Rooms to rent: Heathfield House is now being rented out piecemeal
CROYDON IN CRISIS: Unable to find an approved bidder or use for the Grade II-listed building, the cash-strapped council has got agents to rent out single rooms to ‘guardians’. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES
Listed building Heathfield House is being rented out on a room-by-room basis by agents on behalf of owners Croydon Council, an organisation as bankrupt of imagination as it is of money.
It is more than two years since the council’s efforts to lease the building to other organisations ended in failure, leaving the place vacant, vulnerable to squatters and suffering from long-term neglect by the cash-strapped council.
Having been rented on a short-term lease during the covid lockdowns to a money-spinning business that used Heathfield House as a special school, that deal failed to be extended. The education business wanted to have its special needs pupils contained behind 9ft wire mesh fences that did nothing to enhance the Victorian Italianate villa’s looks. Planning permission was refused.
Efforts to rent out the property earlier this year floundered when the council refused to lease Heathfield House to the only bidder. The council, meanwhile, incurred significant costs in evicting squatters and hiring security guards to patrol the once pristine gardens day and night.
Boarded up: windows and doors at council-owned Heathfield House last year showed evidence of emergency repairs done on the cheap
Now, “innovative” housing agents the Lowe Group are marketing Heathfield House, room by room, to “key workers, young workers and artists”, effectively for them to act as “guardians” of the property, and prevent any further incursions.
Grade II-listed Heathfield House, built in 1837, and its once admired ornamental gardens, standing in prime position in the Addington Hills at the top of Gravel Hill with sweeping views across farmland towards New Addington, was once the home of millionaire philanthropist Raymond Riesco.
Together with his prized ceramics collection (parts of which were sold off on the cheap by Jason Perry and his fellow Tory Philistines the last time they were in power), Riesco left Heathfield House to the people of Croydon upon his death in 1964. The gift came with strings: Heathfield has a legal covenant that insists that it is only used for educational purposes.
In the past, Croydon Council got round this by using the building for staff training. Now it has virtually no staff left to train…
The possibility of moving the council’s registry office to Heathfield was also considered, and given as an excuse to the Croydon Ecology Centre for preventing them from returning to use parts of the building for their open days, tools storage and other activities.
Renting the building out piecemeal, even to “key workers”, might see Croydon Council in breach of its covenant conditions, if anyone was to consider challenging this repurposed use.
According to Lowe Group, the building has been refurbished to make it habitable, and they have been marketing rooms there since June. Of 17 bedrooms (with only three showers and six toilets between them, plus two kitchens shared among the tenants), all but one is currently occupied.
Rents on each room vary, typically around £650 per month, suggesting that the council is at least receiving some income, after agent fees and maintenance costs.
Impressive: despite the lengthy neglect by the council, Heathfield House remains an impressive-looking, 19th Century building
It is perhaps significant that Lowe do not refer to Heathfield House at all in their online marketing, but call the property “Coombe Lane”.
They say, “If you are looking for countryside living within 39 minutes of central London, Coombe Lane is the perfect home for you.
“This 17-bed property boasts acres of views, with green grass and flowers surrounding the property.” Ahh, the famous green grass, as opposed to grass of other hues and tints… None of the previously scrupulous gardening and planting that used to be carried out by the council’s parks department has been carried out in the gardens since 2019.
“The high ceilings and wooden joinery throughout has been carefully looked after…”, that, too, might be viewed as debatable, “… and now needs respectful licensee’s to call it home.” “Licensee” is what the Lowe Group call their tenants.
“Coombe Lane Tram stop is a five-minute walk up a picturesque lane, with links to Croydon’s hot spots.” Hot spots! Whoop!
“Book your viewing today and experience Coombe Lane in its glory.”
Croydon’s cash-strapped council is in a bit of a bind with Heathfield House, which successive administrations had neglected and ignored for decades, leaving it in an increasingly ramshackle condition. It might be interesting to hear, discreetly, what the current occupants think of their living accommodation.
Heathfield House’s history is still listed on the council’s website among the collection of parks and open spaces, with its “facilities” described as “Woodland and rhododendron walks”, and “Ornamental gardens and ponds”. It is unclear what public access there is to the grounds now the house has so many new tenants.
The Lowe Group, for their part, say that they “deliver cost-effective, innovative solutions to managing vacant spaces, which create social impact and support local communities”. Which is nice.
Their spiel states: “We believe that vacant properties present inspiring spaces for key workers, young professionals and artists to live, work and create. We are passionate about bringing these otherwise vacant spaces back to life, creating affordable workspaces and close communities.
“We also understand the significant costs of leaving a property vacant. We have a strong track record in reducing security costs, mitigating empty business rates, and where possible, generating additional income on otherwise vacant assets.” THey must have sounded like just the ticket to the council bureaucrats in Fisher’s Folly.
“We evaluate every property on its own merit, and will always propose the most suitable service for managing vacant properties. Whether it be property guardianship, workspace and creative uses, charitable occupation or traditional security, we always place social impact at the heart of everything we do, whilst providing our clients with the most cost-effective solution to leaving a building vacant.”
See that? “Cost-effective”.
Lowe Group appear to be very careful at screening their tenants, or “licensees”, who have to be over 21, in employment and “strictly professional”. The rent includes all bills though not wifi. And there’s a “no parties” rule, too…
Let’s hope that deters the Conservatives, Labour and the other lot, too.
Read more: Council’s once-prized listed building Heathfield House left to rot
Read more: Public outcry as council tries to off-load historic Heathfield House
Read more: Riesco objections: Croydon Council’s squandering our heritage
Read more: Council’s botched attempt to airbrush Riesco from web history
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