and I have verified onsite with staff and in documentary evidence, that a new endoscopy unit is being built on the land that I have suggested should be used for expanding the Park and Ride.

This land is right next to the existing Park and Ride facilities.

But because of the lack of fire safety in the destroyed unit, to add to the huge regional disruption caused by the fire, more public money is being spent on the new endoscopy unit!

If the SGH CEO and Trust Board had installed sprinklers, the impact would be nowhere near as bad as it has been.

I am continuing my campaign to get sprinklers installed, and to make it mandatory for hospitals by law in England."

 

Southampton Independents has given the right of reply to University Hospitals Southampton NHS Foundation Trust, which runs the SGH. They have still not made a statement, but have been asked again.

UPDATE: In a previous version of this article, the link to the apology was not implemented correctly. It has now been corrected. 

 

VICTORY: Andrew Pope's Pressure Forces Council To Fix Sprinklers At Shirley Towers

 

Andrew Pope Finding Fire Safety Breaches
Photo: Southampton Independents

Andrew Pope has today confirmed with residents, and has obtained photographic evidence, that the sprinklers in the bin area have been refitted.

This is a victory for Andrew's campaign to expose the Labour-run Council's failure to fix the sprinklers that have been out of action since December.

After Sunday's incident in the Towers, Andrew informed the Fire Service about the sprinklers on the ground floor being out of action. The Incident Commanders confirmed that the Council had not told them prior to attending the incident.

Andrew says:

Andrew Pope
Photo: Southampton Independents

 

"I am determined to protect Shirley Towers residents from the Labour-run Council's negligence. And I am determined to get residents' voices heard. 

It is abysmal that Labour Cabinet Member for Housing Councillor Andy Frampton did not want to respond to my questions on behalf of residents.

Never forget that his predecessor in that role Warwick Payne lied to me in 2017, after the Redbridge Towers fire, that residents did not want sprinklers, and that the Tory Leader of Kensington said the same about residents of Grenfell. Labour or Tory, same old story.

Now residents know that Labour does not care about the fire safety of residents, nor the safety of firefighters attending Shirley Towers. It is not just negligence. It is wilful ignorance.

And Labour need to be voted out from the Council.

I very much hope Shirley residents will vote for me in the by-election and for Independent Network candidates in May."

 

The Shirley by-election is on Thursday 26th February and the Council elections are in May 2026.

 

Sprinkler in Shirley Towers
Photo: Andrew Pope

Sprinklers Refitted in Bin Area 
Photo: Andrew Pope

Other side of Bin Area with Sprinklers
Photo: Andrew Pope

Shocking Attitude of Southampton Labour Housing Bosses Towards Council Tenants

 

Labour Cabinet Member for Housing Cllr Andy Frampton
Photo: Southampton City Council

Southampton Independents stands up for residents. We stand up for Council tenants and leaseholders.

Since 2017, we have consistently held the Labour-run Council to account, and also for the year that the Tories had control of the Council. Labour or Tory, same old story, residents said to us. Because Labour is no better than the Tories. 

Co-Founder of Southampton Independents Andrew Pope continues to hold the Council to account. When he got hold of a Council Internal Audit report, he asked questions of the Council's Labour Housing boss Councillor Andy Frampton. As reported previously, Failing Frampton did not reply.

So Andrew asked again, and also asked about fire safety concerns of residents of Shirley Towers and Milner Court, which is two council blocks for older people next door.

Here is the full reply from Frampton, when offered to reply for a SECOND time:

"No, I didn't miss your email. I don't reply to other political groups who will only use answers and explanations as a way to twist the truth and information to their own narrative. Please direct any resident who has any concerns about fire safety or problems with damp & mould to the appropriate department who will help." 

Andrew Pope says:

Andrew Pope on BBC TV
Photo: Southampton Independents

 

"Residents, tenants and leaseholders have had to come to me to help them, because the Council itself has not addressed their concerns and worries over heating, fire safety, damp and mould and more. They feel ignored, so I am trying to help them.

