Our Statement on the Government’s New ‘Action Plan’ to Tackle Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB) By Jacqueline Parkes, SHAC Disability Visibility Group Lead In January, we held our first DVG meeting for 2023. During this session, we stated our intention this year to focus on disabled residents’ experiences of ASB in social housing, and to raise the… Continue reading Disabled Victims of Anti-Social Behaviour in Housing Associations
A seasonal satirical offering from Carl Davis It was Christmas Eve and snowing heavily as Capital Quarter housing association boss Briona Arrowsmith-Wright tumbled out of the Bolt taxi and lurched up the steps of her Chelsea town house. She fumbled in the dark with the door keys to let herself in. The journey home from the… Continue reading A Christmas Social Housing Carol
By Carl Davis In their ground-breaking report Stigma and Social Housing in England, Dr Amanze Ejiogu and Dr Mercy Denedo looked at the nature and extent of the previously little understood stigmatisation of social housing. Those involved in the social housing sector in England, including politicians and social landlords, contribute to the construction of stigma.… Continue reading Ending Social Housing Stigma Together
By Carl Davis Last Sunday the Bureau of Investigative Journalism published the findings of its investigation into the use of Antisocial Behaviour Injunctions ( ASBIs). Sent to jail for feeding the pigeons: the broken system of antisocial behaviour laws Their shocking report describes how mentally ill and other vulnerable people are being sent to prison… Continue reading ASB Injuctions: A Conveyor belt of Rough Justice
By Carl Davis Only in the prevailing twisted purely anti-liability driven corporate world of the UK social housing sector could a large supposedly 'social' housing provider fail to notice that a lone tenant had died, then leave her decomposing in her flat for almost three years, then characterise this horrific and terribly sad tragedy as… Continue reading Systemic Neglect in Social Housing
By Carl Davis A lot of the recent shocking media coverage on disrepair in the social housing sector focussed on huge remote and faceless corporate providers like Clarion, L&Q, and Notting Hill Genesis. But this fails to capture the experience of people housed by smaller, rogue and failing social landlords. For example, Chantele – not… Continue reading Little Rogue Landlords
In the constant battle of attrition between tenants and residents, stories of how landlords harass those who complain abound. Like all bullying, it is an act of cowardice borne of fear, and a desire to silence dissenting voices. Disabled tenants and residents with mental health conditions are routinely accused of anti-social behaviour if they veer… Continue reading Shooting the Messenger: One Housing Resident’s Victimisation
By Carl Davis The National Housing Federation (NHF), a membership organisation representing more than 800 housing associations, recently teamed up with housing association Aster Group's diversity and inclusion lead to share Twitter tips on becoming a ‘Disability Confident’ employer, posted under the hashtag #NHFDiversity. The Disability Confident Employer scheme is a voluntary, government accredited initiative… Continue reading National Housing Federation’s Feeble Action on Equalities
By Carl Davis We may never know the exact details, but sometime in 2019 Sheila Seleoan, a 61 year old Peabody resident, died alone in her Peckham home. Her body went undiscovered for almost three years despite scores of complaints to Peabody from neighbours. Some even lit incense sticks around the door to mask the… Continue reading Too Big to Care?
By Carl Davis As social landlords face mounting criticism and public opprobrium on social media, sector leaders have just very conveniently held emergency talks with London Mayor Sadiq Khan and senior London Assembly members in a cynical face-saving exercise to discuss what they termed ‘the challenges of disrepair and substandard housing‘. SHAC's campaigns to challenge… Continue reading The Empire Strikes Back
