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Government letter to tenants on Covid, repairs and your rights

This letter from a Minister dated 18 May 2020, says ‘landlords should be able to carry out routine as well as essential repairs’, making prior arrangements with any households isolating or shielding sick and vulnerable people. It includes guidelines for how work should be done and tenants protected: see links in the document including Coronavirus (Covid19) Guidance for Landlords and Tenants.

We can’t leave our safety to chance – so demand your landlord agrees in advance to stick to the guidelines, and agree a procedure if these are broken. All workers in our blocks and homes need to work safely or not at all.

Work on high rise blocks with unsafe cladding or insufficient fire safety, ‘remains a top priority for the Government’, it claims. (So why are there still at least 357 blocks still with Grenfell-style cladding, and 11,000 blocks with risky cladding, two years on from the Grenfell fire?)

This letter, with important information, has not been sent to any of the 4 million+ tenants so far – so we are publishing it to ensure we can prepare and protect ourselves.

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Our survey confirms Covid impact on tenants


A Homes for All  survey is gauging how Coronavirus is affecting its supporters, families and communities.  Initial results, from 101 respondents , confirm that Covid-19 is deepening a housing crisis that’s been growing for years.
The survey results show:

25% have lost all or some of their income.
9% have had to claim Universal Credit.
15% are struggling to pay rent/mortgage.
10% have fallen into arrears.
17% are worried about falling into arrears.

Private renters are most, and disproportionately affected by the crisis:

39% have lost all or some of their income.
70% are struggling to pay the rent.
50% have fallen into arrears.
73% are worried about falling into arrears.

By comparison, although 28% of those who’ve lost all or some of their income are council tenants, their secure tenancies appear to reduce anxiety at falling into arrears.

Eileen Short of Defend Council Housing (part of the Homes for All alliance) says:
“These results are very worrying.  They tally with other research showing we’re heading for an explosion of evictions and homelessness unless government takes urgent action to protect tenants who can’t pay the rent due to the Covid crisis.  The results also show council housing is the only truly secure affordable rented housing, especially in a crisis.  That’s why we’re demanding action to ensure 100,000 new and reclaimed council homes a year as part of the recovery plan.”

As London Renters Union’s Amina Gichinga says:
“After lockdown ends, it could go two ways. Renters could face the chaos of rent debt and evictions. Or they could be safe from eviction and able to afford necessities like food and rent.

“That’s not much to ask – but for it to happen, the government needs to suspend rent payments, cancel rent debt and make the evictions ban permanent. Ultimately we need rent controls and more council housing.”

Behind the statistics are people’s lives.  Among some of the responses to the Homes for All survey:
“It is hard not having any face to face contact with family/friends, as I live on my own in a flat. Also, I do not have a garden or balcony, which increases the time I have to stay inside.”

(15% of responders reported lack of access to open space.)

“I have constant anxiety and fear about money and housing security.”

“I am classed as vulnerable.  I’m over 65 and Diabetic.  I live in an overcrowded house with one son sleeping on the settee and working making cardboard boxes for lamp shades and another son, a bus driver whose been furloughed.”

“On 27 March, Haringey Council’s management company closed the concierge service and reduced the cleaning service in blocks (no more weekly cleaning of stairways landings and corridors).  The risk of infection is obvious.”

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Tenants, Covid, and the Fight to Keep our Homes – May 9th 2020 Online Meeting

Join our online Public meeting on Saturday 9th May 2020 at 7pm with UK, USA tenants and Barcelona Tenants Union, and John McDonnell MP on:

Our Facebook page: Facebook: Axe the Housing Act – Secure homes for all

OR our YouTube Channel: YouTube Homes 4 All UK

Please share and invite people via Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/188041545527763/

PDF Download here:
https://www.axethehousingact.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/H4A_Tenants-Covid-meet90520.pdf

WATCH THE CONVERSATION:
Thank you to all who took part in the meeting. It has had thousands of views and you can still see it on Facebook:: 

https://www.facebook.com/1535565046764103/videos/546929415993557/

Or on our YouTube Channel.