Councillor Frampton was due to meet with tenants representatives meeting on Monday. I attended it at Shirley Towers. He was not there. Why? So I have raised their concerns directly with officers, who were helpful.

Tenants and officers of the Council deserve better than Southampton Labour. I will continue to stand up for them.  

I have written to local media to ask them to help holding Councillor Frampton and the Labour-run Council to account. That is how democracy in Southampton is supposed to operate. 

The big political parties let everyone down. They do not deserve any power in our City."

   

FIRE SAFETY CAMPAIGN: Since 2017, We Have Protected Southampton's Residents

 

Daily Echo Front Page After Redbridge Towers Fire
Photo: Southampton Independents

Southampton Independents listens to residents and acts with residents, because we are residents too.

Since the Redbridge Towers fire in 2017, we have protected residents with our fire safety campaign.

At this link is a video of Councillor Andrew Pope, who was our Redbridge ward councillor. He appeared on BBC Radio 5 Live, showing fire safety breaches in Council tower blocks in International Way in Weston, Southampton.

 

This was in 2018, six months after the Grenfell disaster in London. A full transcript of the video is below:

Andrew Pope
Southampton Independents Councillor
on Southampton City Council

Councillor Andrew Pope on BBC
Photo: Southampton Independents

"We're now at Rotterdam Towers and immediately on coming here we've seen some fire safety issues with the fire doors at the entrance to the building. 

This is a fire door here and the next door we come across is another fire door, this just stays three or four inches open.

And, the next one we come to is another fire door and that's also three or four inches open, as well. Not functioning as a fire door.

And we've been to the top floor and we've seen fire doors there and on other floors that aren't closing properly. We've even seen a fire door where the handle is half hanging off. 

So it's quite disgraceful what we've seen.

We haven't had to look very hard, and we've already seen huge numbers of failures of fire safety within Rotterdam Towers."

Dr Stephen Battersby
Environmental Health Expert:

"It's absolutely amazing to think that after Grenfell Tower, six months after Grenfell Tower, that these conditions still exist and nobody has clearly looked at fire risks in this building and remedied the problems that increase the fire risk.

It means that their safety is at risk.

Any responsible landlord would certainly have ensured that fire doors fit properly, and work as fire doors.

Those fire doors don't fulfill their basic function.

And one doesn't have to be an expert in either fire safety or the housing health and safety rating system, to see that these are problems that ought to be, ought to have been remedied immediately."

Southampton City Council "say they are undertaking an extensive programme of improvements to all their tower blocks... including the installation of sprinklers and the inspection of fire doors."

INVESTIGATION: Andrew Pope Discovers Fire Safety Breaches at Shirley Towers Scene of 2010 Fatal Fire

 

Andrew Pope at a Very Wet Shirley Towers
Photo: Southampton Independents

UPDATE (22/2/26): There was a fire at Shirley Towers today. Andrew Pope was canvassing for the Shirley by-election nearby and saw the fire appliances and firefighters on site. He spoke with the first and second Incident Commanders of the fire service, and asked whether they knew that the ground floor sprinklers had been out of action since the fire in the bin area in December. They both said that they were not aware before attending, and thanked Andrew for the information. This information was from Andrew listening and acting for residents, and speaking to Council housing officers. Labour councillor for housing Andy Frampton has once again been found wanting - let's not forget he refused to answer Andrew's questions for residents about fire safety and damp and mould.

UPDATE (20/2/26): A fire "drill" appears to have been carried out at Shirley Towers. Andrew Pope says:

"I will keep up the pressure on the Council to protect residents and leaseholders. I should not have to use the media to pressure the Council, but I have had to again.

I acted to protect people in 2017 with my campaign for sprinklers in all Council tower blocks and I continue to act to protect.

It is terrible that Labour's Councillor Andy Frampton refused to act when I asked him to. Thankfully, there are some good officers of the Council who care and the Fire Service care too. Labour have to go."

--- 

Following up on his previous campaigning on fire safety in Council tower blocks, Andrew Pope has been investigating the concerns of Shirley Towers residents.

