Young firefighter 'failed by brigade' who took his own life 'not victim of discrimination'

• London Fire Brigade commissioner Andy Roe speaking at City Hall on Tuesday

An investigation into the death of a young black firefighter who took his own life has found no evidence of direct discrimination, bullying or harassment by his colleagues.

Jaden Francois-Esprit, 21, a firefighter at Wembley fire station died at his home in Wapping, east London, in late August 2020.

His family feared he had been bullied by London Fire Brigade (LFB) colleagues because of his race, however, an independent external review, published on Tuesday, found no evidence this was the case.

However, Andy Roe, the LFB commissioner, said the organisation had "failed" Mr Francois-Esprit.

Allegations claiming Mr Francois-Esprit was unfairly singled out, teased about Caribbean food in his packed lunches and exposed to a toxic working environment, were not upheld in the report, which took a year to complete.

The report found the dyslexic junior firefighter was not provided with a locker when he started and his bed, used to rest on night shifts, was in a poor state - but, neither of these instances were unique to him.

Report investigators added Mr Francois-Esprit had concerns other firefighters would roll their eyes when he made tea and ridicule him if he spilt any.

Investigators said in the report: “It is possible that a cumulative lack of confidence, not least when speaking to an audience, Jaden’s working conditions with an initial lack of locker provision, the inadequacy of beds and consequent sleep issues, and the ‘tradition’ of making tea, could have had a disproportionate effect on Jaden due to his neurodiversity.

“Most of these issues were working conditions for all firefighters serving at the fire station and were not designed or intended to cause Jaden any detriment.

“It is understandable that a man aged 20 might find the working conditions to be not what he had expected.

“The impact of the pandemic – the uncertainty of his progression, the immediate change to social norms and resulting sense of individual isolation, for example – is likely also to have negatively affected Jaden’s wellbeing.

“It is also possible that what experienced firefighters saw as ‘team building’ or development activities were not perceived as such by someone who was neurodiverse.”

Tuesday's report comes after an independent culture review of LFB, led by Nazir Afzal, a former chief crown prosecutor for the North West, and released in November 2022, found the organisation to be institutionally misogynist and racist in the wake of Mr Francois-Esprit’s death.

At an inquest into Mr Francois-Esprit’s death at King’s Cross Coroner’s Court in February 2021, his mother Linda Francois said her son was being “unfavourably singled out because he’s an ethnic minority”.

She said he “hated” working at Wembley Fire Station, and had told her his “crew manager” was bullying him.

She added her son was concerned about not receiving learning support from LFB with his dyslexia, and that he felt “isolated, bored and unfulfilled” at work.

The cause of his death was recorded as suspension.

Speaking at City Hall on Tuesday, fire commissioner Andy Roe said: “None of the allegations against the respondents, those who were complained about, were formally upheld.

"However, I need to be clear as commissioner, that while those findings are clear and I fully accept what in the end has been a comprehensive indepednent externally-led process - it it still my personal view that we let Jaden down as an organisation.

"I believe we failed him through poor processes and the leadership culture, as well as long-established organisational approaches that didn't work."

He added: "I want to be clear (the findings) do not mean Jaden’s personal lived experience at the brigade was not a factor in his untimely death.

“I personally believe we failed Jaden as an organisation because the report’s findings do indicate failings in our day-to-day protocols, approaches and systems as they were at that time.”

Mr Roe said there were problems with the brigade’s “reliance” on long-standing systems and its approach to human resources at the time.

However, the commissioner said he saw Mr Francois-Esprit’s death as a “turning point” for the brigade, providing it with the opportunity to ask “very difficult questions”.

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