UPDATE: Visit and please share/tweet their website at: fightfortheaylesbury.wordpress.com
A break-away group from yesterday’s housing march has occupied three disused flats on the Aylesbury Estate in South East London and are calling on people for support.
Up to 4000 people braved the shitty weather yesterday to join the largest protest about the desperate shortage of genuinely affordable housing in London that the capital has seen so far. At the end of the demonstration a boisterous group accompanied by a sound system headed down the Old Kent Road towards the Aylesbury Estate. Despite a witless and half-hearted police presence the group managed to gain entry to several flats on the estate which are now being occupied with a neighbourhood assembly being called for 3pm today (Sunday).
The Aylesbury Estate is curently being ‘decanted’ as Southwark Council cosy up to property developers who want to build yet more yuppy flats on the site of these formerly working class homes. Despite soaring homelessness in the capital, several blocks on the estate lie empty whilst developers and politicians work out how they can best line their filthy pockets from the so-called regeneration project.
Yesterday’s demonstration also saw Class War and others briefly occupy the swanky new development on Tower Bridge Road after revisiting the notorious ‘poor doors’ up the road at the luxury 1 Commercial Street. The group, who are fielding candidates in this year’s general election, are set to re-establish the weekly poor doors protest after negotiations with the toff in charge of the building failed to end the policy of social segregation which forces tenants in the cheap flats to use a different door to the rich.
Two marches from East and South London – each up to 2000 people strong – made their way to City Hall yesterday where demands included rent caps, an end to evictions and a massive increase in social housing. As housing benefit cuts and soaring rents socially cleanse ever more people from the capital this vital struggle is only just getting started. But it wil take more than just marching and yesterday’s occupations, alongside the fantastic work of tenant’s groups like the Focus E15 mothers, the New Era Estate and Our West Hendon, points to the way forward. Everyone deserves a fucking home. It shouldn’t even need saying.
A Week of Action has been called leading up to the Mayor’s budget on February 23rd when the next large scale protest has been called.
A march for the homeless is also taking place on April 15th. Please help spread the word about all events.
Above pic via @redrumlisa who will be standing for Class War against Iain Duncan Smith in the general election.
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the void 
@Johnny V add to the fact that Housing Associations are taking over homeless units to gain extra business so that CEOs of HAs can award themselves far bonuses then yeah theres a housing problem …
Fucking cheek of one housing group and camden council giving arlington house to OHG for them to rent out to make money..
Btw southwark have nothing to be proud of having worked with and employed very dodgy dangerous peoples in its past
‘The Aylesbury Estate is curently being ‘decanted’ as Southwark Council cosy up to property developers who want to build yet more yuppy flats on the site of these formerly working class homes’.
What’s worse is that the developer here on Aylesbury is Notting Hill Housing Trust who started off back in the day (1963) as an attempt to actually provide decent housing for those locals who were living in appalling conditions as private renters. Nowadays they are just one more of the several large charities/housing associations (Peabody etc) that are dropping more of their commitments to social rented homes and developing more and more shared ownership, ‘affordable rent’ flats and private market-sale homes. Notting Hill Housing Trust is developing on loads of sites in Southwark where council estates used to be. They are also very keen on the fairly new rent category ‘affordable rent’ where the rent can be anything up to 80% of market rent rates.
On the question of ‘yuppy’ homes, although many of the new places are unaffordable to most working class people, it’s true to say that there are many working class people in jobs who are buying shared ownership places in these kind of developments although struggling in today’s housing market to do this. It’s always a bit reductive to paint all developments as ‘yuppy’ ones as it’s take away the necessity of organising with people who are private renters paying over the odds but who are working class.
Council estates also contain many sound middle class people who are council tenants and want to remain council tenants. At the end of the day, those fighting the regeneration and displacement are a mix of solid and sussed people but who often aren’t always in agreement politically or all working class people.
@southwarknotes i think there was a situation in Brighton where the council did a deal with a HA to close down or tranform a homeless hostel into a rented accomadation
This seems to be happening a lot from what i can see…the same old public becomes private routine using the ” saving tax payers money ” routine
The launch of the new scheme coincides with a separate government announcement to get prisoners to make sandbags, fence posts and other kit for the Army as part of a drive to teach them the “value of a hard day’s work”.
This is to do with privatisation of prisons using sodexo and interserve who ran the work program
Hmm so is the message ” unemployed are criminals or like them ” fleecing tax payers money to fund lavish lifestyles”
ie con merchants or are they also like prisoners ” trapped in a world of poverty debt and drink and drug lifestyles brought on by themselves due to their workshy attitudes” and must be punished by use of sanctions and forced labour
I don’t blame people who’ve bought apartments in 1 Commercial Street for not wanting to share their entrance way with welfare scroungers. I mean, really, have you seen some of those social housing plebs? Yuk. Most of them don’t wash and they all smell of fags, burgers and cheap cider.