What he has found is very disturbing, considering that he campaigned for sprinklers to be installed in all twenty Council tower blocks. 

Two firefighters - Alan Bannon and James Shears - died in a fatal fire at Shirley Towers in 2010. A memorial plaque was unveiled in 2023. 

Andrew says: 

"The Labour Councillor and Cabinet Member for Housing Andy Frampton is trying to avoid accountability for ongoing fire safety breaches. It is unacceptable that he refused to answer residents' concerns when I contacted him directly.

As in 2018, when I brought BBC Radio 5 Live to Southampton, fire doors are compromised and not fixed in a timely manner. When I reported it to officers, they asked if it had been reported.

It is the responsibility of the Council to regularly inspect and fix.

And now, I have learned from multiple residents that some sprinklers are not working and have not been since December, after a fire in the bin area.

I have not seen any media report of that fire, so I am bringing it to the media's attention.

Residents are worried, so I am trying to get action and answers.

It has been difficult to even reach the right people to get action taken or get reassurance.

I will not stand by and let residents be put at risk again."

 

Compromised fire door in Shirley Towers
Photo: Southampton Independents

Andrew's campaign for sprinklers in all Council tower blocks began before the Grenfell disaster in 2017, and after the Redbridge Towers fire when he was Independent Redbridge ward councillor.

As documented on the Southampton Independents website, his campaign encountered stiff resistance from Councillor Warwick Payne of the Labour-run Council who said that residents did not want sprinklers and

here on Youtube you can hear Payne claim that he did not have the money to do what Andrew was asking him to do for residents.

 

Our campaign led by Andrew Pope forced the Council to do it for all 20 Council tower blocks. Left to the Tories or other big political parties, it would not have happened. 

 

HOSPITAL MAJOR INCIDENT FIRE: SGH Chief Executive Officer and Chief Medical Officer Fail To Answer Urgent Questions on Fire Safety

 

Paul Grundy Chief Medical Officer UHS NHS Foundation Trust
Photo: UHS

UPDATE: A response from Corporate Affairs has now been received, but it is not very helpful and no response to each individual and direct question has been received from either the CEO or CMO, nor Corporate Affairs. 

Please sign Andrew Pope's petition for sprinklers here. 

Andrew Pope says:

"When I contact people directly that I have been in touch with before, including David French about Park and Ride, I expect a direct response from them directly.

And not a feeble response from PR people trying to gaslight patients, staff, local residents and firefighters. I will be going back and asking for a direct response - and not for the first time.

Despite the non-response, it seems that Mr Grundy is now away. So others have been asked to respond in his stead.

I have sympathy that they have been dealing with a Major Incident, but this is somewhat self-inflicted when insufficient fire safety was in place before the Major Incident. The cost of the Major Incident could have been much reduced with better fire safety in place.

I heard similar excuses that these PR people at the Hospital have given now, as compared with the Labour-run Southampton City Council 8 years ago when I put them under pressure after the Redbridge Towers fire. And the Tory Leader of Kensington Council at Grenfell.

The PR response totally justifies the petition that I have created, because the Hospital seem to think it is acceptable to not do it because they are not required to by law or regulation.

Local people think otherwise - the petition has received good response in its first week, both online and offline. Please sign it, if you have not already, and share it."

--- 

Co-Founder of Southampton Independents Andrew Pope has been asking questions of the senior executives of the Trust Board at the Southampton General Hospital (SGH), also known as University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust. Andrew's follow-up letter to the CEO David French and Chief Medical Officer Paul Grundy, is below:

Dear David and Paul,

Please answer urgently the questions that were sent to you before, and followed up on 2nd February. I have repeated them below.

I asked Joe Campbell, via Emily Hudson of the BBC, to ask about sprinklers and the response on the BBC South Today Monday before last seemed to be that patients might get wet, equipment might get wet and the building(s) are old. 

 

Where did those rather flippant and unhelpful answers come from please? PR people or from the Trust Board?

1. Were there sprinklers where the fire broke out? The BBC broadcast to say there were not. Please provide more information.

