Residents chanted “Lambeth Council, shame on you” as a Budget Council meeting took place inside.
SHARE:
Residents gathered outside Lambeth Town Hall in Brixton on Wednesday evening to protest against evictions served to private renters in properties on estates in the borough.
Listen to this article – powered by AI:
They oppose the council’s decision to return privately rented homes to social housing tenants. Families living in the six estates say they fear they will become homeless.
The council previously planned to demolish the estates for new social housing to be built on the grounds. In March 2023, this scheme was abandoned. Lambeth Council have now asked residents to leave the buildings so they can serve as temporary accommodation for homeless people.
The impacted residents live on Central Hill, Fenwick, Cressingham Gardens, Knights Walk, South Lambeth and Westbury Estates. The Private Renters Facing Eviction group, formed of residents, say 150 households on the estates are affected. They want the council to immediately reverse the decision to remove these families.
A Freedom of Information (FOI) request in January 2024 shows there are 148 properties on these estates are empty and 592 other homes across the rest of Lambeth are not in use.
Residents left ‘hopeless’
Jules Zakolska and July Kaliszewski, who live on the Fenwick Estate, received a Section 21 eviction notice on February 1. They are currently paying £1,310 monthly for their flat and told City News they would struggle to afford anywhere else in the area.
July (left) and Jules received a S21 eviction notice from the council in February. CREDIT: MARTHA DEAN/CITY NEWS
Housemates Christina and Evan, who asked City News to keep their estate location anonymous, moved into their flat in November 2023. They were unaware of the evictions until a neighbour told them and their agent later told them they needed to leave after their break clause. Until very recently they thought they would be evicted, but are now able to stay in their flat until November this year.
Christina says the stress of finding a new home affected their mental health:
“I cannot express the amount of distress that this caused us. I cannot afford another move. We spent a lot of money just to make this happen, and to have thought that after six months we would’ve been kicked out, it sent us all into mental breakdowns.”
‘I don’t think they know what’s going on’
Former Green Party councillor for the Gipsy Hill Ward, Pete Elliott, says the council have lost residents’ trust. He lived on Central Hill Estate until his landlord sold the flat back to the council last year and has been sofa surfing since.
Talking to City News at the protest, he said he knows of “at least three” Section 21 eviction notices the council have issued to residents since January.
“I don’t know what’s going on and I don’t think they [Lambeth Council] know what’s going on. We want Lambeth to give us a public meeting so we can find out what they’ve done and why they’ve made these decisions.”
Central Hill, Fenwick, Cressingham Gardens, Knights Walk, South Lambeth and Westbury Estates are affected. CREDIT: MARTHA DEAN/CITY NEWS
Lambeth Council’s response
A Lambeth Council spokesman told City News: “Lambeth is committed to doing everything possible to tackle this borough’s housing crisis, and our work has led to hundreds of local families moving into new homes at council rent over the past few years.
“This latest proposal will help to meet this challenge, by enabling properties that are currently being let on the private rental market, on a short-term basis, to be used as temporary accommodation for families who are in extreme housing need.
“These properties were let to private tenants on a fixed-term basis, as Assured Shorthold Tenancies (ASTs), and this was only ever intended to be a short-term measure. These tenants are now being advised that when their current fixed-term tenancies come to an end, they will not be renewed.
“The agencies managing the tenancies on behalf of Homes for Lambeth will be contacting each tenant to let them know that their tenancy will not be renewed and to offer support to find alternative accommodation if this is required.
“We apologise for the distress caused to some residents by this change and the way it has been communicated. We will continue to improve the way we communicate with residents as we complete the process of transitioning Homes for Lambeth back into the council over the coming months.”
City News has asked Lambeth Council to confirm they sent Section 21 notices to residents; however, have not received a response.
Submitted Article
Headline
Short Headline
Standfirst
Published Article
HeadlineSouth London residents protest against private rental evictions in council buy-back scheme
Short HeadlineResidents protest against council buy-back scheme
StandfirstPrivate renters have received eviction notices as Lambeth Council reclaim homes for social housing.
Residents gathered outside Lambeth Town Hall in Brixton on Wednesday evening to protest against evictions served to private renters in properties on estates in the borough.
Listen to this article – powered by AI:
They oppose the council’s decision to return privately rented homes to social housing tenants. Families living in the six estates say they fear they will become homeless.
The council previously planned to demolish the estates for new social housing to be built on the grounds. In March 2023, this scheme was abandoned. Lambeth Council have now asked residents to leave the buildings so they can serve as temporary accommodation for homeless people.
The impacted residents live on Central Hill, Fenwick, Cressingham Gardens, Knights Walk, South Lambeth and Westbury Estates. The Private Renters Facing Eviction group, formed of residents, say 150 households on the estates are affected. They want the council to immediately reverse the decision to remove these families.
A Freedom of Information (FOI) request in January 2024 shows there are 148 properties on these estates are empty and 592 other homes across the rest of Lambeth are not in use.
Residents left ‘hopeless’
Jules Zakolska and July Kaliszewski, who live on the Fenwick Estate, received a Section 21 eviction notice on February 1. They are currently paying £1,310 monthly for their flat and told City News they would struggle to afford anywhere else in the area.
July (left) and Jules received a S21 eviction notice from the council in February. CREDIT: MARTHA DEAN/CITY NEWS
Housemates Christina and Evan, who asked City News to keep their estate location anonymous, moved into their flat in November 2023. They were unaware of the evictions until a neighbour told them and their agent later told them they needed to leave after their break clause. Until very recently they thought they would be evicted, but are now able to stay in their flat until November this year.
Christina says the stress of finding a new home affected their mental health:
“I cannot express the amount of distress that this caused us. I cannot afford another move. We spent a lot of money just to make this happen, and to have thought that after six months we would’ve been kicked out, it sent us all into mental breakdowns.”
‘I don’t think they know what’s going on’
Former Green Party councillor for the Gipsy Hill Ward, Pete Elliott, says the council have lost residents’ trust. He lived on Central Hill Estate until his landlord sold the flat back to the council last year and has been sofa surfing since.
Talking to City News at the protest, he said he knows of “at least three” Section 21 eviction notices the council have issued to residents since January.
“I don’t know what’s going on and I don’t think they [Lambeth Council] know what’s going on. We want Lambeth to give us a public meeting so we can find out what they’ve done and why they’ve made these decisions.”
Central Hill, Fenwick, Cressingham Gardens, Knights Walk, South Lambeth and Westbury Estates are affected. CREDIT: MARTHA DEAN/CITY NEWS
Lambeth Council’s response
A Lambeth Council spokesman told City News: “Lambeth is committed to doing everything possible to tackle this borough’s housing crisis, and our work has led to hundreds of local families moving into new homes at council rent over the past few years.
“This latest proposal will help to meet this challenge, by enabling properties that are currently being let on the private rental market, on a short-term basis, to be used as temporary accommodation for families who are in extreme housing need.
“These properties were let to private tenants on a fixed-term basis, as Assured Shorthold Tenancies (ASTs), and this was only ever intended to be a short-term measure. These tenants are now being advised that when their current fixed-term tenancies come to an end, they will not be renewed.
“The agencies managing the tenancies on behalf of Homes for Lambeth will be contacting each tenant to let them know that their tenancy will not be renewed and to offer support to find alternative accommodation if this is required.
“We apologise for the distress caused to some residents by this change and the way it has been communicated. We will continue to improve the way we communicate with residents as we complete the process of transitioning Homes for Lambeth back into the council over the coming months.”
City News has asked Lambeth Council to confirm they sent Section 21 notices to residents; however, have not received a response.