Spot the Tory troll – a shill paid from the Tories’ £75,000,000 war-chest.
We have a lot of those types in Scotland, most of them supporters of Pacific Shelf in the East End of Glasgow.
you are a fucking nazi shit and we as a nation should find ways of removing your type from our democratic country
No – haven’t saw any people answering this description.
Why does everyone deserve a home? There are people out there who have never contributed a bean. They have given zilch, nada, Bubkas! These feckless and fecund individuals, admittedly they are in a minority, but still, they have never contributed, and never will contribute. Do they deserve a home? If so, why?
It all depends on whether you’re happy to see homeless people lying dead from exposure in the streets or not……
And another one appears to follow on from Toryboy Steve. This is getting boring you tory trolls.
hello Esther you fucking disgrace of a Merseyside MP –
Hello Tory. You reeally are financially ill-advised. Ask any tax accountant, go on you can afford it.
75 per cent of all tax comes from stealth taxes and VAT, with the poor having a 90 per cent tax rate from same in or out of work.
Income tax only brings in 25p in the pound to government.
So everyone contributes and everyone is a tax payer. We have been for most of the 20th century.
Everyone deserves a home because otherwise you advocate euthanasia of the old, babies, children, vulnerable adults, oh yea… that was the Nazis in 1930s Germany long before gassing the Jews.
And what is the point of a London without resident population with just rich investors leaving houses to rot, run riot with rats and grow into jungles.
And dear Tory, where is your servant class going to live? (sic)
Because they are human beings roger, where do you live – Planet Janet?
Mrs Lewis should write to David Cameron and ask why he was entitled to these benefits and she is not.
A big change that happened about 3 years ago was A Council Flat is not for life & gets reviewed every 2 years.
Aylesbury regeneration
L & Q – London And Quadrant
Heygate Estate: A Troubled Story aka Aylesbury Esate
Community Lost on the Heygate Estate
Heygate Estate:& Aylesbury Estate all part of one area
Reblogged this on Beastrabban’s Weblog.
Reblogged this on koenigal86 and commented:
Breakaway from London housing march occupies 3 disused SE London flats
I can’t help but believe that if everbody deserves a home, then it would be for the best if people claiming benefits were compelled to live in static caravans on giant trailer parks, as happens in places like Appalachia in the U.S. Then there council homes could be leased out to low paid working people. This would incentivise the unemployed benefit recipients to find a job. Do you get me?
Card board boxes would be cheaper.
@roger, you sound like a typical Tory: can’t write using the Queen’s English. There you are, I put that statement as it should be: “Then their council homes could be leased out” although your post is still utter bilge. By the way, there is no such word as “incentivise” in British English. The correct word is “encourage”. Didn’t they teach you correct grammar at your private school? In fact, do you yourself have a proper job? Doubt it.
Warning over ‘hotel’ council homes as investigation reveals holiday website adverts that feature properties owned by local authority
West End Extra – 30th Jan 2015
FLATS on council estates in central London are being advertised for let on a trendy holiday bookings website that targets tourists.
Flats in Holborn, Bloomsbury and near the British Museum in particular, have appeared on Airbnb, a website which allows people to temporarily rent out their homes as hotels for a few nights to tourists and travellers looking for cheap accommodation.
A recent investigation by the West End Extra’s sister paper, the Camden New Journal, led to warnings for tenants in council flats and former local authority properties that they could face serious penalties if they misuse the website in order to operate their homes like bed and breakfasts.
Officials at Camden Council are looking at a clutch of new Airbnb adverts that have been brought to their attention following the New Journal’s front-page revelations about the practice last week, some clearly showing the exterior of council properties in promotional photographs.
Read More:
http://www.westendextra.com/news/2015/jan/warning-over-%E2%80%98hotel%E2%80%99-council-homes-investigation-reveals-holiday-website-adverts-featu
‘Council flat hotels’: Town Hall opens new investigations into AirBNB adverts
Camden New Journal – 29th Jan 2015
BUSINESS in Camden’s so-called council-flat hotels was last night (Wednesday) feared at risk of becoming “rampant” with new probes launched into tenants and leaseholders suspected of undercutting hotels by letting out prime-location flats and houses to tourists.
An investigation by the New Journal has led to fresh warnings for people living in council flats and former local authority properties that they could face serious penalties if they misuse the trendy holiday lettings website Airbnb to operate their homes like bed-and-breakfasts.
Officials were meanwhile looking at a clutch of new Airbnb adverts that have been brought to their attention following our front-page revelations about the practice last week, some clearly showing the outside of Camden-owned estates in the promotional photographs.