2. If there were sprinklers, did they contain the fire? No, see 1.

3. If there were sprinklers, why didn't they put the fire out? No, see 1 and 2.

4. Will the hospital review fire safety in this building and across the hospital estate, and install sprinklers? If so, where, by when?

5. If there were electrical, medical or other reasons why sprinklers were not appropriate for that location, please provide those.

I have asked to speak at the next Trust Board, but have not received any response. And the same at the Council of Governors."

 

On sending the follow-up letter, an auto-reply email suggested that Mr Grundy is on significant leave. To be clear, the CEO was also asked and no reply was received.

 

The letter also mentions Andrew Pope's credentials on the topic, and record in Southampton on campaigning on fire safety. 

 

Andrew Pope chaired the Southampton City Council Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee when he led an inquiry into hospital transport, the report of which mentioned a Park and Ride as well as other recommendations that Andrew followed up on. He also wrote his Masters degree thesis on "How Democratic Are NHS Foundation Trusts?" where he interviewed 60 people on their views on the topic. 

 

Andrew also led the campaign for sprinklers to be installed in all Southampton City Council tower blocks, months before the Grenfell Tower disaster in London and after the fatal Shirley Towers fire in 2010 and the near-miss Redbridge Towers fire in 2017, where thankfully nobody died. As documented elsewhere on this website, both Southampton Labour and Kensington and Chelsea Conservatives claimed that residents did not want sprinklers. Labour or Tory, same old story, residents said.

 

In 2018, six months after Grenfell, Andrew brought BBC Radio 5 Live's investigative journalist Adrian Goldberg to Southampton, showing Adrian major fire safety failures in Council tower blocks. These failings were described as "disgraceful" by fire safety expert Dr Stephen Battersby in the radio programme. A short video is here on the BBC website. 

 

As reported by the BBC in 2017, after the Grenfell disaster, "Sprinklers would have saved tower".

"A fire safety expert previously contracted to work on Grenfell Tower has said sprinklers would have stopped the fatal fire from spreading.

Paul Atkins said sprinklers give people a "99% chance of survival" and would have stopped flames taking hold."

Sprinklers are not mandatory in all hospitals and care homes in England. So as with his successful campaigns in and around Southampton, Andrew Pope has started a petition. You can sign it here.

 

 

Redbridge Towers Fire in 2017
Photo: Southampton Independents

Andrew Pope quoted in Daily Echo Redbridge Towers 2017
Photo: Southampton Independents

Front page Daily Echo after Redbridge Towers Fire 2017
Photo: Southampton Independents

 

 

Our Emblem

Andrew Pope when Southampton Independents Councillor for Redbridge
Photo: Southampton Independents

 

 

Sign Andrew Pope's Petition For Sprinklers at the SGH and Make Them Mandatory In All Hospitals and Care Homes in England

 

Southampton General Hospital
Photo: Southampton Independents

You can go straight to the petition at the link here.

You can find out more about the petition here. 

People died at Grenfell Tower because there were no sprinklers. Kensington Council didn't bother. Firefighters died at Shirley Towers in 2010. Sprinklers would have saved lives and property, because they are proven. Don't let it happen again. Please sign the petition. 

Or you can read more about Andrew Pope's leadership on fire safety over nearly ten years in Southampton on this website by using the site search facility and searching for 'fire safety', or clicking the links below:

• here 
•   here 
•     and here. 

And if you are in the Shirley ward, please Vote Andrew Pope Independent Network. 

 

Independent Network Emblem

Andrew Pope Letter Daily Echo on By-Election
Photo: Southampton Independents

 

Fourteen Years of Failure - Southampton Labour Housing Councillor Failing Frampton Refuses To Fix Council Tenants' Concerns

 

Failing Southampton Labour Housing Boss Andy Frampton
Photo: Southampton City Council

Councillor Andy Frampton admits fourteeen years of failure (minus one year of Tory failure*) by Labour on Southampton City Council housing. Last month, launching yet another "strategy" document after those before that failed Council tenants, he said:

'Sadly, too many in our city still fall short of the standard residents rightly expect.' 