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Online General Meeting – May 2nd 2020

Housing pressures are mounting as the health crisis continues. Millions 
are losing pay, and can’t afford the rent. Or are in unsafe, overcrowded 
homes.  We need to increase pressure on our politicians to act, and 
support each other to avert misery.

On Saturday 2nd May at 11am our next organising meeting will be held via Zoom. Meeting details will be emailed to our mailing list – email us to join.

With estates still being emptied and demolished, and some sitting empty, along with thousands of other empty homes, we’ll hear from campaigns about how we stop the demolition and get people rehoused now.

To discuss:

Get in touch if you want help with how the lockdown is hitting you and your neighbours. 

Also on May 9th, we’ll be hosting a big online public meeting with UK, US and other tenant groups, and John McDonnell MP.  Details to follow.

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Urgent Statement: Corona Virus and Housing – Protect Tenants and Homes

Facing this viral pandemic, the Government must act urgently to ensure no 
one is left on the street homeless, and that no-one loses their home due 
to the virus.

Therefore we must have urgent action to:

  • Immediately open up hotels and other empty buildings to house all the homeless
  • Ensure no evictions or repossession action during this crisis: suspend rent and mortgage liability for anyone whose income is cut due to the virus
  • Scrap the five-week wait for Universal Credit/housing benefit and 
    suspend all benefit sanctions

And as millions are living in overcrowded, unsuitable and unaffordable 
homes, we need immediate action with grant funding to:

  • Build 100,000 council homes a year at social rent with secure 
    tenancies.


We stand united – we won’t blame each other, we need action by 
Government now.

Download the statement.

We are making our statement into an online petition to Parliament, and will need
your help to get lots of people signing, to force Government to address 
it.  It is waiting for Parliament to process it; once it’s live, we will 
send the link.

Under mounting pressure, Government has made some steps:

  • Action to provide a roof for street homeless, at local discretion. 
    No move for the thousands in cramped temporary accommodation, sharing rooms, kitchens and bathrooms with other household
  • Mortgage payers can request a limited ‘holiday’
  • Ministers are ‘guiding’ courts not to process the 20,000 evictions 
    in the pipeline.  Further evictions are delayed for three months. 
    Renters are still being hassled to pay rent they can’t afford
  • No shift on five-week wait for Universal Credit; you can ask for 
    an advance, to be deducted from future payments
  • Work on luxury housing and other non-essential projects continues, 
    but no commitment yet on funding for future council housing

So this is still urgent, and our united voice can send an important 
message. We will update you on when the petition is ready for you to circulate and add your name.

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Charter for Housing Action 2020

Sign our updated Charter for Housing Action 2020. Let’s keep the pressure up on all political parties to make secure, truly affordable homes a reality for everyone.

If you agree with our demands for action, send an email or print out and post us the short form to add your name. Ask your MP and councillors, trade unions and local groups, to sign up in support too.

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Next General Meeting – 14TH March, London

Our next meeting will be held on 14th March 2020, 11am – 1pm at:

School of African and Asian Studies (SOAS), 10 Thornhaugh St, Bloomsbury, London WC1H 0XG

Let us know what’s happening locally, and if there are things you want to discuss.

Shelter have launched their London campaign, calling on the next 
mayor to strengthen policies for ‘social rent delivery’ and to end the 
conflation of so-called Affordable and London Living Rent.  Read the summary and the full report:

https://england.shelter.org.uk/professional_resources/policy_and_research/policy_library/policy_library_folder/report_a_capital_in_crisis

Our first organising meeting of 2020 on 18th January had a fantastic turnout, with people from Harlow, Southampton, Aldershot and Horsham, and at least 13 London boroughs, representing council, housing association and private tenants, councillors and trade unionists.  There was determination to build the campaign in the year ahead, and a good, open discussion about how to do this.

We agreed to:

  1.  Update the Charter for Housing Action for 2020

  2.  Send the Charter to Mayoral and council candidates, and to Labour leadership/deputy leadership contenders, asking for their endorsement. Also invite other groups to support and add their names.

