With the overnight temperatures dropping below zero in the past week, Croydon Council has thrown 22 people out on to the streets, with no alternative accommodation, after serving an eviction notice on people squatting in a council-owned building that had stood empty for 12 years
Reclaim Croydon is now asking for support outside Croydon County Court in Altyre Road this Wednesday, March 19, from 9.30am.
Reclaim Croydon is the same group of anarchist squatters who took over the vacant offices of Brick by Brick on George Street in 2023, until bailiffs smashed in the doors and the group were forced to leave.
Their Autonomous Winter Shelter in Reedham, between Purley and Coulsdon, was opened in November, providing support to rough sleepers in Croydon, “Something which Croydon Council has repeatedly failed to provide”, according to one group member.
Reclaim Croydon squatted the building which was previously a council purpose-built children’s home. It has been vacant since at least 2012.
To date, in less than four months, 33 people have been housed directly off the streets by Reclaim Croydon, while 22 were still living there when the council’s eviction order was served.
No alternative accommodation or solutions to Croydon’s homeless crisis has been offered by the council. It is not known how the council intends to bring the building back into use.
Among the many organisations that have supported and made referrals to the shelter are South Norwood Community Kitchen (which has also acted as a drop-off point for bedding and other donations), Streets Kitchen and Resistance Kitchen.
Read more: Reclaim Croydon’s free bookshop and café closed by bailiffs
Read more: Welcome to the House of Fun! Squatters claim court victory
Read more: Activists provide shelter to 40 people ignored by council
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I think the building in question is “Kempfield”, at 1 Reedham Park in Purley.
Google Streetview shows an attractive building in 2008, which was fenced-off and boarded up in shots taken in 2012 and later. There’s a sign visible saying the place was being “secured by VPS”, who obviously took our money but didn’t do anything to deserve it.
Why might Gauleiter Perry’s jackbooted enforcers be keen on evicting homeless people from an empty building? Probably because the property is “under offer”, according to Stiles Harold Williams, who wanted “unconditional offers in excess of £1,250,000 for the freehold” when they started advertising it in late November.
Just another example of the short-sleeved shirker cooking the books, whoops, fixing the finances
shamefull to rather keeps buildings empty than house homeless people