On Sunday 1st February 2026, the day of the fire at the Southampton General Hospital (University Hospitals Southampton), Shirley campaigner Andrew Pope sent concerns of Shirley Towers residents over fire safety to the Labour Cabinet Member for Housing at the Council, Councillor Andy Frampton.

Tenants were unhappy that housing officers had failed to address their concerns over many issues:

• fire safety, including in Shirley Towers where firefighters died in 2010
• damp and mould across Southampton Council flats and houses
• energy equipment installed by the Council being faulty
• community rooms in council blocks being closed and 
• bed bugs.

So they approached Andrew Pope, who took up their concerns. 

Cllr Frampton flatly refused to answer their concerns, and we have his refusal in writing. It is unacceptable.

Shirley Towers residents told us, when we told them about Frampton's refusal, that he deserves to lose his Council seat. According to the Council website, his seat is up for election in May 2026. If you would like to stand against him, please get in touch with us. 

Andrew Pope says:

Daily Echo in 2017 Andrew Pope Quoted on Fire Safety at Redbridge Towers
Photo: Southampton Independents

 

"I had already tried to get Andy Frampton to address the serious damp and mould problems, but he did not respond.  

Tenants had already tried to get these problems addressed by Council officers, who supposedly answer to the failing Frampton. He should help but he refused.

It is no wonder that tenants find that too many of their problems are either ignored or not addressed properly by Labour-run Southampton City Council.

When even the housing boss fails to address the concerns, Council officers may think they can follow his lead of inaction, incompetence and failure.

Frampton himself has admitted in public his failings and the failings of the Labour-run Council. 

At a meeting in January 2026, after FOURTEEN years of failure after Labour took control of the Council, Frampton said:

'Sadly, too many in our city still fall short of the standard residents rightly expect.'

Labour has been in power in the Council since 2012. 

I resigned from Labour in 2015 and became an Independent councillor because I did not want to be part of a Labour Party that failed Redbridge, Maybush and Millbrook constituents. Labour has run them down and run Southampton down.

Being an independent means I work with residents without any political party between me and those I represent.

That's why I am standing to be a Councillor again. 

If elected, I will have some powers to compel officers to address tenants' concerns. 

And some of those officers may remember that I am not like Andy Frampton - I make sure officers do their jobs and serve tenants. I will be meeting with officers soon to keep up the pressure."

* The Conservatives took control of the Council for just one year between 2012-2026. Labour or Tory, same old story - it's still fourteen years of failure since 2012. And when the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats were in UK Government, they slashed Council funding and made it more difficult for councils to raise their own funding. Southampton Labour's former Council Leader Satvir Kaur MP said that she did not understand Council finances, and brought the Council to its knees. Labour, Lib Dem or Tory, same old story.

 

Andrew Douglas Pope on BBC South Today

 

Andrew Douglas Pope

HOSPITAL FIRE: BBC CONFIRMS NO SPRINKLERS IN MAJOR INCIDENT FIRE IN WEST WING

West Wing Southampton General Hospital
Photo: Southampton Independents

 

Redbridge Towers Fire in 2017 with no sprinklers

"Were there sprinklers at yesterday's major incident fire at Southampton General Hospital? I am asking the hospital Chief Executive and Chief Medical Officers this and other questions. I have also contacted the Fire Protection Association, who are experts on sprinklers."

says prominent fire safety campaigner Andrew Pope, who is standing as the Independent Network candidate in the 26th February 2026 Shirley by-election.

Sign Andrew Pope's petition here to demand that sprinklers are installed, and made mandatory for all hospitals and care homes.

Joe Campbell on BBC South Today 2nd February 2026 confirmed that sprinklers were NOT installed. It appears that the hospital's attempt at explaining why, is that the West Wing is "old" and that sprinklers might get expensive equipment wet and patients wet. We are asking more questions, and asking the Daily Echo and BBC to ask more for patients and local residents.

The ITV News report is here. 

