Longtown Tenants in Cumbria get support!

THE distressed tenants of Longtown (Cumbria), huddled into one room to both eat and sleep - they cannot afford to heat other rooms in the house - have at last found a champion to speak up and fight for them. 

 

The tenants tell us they had no one to turn to, and their landlord Riverside Housing Association, was doing nothing to help them except threaten eviction to those who complained. So the tenants contacted Carlisle Tenants' and Residents' Federation. 

Now the Federation is pressing the tenants’ desperate case to local councillors, Ray Bloxham and Val Tarbitt and to Rory Stewart M.P. (Penrith and the Border) all of whom are very concerned and are giving total support to the tenants. 

Mr Stewart told the Federation:

'It is unacceptable that many residents are still afraid to turn on their heating because of the cost.'

 

A series of meetings is now underway to help the 80 tenants who for nearly two years – covering two winters - have been suffering from unheated homes and astronomical fuel bills up to 400 per cent more than normal. One elderly woman is faced with a bill of £3,500.  The disastrous story started when a Riverside scheme to install solar panels in 175 houses went wrong.  A Federation spokesman explained: 'That bungled operation disrupted heating in about 8o homes and the tenants have been suffering ever since, they have no proper heating and also have the added burden of energy bills which are up to 400 per cent bigger than usual.' 

He added:  'It is a total disgrace, particularly as those tenants who complained have been threatened with eviction. It is also a disgrace that Riverside has no tenants' organisation in place for them to turn to.' 

So the tenants have no voice.  In desperation they turned to the Federation.  We are pleased we have been able to help! 

For Further Information Please Ring 01228 522277

Or Read The Federation Blog: http://carlisleruraltenantsfederation.blogspot.co.uk/ 

Issued By Carlisle Tenants' And Residents’ Federation

'HANDS OFF THE FAMILY SILVER!'

PERMISSION to build council houses again was announced by the Chancellor, Mr George Osborne in his Autumn Statement. Councils can build houses once again and if any are built in Carlisle, the city council should learn a lesson and keep hold of them as it would with 'family silver' says a community group today. Carlisle City has a long record of building — it built houses for more than 100 years until Riverside Housing Association of Liverpool bought the lot (7,200 homes) eleven years ago Riverside is now imposing soaring rents and extra charges says the group, Carlisle Tenants` and Residents` Federation.

This is a cause of hardship for many people on the city estates - the hardship has been highlighted in the local press. At the same time, Riverside`s coffers are bulging. 'Riverside has given no explanation for these outrageous rents and charges, and amazingly, it is not obliged to,' says a letter to the city council. The money being raised is not benefitting the city which created these houses but is in fact helping to boost the reserves (profits) of Riverside, a giant property development company 100 miles away. 'Riverside`s reserves soared 41 per cent in the last financial year from £22 million to £32 million. This situation is unacceptable' says the letter .

The letter calls on the council to ensure that Riverside is transparent and accountable in its dealings with the public. 'The city deserves nothing less, given its long and proud record of building houses — selling out to Riverside was like selling the family silver' said a Federation spokesman. 'If the council builds houses again, the council should say: "Hands off the family silver".'

From Carlisle Tenants` and Residents` Federation

Carlise Tenants: 'A Las Barricadas'

PRESS NOTICE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE… 

FRIGHTENED TENANTS MAN THE BARRICADES... ISSUED BY CARLISLE TENANTS` AND RESIDENTS` FEDERATION… July 8 2013

When you have a child rapist as a neighbour, how do you cope, particularly when you are old and living alone? People in a block of former council flats in Carlisle have taken to barricading themselves in at night.

The situation has led to questions about the present approach to housing undesirable people and whether the present landlord, Riverside Housing Association, is up to doing the job.

The frightened people live in Dixon`s Court, Shaddongate, and in the past they have put up with tenants jailed for drug offences and jailed for other serious crimes. But when they learned that one neighbour had been arrested and jailed for four years for raping a 14 –year-old girl , the barricades went up.

These frightened people are not the only victims. There other frightened people in Carlisle who have abandoned their homes in despair and gone away to live with relatives because of neighbours from hell or because of neighbours convicted of serious offences put there by Riverside.

Carlisle Tenants` and Residents` Federation is far from happy with the present Riverside policy and today urged city councillors to investigate that policy and also the frightened tenants of Dixon`s Court.

A Federation spokesman said:”These frightened people tell us that Riverside is not acting as a responsible landlord. There seems to be no proper policy for housing undesirables. Responsible tenants are suffering and should have a say in choosing their neighbours”.

For further information please ring 01228 522277 or 01228 532803 Please See Federation Blog: http://carlisleruraltenantsfederation.blogspot.co.uk/

Told To Shut Up!

Message from Carlisle...

PRESS STATEMENT SEPTEMBER 26 2011:

COUNCILLOR GAGGED US SAYS COMMUNITY GROUP

A community group has accused a Carlisle city councillor of gagging it to stop it representing its members, it was revealed today.

A complaint has been made to the city council by the group, Carlisle and Rural Tenants' Federation. The Federation complaint says that Councillor Nan Farmer refused to allow a Federation representative to speak at a meeting called to discuss a dispute between Riverside Housing Association and its Carlisle leaseholders.

The Federation representative had been asked to attend the meeting by some leaseholders who are members of the Federation. But the Federation representative was not allowed to say a word and in a dictatorial fashion was ordered to leave the meeting.

The Federation complaint says that following that meeting it was also gagged a second time - this time by the city council. The second gagging came after Councillor Farmer made incorrect and unsubstantiated complaints about the Federation to the council.

As a result of these complaints the council blocked all emails from the Federation to the council.

The Federation complaint says that at another meeting of leaseholders Councillor Farmer tried four times to get the Federation to leave. But this time the representative refused.

A Federation spokesman said today: 'The Federation has represented former council house tenants and leaseholders for dozens of years - long before Riverside appeared on the scene - and this is the first time we have been gagged at a public meeting.

'We are used to Riverside`s deplorable ways of shutting us up .They have done it in the past and continue to do so because they don`t like us representing our members.


'But it now appears that Councillor Farmer is doing Riverside`s work for it and she also is trying to keep out the Federation.

'Councillor Farmer is leader of the city council's Liberal Democrats. If she really believes in Lib Dem values she shouldn't be in the gagging business'

Issued by Carlisle and Rural Tenants` Federation