Residents being moved out of unsafe tower block ‘pressured’ to accept new accommodation without viewings
Residents being moved out of a tower block due to fire safety risks say the council is “pressuring” them to sign tenancy contracts accepting new accommodation without viewing it first.
On July 29, Southwark council informed residents of the remaining three Ledbury Towers in Ledbury Street, Peckham, that they must move out of their homes due to worsening fire risks.
The estate houses 98 temporary accommodation tenants, 18 council tenants and 15 leaseholders. No definite timescale was given for when residents must vacate the buildings, but the council said it would provide “alternative housing that meets the needs of each household”.
Annet Dolle, 32, is part of a group chat of 13 residents who say they have been “pressured” by the council to accept alternative accommodation offers without viewing them first.
Ms Dolle, who has lived on the estate with her two daughters aged three and five since 2020, was offered temporary accommodation on Walworth’s Aylesbury estate by the council last month.
She said: “They said I couldn’t view it and had to accept the offer the same day.”
Ms Dolle told the council that she wanted to stay in Peckham, where her job, GP and daughter’s schools are. But she said the council told her she must accept the offer or find her own property.
She said: “They have put so much pressure on us – it has broken the community.”
Ramona Dinca, 38, who has lived on the Ledbury estate for more than four years with her two daughters, said the council first offered her a property in Elephant and Castle.
She said: “It would add 40 minutes to my daughter’s school journey and take me away from the church I volunteer in, which is where I get support for mental health. My whole safety network is in Peckham so I rejected it.”
Last month the council offered her another property in Peckham.
She said: “I asked to view it but they said I had to sign the contract first or I would lose the offer, so I accepted it. When I got there the flooring and painting wasn’t done, the council told me they would give me some paint and finish it myself.”
The single mum described the council’s behaviour as “intimidating” and “threatening”.
Video shows water from a leak pooling over the cooker and floor in Mr Hassanain’s kitchen (Picture: Syed Shah Hassanain)
In 2017, emergency work was carried out in the blocks because of major issues found in the structure of the buildings. In 2021 it was decided that the Ledbury towers would be demolished and replaced with high-quality homes.
Another resident, Syed Shah Hassanain, 37, has lived in a single-bedroom property with his wife and three children, aged four, three and one, since 2021.
He said he had not been offered suitable accommodation by the council since it announced the building needed to be cleared.
He said: “I’m living in hell here. We sleep on the floor because there is only one bed, and there are leaks all over the place.
“My children have breathing problems now.”
After numerous complaints to the council, Mr Hassanain referred his case to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, which published a draft decision last month ordering the council to pay him £3,750, offer a new accommodation and reassess his family’s medical priority.
The council said it would support Mr Hassanain to find a new, suitable home. But Mr Hassanain said the way the council have treated him is “less than human”, causing him to distrust the local authorities ability to re-house his family safely.
Councillor Sarah King, cabinet member for council homes, said: “Ledbury residents are having to move at short notice from their homes. This is understandably stressful and confusing and we sympathise with the challenges they are facing.
“Due to the acute shortage of homes for those living in temporary accommodation we often need to move very quickly, which means it is not always possible for these residents to be able to view homes. We’re grateful for everyone’s understanding and patience during this difficult time.”
Pictured top: Syed Shah Hassanain holding his daughter with his three children Ahsan, Noor and Dua (Picture: Syed Shah Hassanain)