What do you think of the hospital's "explanation" of no sprinklers? 

Andrew says:  

"I noticed in the BBC's original report that sprinklers were not mentioned. So I raised sprinklers with the BBC's Emily Hudson and true to her word, she raised this with the reporter Joe Campbell. I will be thanking Emily and Joe for getting an answer. More answers are needed now though, once the immediate chaos caused by the fire has receded."

Why have Southampton Independents campaigned for sprinklers, ever since the first year we started in 2017?

Because sprinklers save lives. Sprinklers save property. They are, in the words of Nick Ross CBE in the video by the British Automatic Fire Sprinkler Association (BAFSA), "phenomenally successful". 

If you have any doubts about sprinklers, please watch the BAFSA video above. 

Sprinkler Saves reports: "Southampton City Council demonstrated its commitment to fire safety by agreeing, in June 2017, to fund the retrofitting of residential sprinklers within its twenty high-rise buildings as part of a phased programme, in response to the Grenfell Tower fire."  

We began our campaign earlier in 2017 after the Redbridge Towers fire, the Labour-run Council's Cabinet Member for Housing Warwick Payne said that residents did not want sprinklers and that the Council did not have the money. We made them commit to doing it and find the money. 

Please see a selection of reports of the below incidents where our campaign has saved lives and property, and the City Council and taxpayers money, and protected firefighters from tackling a worse incident, in Southampton:

• 13th August 2025, Irving Road, Southampton: HFRS incident reports: "high-rise sprinkler system in Southampton played a key role in containing a kitchen fire, protecting residents, and enabling firefighters to bring the incident under control". 
• 23rd March 2025, Redbridge Towers, Southampton: HFRS incident reports: "It is further reassuring to know that had this fire occurred inside one of the flats and not the sterile communal area, that the building is fitted with firefighting sprinklers. These would have contained the fire prior to our arrival but also protected the residents and assisted in their escape."
• 20th April 2021, Millbrook Towers, Southampton:  HFRS incident reports: "The sprinklers in Millbrook Towers did exactly what these systems are designed to do. By confining the fire to one room, the potential for this being a much more significant incident was averted."

This is just some of the incidents in tower blocks. Southampton City Council issued this update in 2024, with all 20 tower blocks having sprinklers installed, saying: 

"Since the sprinklers have been installed we have had five flat fires in our high-rise blocks. All of these have been suppressed by the sprinkler systems before the fire service arrived." 

Southampton Independents has continued its pressure, checking up on the Council's work. 

On the day of the fire at the Hospital, Andrew Pope sent concerns of Shirley Towers residents over fire safety to the Labour Cabinet Member for Housing at the Council, Councillor Andy Frampton. He flatly refused to answer their concerns, in writing. Shirley Towers residents told us, when we told them this, that he deserves to lose his Council seat. According to the Council website, his seat is up for election in May 2026. If you would like to stand against him, please get in touch with us.

Our campaign worked. Contrast the above safety improvements after our campaign with the incidents at Redbridge Towers in 2017, Shirley Towers in 2010 and Albion Towers in 2017. Sprinklers were not installed then. Both Labour and Tory-run Councils failed to do it, until we started our campaign.

It is now time for the Hospital to do the same, and for Labour to be held to account for its failings on the Council.

 

Andrew Pope, Fire Safety Campaigner

 

HOSPITAL FIRE: "Were There Sprinklers at Yesterday's Major Incident Hospital Fire?" asks Andrew Pope Independent Network Shirley By-Election Candidate

 

Redbridge Towers Fire in 2017 with no sprinklers

"Were there sprinklers at yesterday's major incident fire at Southampton General Hospital? I am asking the hospital Chief Executive and Chief Medical Officers this and other questions."

says prominent fire safety campaigner Andrew Pope, who is standing as the Independent Network candidate in the 26th February 2026 Shirley by-election.

Joe Campbell on BBC South Today this evening confirmed that sprinklers were NOT installed. It appears that the hospital attempt at explaining why is that the West Wing is "old" and that sprinklers might get expensive equipment wet and patients wet.