Read More:
http://www.camdennewjournal.com/council-flat-hotels
roger – there? Did you mean their? My thoughts go with you if your life takes on an unhappy turn and you experience what these unfortunate people have unjustly experienced – nobody has a crystal ball – sincerely hope you do not have to purchase a tent.
Also, many people who find themselves out of work have been made redundant by firms going out of business – do they deserve to lose their homes and live on a giant caravan park? Perhaps the sun always shines in Planet Janet and is unaffected by snow, blizzard conditions and howling gales.
DOES VOID HAVE A NO PLATFORM FOR FASCISTS???
Is that the real Geoff Reynolds? Seems so out of character. Perhaps another Tory Troll.
Anti Tory Troll.
TORY Troll
You forgot its CAPS in the name not posts.
Yes that imposter talking crap. The Tory Troll is more than a troll now – Anti something.
I`m on the ball – Dash Way any Tory Trolls in 5 seconds of £10,000 tactics.
Tory Trolls are easy to spot they don`t use the Queen`s English just think tank talk planet.
Watch Side I`m Blatant !!!!
The Mental Tory Think Tanks have mental health issues but don`t want to admit it. The mental tory think tank finds it hard to speak & write the queen`s English. They, the think tank concept like making up new words that mean nothing in the real world of It`s Not Worth The Paper It`s Written On.
Oh by the way it`s not a conspiracy theory but it is a contradiction theory.
It seems confidence tricksters are stuck with a disabled conspiracy theory with the help of the Tory Trolls.
The mental conspiracy theory – How does that work DWP !!!!
Oh yes lots of contradictions.
A Contradiction makes some thing Null & Void – Not Worth The Paper It`s Written On – Not Fit For Purpose – Gobbledygook.
The Tories are a Gobbledygook conspiracy theory – That`s what the think tank thinks. Foolishness !!!!
Shame the Tories have no skill in writing !!!
On reading GR’s previous posts and acknowledging his acts of kindness to other people I had a feeling that he had not written these posts – perhaps whoever is posting on his behalf should be arrested for identity theft and barred from posting on this site.
not sure whats happened yet. its late, will look into it properly tomorrow.
Why, what’s happened? Has GEOFF joined Maximus or something and is now trashing the ‘disabled’?
http://www.demotix.com/news/6788737/squatters-breakaway-resistance-tackle-access-empty-estate
EAT THE RICH!!
“ANOTHER CONFLICT OF INTEREST, JUST LIKE GUNNYEON MOVING TO MAXIMUS FROM THE DWP”
Grayling admitted that a conflict of interest row surrounding the sell-off has become more acute after the wife of the chief inspector of probation was promoted last week to run the company that is to take over the largest number of probation contracts.
Grayling told the Commons justice select committee he accepted there was a conflict of interest involving Paul McDowell, the chief inspector of probation, and his wife, Janine, who was promoted 10 days ago to managing director of Sodexo Justice Services, which has preferred bidder status for six of the 21 probation contracts.
The conflict of interest places a question mark over Paul McDowell’s future as chief inspector, and Grayling is to address the issue before the sell-off takes place.
…………..public money syphoned off to give to the privateers heralding a complete failure of the prison rehabilitation system.
“ATOS THROWN MORE PUBLIC MONEY VIA SODEXO, THE NEWLY CHOSEN PRISON REHABILITATORS”
Sodexo is a multinational company that proposes ‘motivation solutions’ in the form of employee incentives such as meal and gift vouchers. The company selected Atos Worldline as its technology partner to reach their objective of offering dematerialisation of meal vouchers. Both companies have been working together since July 2009 to define the technological solution and most of the developments required have been completed.
……………………..FOOD VOUCHERS FOR THE POOR MAYBE?
…………THOSE HAVING MY NAME IN SMALL TYPE HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH ME JOHNNY.
MY COMPUTER IS BEING MESSED ABOUT WITH.
GEOFF REYNOLDS
Interesting the socio-political movement of that third force social enterprise collective shifting on to an anti-working class poor totalitarian agenda from its left of centre community root.
That third force social enterprise collective is a bigger threat to the poor and working class economic security than the crony capitalists that they are aligned with.
mr r
certainly represents a spread of power…once those orgs set up to protect rights, now actively fight against those rights in favour of their pay cheques…
yeah, spread of power that’s a better description doubt most of them have a political sympathy other than asserting authoritarian power to serve their own self-interests – a dependency on thuggishness to enforce the plunder of the British peoples.
mr r
yes, NGO’s are a powerful force in the uk, actively shaping social and community justice politics…i know of none who protest against neoliberlism…all as far as i’m aware, embrace them…
What? Do you mean that Dr Bob Johnson can’t cure this problem for only 20 Euros? He must be slipping!
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Fuck off you middle class Trustafarians!