|
|
 |
| |
Denis McGinness |
Estate’s three years of drug hell
Council offers ‘grudging’ apology for failing to act – but residents demand more
FOR nearly three years, their Hampstead housing estate was turned into a playground for drug-dealers and aggressive dogs by one of their neighbours.
The council, once it had been ordered to do so by the Local Government Ombudsmen, admitted it had failed residents by taking so long to move a problem family from the block – and paid one resident £500 in compensation.
On Monday the other residents of Wells House, in Well Walk, came to the Town Hall to demand an apology – and embarrassed a council which has claimed anti-social behaviour on housing estates as one of its highest priorities.
“The council neglected us terribly and let us stew in the juices flowing out of that property,” said Dennis McGinness, the only one of seven householders in the Wells House block to receive a formal apology so far.
“They felt they were doing a service to underprivileged people when actually they were helping them to supply drugs – dealers were selling to schoolchildren; there was a queue outside at 4pm.
“People living here were scared. Your home should be for quiet enjoyment and the council should protect that right.”
One of his neighbours, who is fighting for his own apology but asked not to be named because “these people are still out there and they are dangerous,” said: “The council treated us very badly during this process and they are continuing to treat us really badly. They should apologise to all the tenants and leaseholders in that block.”
In a bundle of papers that Mr McGinness has gathered during his campaign, council case notes show that they were aware of hundreds of separate reported incidents at Wells House, caused by two adult sons who shared their mother’s third floor flat.
As well as three police raids which uncovered a cannabis factory in the flat, the log records fighting, intimidation and fouling of the staircase by the family’s dogs, visitors day and night, and above all noise – the noise of partying in the early hours, night after night.
Scattered between these complaints, which occur at a rate of 10 a month at some periods, are records of dozens of interventions by housing and social services staff.
“They supported that family continually. They just didn’t support us,” said Mr McGinness, who describes the apology he received as “grudging”.
The issue ended when the two sons were jailed and their mother – in many ways also a victim – succeeded in transferring to a flat in the south of the borough earlier this year.
On Monday night, Wells House residents watched from the council chamber’s public gallery as their ward councillor, Kirsty Roberts, demanded an apology from housing and community safety chief councillor James King.
Cllr King told her it was “a sensitive and complex” case, adding: “I share Cllr Roberts’ concern at the length of time it took to resolve.”
But though he offered to meet the residents, he did not apologise. Cllr Roberts said afterwards that she had heard “nothing but excuses” in the two years she has pursued the case.
Last night (Wednesday), a council press official extended the offer to meet residents. But she insisted: “This was a complex and sensitive case and the council worked hard to successfully resolve the matter.”
This contrasted with the council’s letter to the Ombudsman, which read: “We accept that we could have made more use of on-site staff; we could have been more proactive than reactive; Mr McGinness was inconvenienced and suffered a considerable amount of stress.”
A new emphasis on anti-social behaviour has placed successive Lib Dems in charge of housing and community safety matters in a quandary.
Ever since the new adminstration introduced “demoted tenancies” – fast track powers to evict tenants who troubled their neighbours – there has been a clamour from Conservative councillors to use them.
Parliamentary hopeful councillor Chris Philp, supported by his Gospel Oak Tory colleague Councillor Keith Sedgwick and by Labour councillor Roger Robinson – has repeatedly demanded the use of the powers.
Cllr King’s predecessor, councillor Ben Rawlings, defended the policy of only using them as a last resort and condemned the aggressive calls for their use.
Of 18 demoted tenancies begun by the council since April, none has led to an eviction, although six are still in the courts, and council sources say that in the majority of cases the behaviour of tenants has significantly improved. |
 |
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