Sign Andrew Pope's petition here to the CEO of the Hospital to demand that sprinklers are installed, and made mandatory by law for all hospitals and care homes. 

Andrew says: "I raised sprinklers with the BBC's Emily Hudson yesterday and true to her word, she raised this with the reporter Joe Campbell. I will be thanking Emily and Joe for getting an answer. More answers are needed now though, once the immediate chaos caused by the fire has receded." 

 

Andrew Pope, Fire Safety Campaigner

Andrew says: 

"This Major Incident reminds me of the terrifying near-miss fire in early 2017 at Redbridge Towers when I was an Independent councillor for the Redbridge ward. Nobody died. But firemen did at Shirley Towers. Sprinklers were not installed back then in either of the Towers.

I campaigned and won for sprinklers to be installed in all Council tower blocks.  

Just yesterday though, I heard allegations by Council tenants in Shirley Towers that fire safety may have been compromised. The Cabinet Member for Housing, Labour Councillor Andy Frampton refused to answer the concerns that residents raised with me over fire safety. 

I am asking the same questions now of the Hospital's Chief Executive and Trust Board that I asked the Labour-run Council in 2017.

Although there are differences, this seems to be a very similar scenario. I have offered the Hospital's senior management the right of reply.

I hope that the hospital management do not pretend like the Labour-run Council did, that residents or patients do not want sprinklers. They do. And they need them. 

And this fire would very likely have been prevented completely, or better contained, if sprinklers were installed and working.

Sprinklers save lives and property and in the vast majority of cases, they contain or extinguish fires.

There would have been no need for over one-hundred firefighters to attend, and hundreds of patients moved internally and outside Southampton, and no need for a huge emergency service response, if sprinklers were installed and working in the endoscopy unit. Perhaps they were installed and failed, so I am asking Hospital senior management." 

The questions that Andrew has put to David French, the outgoing Chief Executive, and the Trust Board and Governors are as follows:

1. Were there sprinklers where the fire broke out?
2. If there were sprinklers, did they contain the fire?
3. If there were sprinklers, why didn't they put the fire out? 
4. Will the hospital review fire safety in this building and across the hospital estate, and install sprinklers? If so, where, by when?
5. If there were electrical, medical or other reasons why sprinklers were not appropriate for that location, please provide those.

If you want Southampton residents and patients to be protected from fire, please vote for Andrew Pope Independent Network at the 26th February Shirley by-election.

 

Independent Network Emblem

Perhaps hospitals are a special case where sprinklers do not work? No, definitely not. The experts on sprinklers, BAFSA, the British Automatic Fire Sprinkler Association, said in 2024:

 "The impact on UK hospitals and healthcare premises from fire is significant with 636 fires in hospitals in the year to September 2019.

The government’s fire standards for the NHS briefly mention, but do not commit to, the installation of sprinklers. The guidance also repeatedly states that where sprinklers are used, other fire prevention measures may be reduced to prove cost-benefits and design flexibility. Despite this even some new builds have not included sprinklers and almost no mental health trusts have sprinkler systems.
All sprinkler systems will save lives and: 

Protect firefighters
Limit the size of a fire
Control fire spread
Provide additional time to evacuate
Limit fire damage
Be beneficial in terms of business continuity
Compensate for any impairments in passive fire
protection measures"

 

Images and photos from Andrew Pope's previous campaigning work on fire safety are below and on many other posts and pages on the Southampton Independents website. This is just a selection of his work.

 

Daily Echo Front Page after Redbridge Towers 2017 fire

Daily Echo quoting Andrew Pope and Redbridge Towers residents

Damage to Redbridge Towers in 2017 Fire

Andrew Pope appearing on ITV News in 2017

Demo truck at Albion Towers, Southampton

Sprinkler Demo at Albion Towers

Evidence from Andrew Pope Investigation into Fire Safety in Council Tower Blocks

Andrew Pope Investigation into Fire Safety

Andrew Pope Investigation into Fire Safety

Andrew Pope Investigation into Fire Safety