  3.  Update “Vote Housing” flyer in time for May elections.

  4.  Need to form more contacts/links for national campaign against Universal Credit.

  5.  Support Justice for Grenfell in building and organising event in April in Kensington, raising critical issues around the inquiry, fire safety etc.

  6.  Attempt to open up discussion with Extinction Rebellion

  7.  Need to be vigilant about forthcoming demolition ballots, and share information asap.

  8.  Improve our social media operation.

  9.  Consider a possible housing hustings prior to May elections.

  10. Use the Charter and other material for local actions, stalls etc.



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Upcoming General Meeting – 18th January 2020, London

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Homes for All links tenants and housing campaigners, trade unions and others to defend the homes and rights we have, and win the homes we all need. Attend our next meeting in London and discuss how we can help win the fight for housing justice in 2020.

There are new MPs who say they represent us – can you help put pressure on your MP to support action on local and national housing problems?

The roll-out of Universal Credit means more people in rent arrears and more evictions.  Are you able to help build the ‘UC – no evictions’ campaign? Can we push for action locally, in the coming council elections?

Tenants have won the right to a vote before demolition of their estates, in some areas.  But temporary tenants are being bullied and manipulated in this process. What is the key to stopping unwanted estate demolition, and winning these ballots?

Grenfell and fire safety – how do we get action to stop more devastating fires, and ensure justice for Grenfell survivors?
Next General Meeting Details:

18th January 11am – 1pm at:

Unite offices, 33-37 Moreland Street, London EC1V 8BB

Send your comments and ideas in advance if you can’t attend in person.

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Vote Housing – General Election 2019

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Vote Housing  

Council homes and rent controls win huge support

Millions of us are trapped without a secure, safe home we can afford – because the private market has failed to build the homes we need. Billions of pounds of public money have been wasted subsidising private developers, who’ve make record profits, while housing need has soared.

In 2019 tenants, trade unionists and housing campaigners together demanded action for:  

·        A 20 year programme of investment to build 3.1 million non-market rented homes.

·        New, effective regulation of all landlords.

·        Independent tenant organisations.

·        Reforming private renting, including ending “no fault” Section 21 evictions.  

We asked all political parties to commit to build 100,000 council homes a year, with secure tenancies, paid for with direct government investment. Now make 12th December election about housing   [The main parties have announced their housing policies for the election on 12th December.  

·        The Conservatives say they will continue to rely on private developers to build housing.

·        The Lib/Dems have a commitment to “social” housing, but make no mention of council housing.

·        Labour says it plans to build 150,000 new social rented homes a year, 100,000 of them council homes.  Shelter has welcomed Labour’s policy, calling it “transformational”.  The National Housing Federation said it would be a “game changer”.  
#VOTEHOUSING

Download our #VOTEHOUSING flyer here: HFA-DCH_GE2019_A6_2pp_print

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Housing Campaigning during the December 2019 General Election

 

The election is on and we need to make sure all parties are put on the spot to demand housing action. Can you help by:

1. Contacting local candidates to sign our Charter for Housing Action: https://www.axethehousingact.org.uk/charter-for-housing-action/

2.  Organise a local housing hustings, to put candidates and their parties on the spot.  Link up with local tenant groups, housing and other campaigns to help.  Email us for leaflets, and any other help.

3.  Contact key people deciding on Labour’s 2019 Manifesto. This needs to include action to:

  • Build 100,000 council homes a year for social rent;
  • Ring-fence an annual £10 billion housing grant to deliver these; 
  • Rent controls and more rights for private renters (as supported unanimously at this year’s Labour conference).
  • Ask your candidate and Labour party leadership to ensure this action is included in Labour’s 2019 manifesto.

We have postponed our next meeting until after the election.  

If you want leaflets, stickers or other help for local campaigning, get in touch. We will email again with updates on our short films to share on social media, on why we need action on housing. And with details of election events on housing.

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