Recent Comments
Jan Sales on TfL cancels all trams to New A… Ed Worth on Residents’ groups reject… Richard on Residents’ groups reject… Peter Hodes on Murdered man’s family in… Arfur Towcrate on Residents’ groups reject… derek thrower on Residents’ groups reject…
Category Archives: Housing
Residents’ groups reject Purley ‘pool’ plan backed by Perry
Our shadowy multi-millionaire developers based in off-shore tax havens correspondent, BARRATT HOLMES, on an outbreak of common sense, and serious reservations, over proposals for a massive retirement home complex Seven of the borough’s largest and most influential residents’ associations have … Continue reading
Posted in Business, Chris Philp MP, Community associations, Coulsdon West Residents' Association, Croydon Council, East Coulsdon Residents' Association, HADRA, Housing, Mayor Jason Perry, Old Coulsdon Residents' Association, Parking, Place Review Panel, Planning, Polaska, Polaska Assets Ltd, Property, Purley, Purley Oaks and Riddlesdown, Purley Pool, Selsdon Residents' Association
Tagged Conservative, Coulsdon West Residents' Association, Croham Valley Residents Association, Croydon, Croydon Council, East Coulsdon Residents' Association, Hartley and District Residents' Association, London, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Old Coulsdon Residents' Association, Polaska, Polaska Assets BVI, Polaska Assets Ltd, Purley, Purley Pool, Riddlesdown Residents Association, Samir Dwesar, Selsdon Residents' Association, Tory
9 Comments
Builders brand Gove’s latest CPO reforms as ‘desperation’
Our housing correspondent, BARRATT HOLMES, on how a ‘very un-Conservative’ policy shift has probably come too late to save Croydon town centre New powers handed to local authorities by the Conservative Government could, just, open the way for Croydon Council … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, CPO, Croydon Council, Housing, London-wide issues, Planning, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation
Tagged Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Hammersfield, Hammerson, London Borough of Croydon, Westfield, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation
2 Comments
Now Tory newspaper turns against Tories’ fringe candidate Hall
Even the right-wing press doesn’t much care for the Harrow hairdresser. By our political editor, WALTER CRONXITE At the 11th hour, and after some wavering in the final days before tomorrow’s London elections, the Evening Standard has said it supports … Continue reading
Posted in 2024 London elections, Evening Boris, Housing, Local media, London-wide issues, Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, Susan Hall
Tagged 2024 London elections, Conservative, Croydon, Evening Boris, Evening Standard, Labour, London, London Assembly, London elections 2024, Mayor, Mayor Sadiq Khan, Sadiq Khan, Susan Hall, Tory
5 Comments
1-in-5 Londoners have no idea there’s an election next week
Shocking figures released today show that 20% of Londoners – 1-in-5 – don’t have a Scooby Doo (it’s rhyming slang…) that next Thursday, May 2, is election day in the capital. Among younger Londoners – those under 30 years old … Continue reading
Posted in 2024 London elections, Crime, Housing, Knife crime, London Assembly, London-wide issues, Mayor of London, Policing, Sadiq Khan
Tagged 2024 London elections, Antonia Jennings, Centre for London, Conservative, Croydon, Labour, Liberal Democrats, London, London Assembly, London Elections, London elections 2024, Mayor Sadiq Khan, Savanta, Tory
7 Comments
Auckland Rise residents suffer the ‘curse’ of Brick by Brick
Our housing correspondent, BARRATT HOLMES, reports on how some of the warnings about the council house-builders’ ‘affordable’ homes are becoming an costly reality in Crystal Palace Residents in supposedly “affordable” shared ownership homes built in Crystal Palace by the council-owned … Continue reading
Posted in Brick by Brick, Business, Claire Bonham, Colm Lacey, Croydon Council, Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Housing, London-wide issues, Mayor Jason Perry, Planning
Tagged Alison Butler, Auckland Rise, Brick by Brick, Claire Bonham, Colm Lacey, Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Jo Negrini, Labour, Liberal Democrats, London, London Borough of Croydon, Tory
Leave a comment
Feeling the heat as residents are stung with 775% price hike
Last week, we highlighted how steepling service charges and ground rents are hitting shared ownership mortgage-holders. Here, East Croydon resident HARRY KIND, pictured left, reveals that leaseholders are facing punitive increases on their energy bills Have you ever been to … Continue reading
Posted in Business, East Croydon, Fairfield, Housing, London-wide issues
Tagged East Croydon, Harry Kind, Heat network, Residential Management Group, RMG, Ruskin Square, Vita
2 Comments
How myth of shared ownership has made housing crisis worse
Six years ago, one of Inside Croydon’s loyal readers reported on the sheer unaffordability of the shared ownership homes being built in the borough by Brick by Brick. Now, as ANDREW FISHER explains, a parliamentary select committee has published a … Continue reading
Court condemns council’s ‘inhuman’ treatment of disabled man
CROYDON IN CRISIS: Another costly legal defeat over housing, as High Court Judge finds our local authority acted deliberately in contravention of its responsibilities under the European Convention on Human Rights. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES The High Court has given … Continue reading
Posted in Croydon Council, Housing, Katherine Kerswell, Stephen Lawrence-Orumwense
Tagged Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Deputy Judge Alan Bates, ECHR, European Convention on Human Rights, Garden Court Chambers, High Court, Housing, Katherine Kerswell, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Stephen Lawrence-Orumwense, Tory
7 Comments
Months later than promised, Polaska plans still not posted
The increasing desperation of Jason Perry, Croydon’s Mayor, for some “good” news, any good news, to cling hold to halfway through his deliver-nothing term of office has been shown by the premature issuing of a developer-friendly press release last week, … Continue reading
Posted in Business, Croydon Council, Housing, Leisure services, Mayor Jason Perry, Parking, Planning, Polaska, Polaska Assets Ltd, Property, Purley, Purley Pool
Tagged Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Mayor Jason Perry, Polaska, Polaska Assets BVI, Polaska Assets Ltd, Purley, Purley Pool, Tory
10 Comments
London Mayor steps in with £53.8m grant for Regina Road
Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, has agreed to provide £53.8million to Croydon Council towards the costs of demolishing the Regina Road estate in South Norwood and building homes to replace the notorious 1960s tower blocks. Croydon’s Mayor, Jason Perry, … Continue reading
Posted in Business, Community associations, Croydon Council, Housing, London-wide issues, Property, Regina Road Residents' Support Group, Sadiq Khan, South Norwood, South Norwood Community Kitchen, Susmita Sen, Wates
Tagged Croydon, Croydon Council, London, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor, Mayor Sadiq Khan, Regina Road, Regina Road redevelopment, Regina Road Residents' Support Group, Tom Copley
Leave a comment
Wanted: ‘storyteller’ to spin CEO Kerswell’s recruitment binge
CROYDON IN CRISIS: ‘History,’ said Marx (Karl, not Groucho), ‘repeats itself, first as tragedy, then as farce.’ At our cash-strapped council, we appear to have arrived at the farcical stage. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES How good is your “story-telling”? £50,000 … Continue reading
Posted in Council Tax, Croydon Council, Housing, Improvement Board, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Tony McArdle
Tagged 15% Council Tax hike, Conservative, Corporate directors, Council Tax, Croydon, Croydon Council, Elaine Jackson, Executive directors, Hamida Ali, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Regina Road, Tony Newman, Tory
8 Comments
£68m: final cost of Brick by Brick, as agreed by Mayor Perry
£68m This is what a “solvent liquidation” looks like, according to Croydon’s elected Mayor Jason Perry. That’s the latest final estimate of the exit costs of winding down and closing Brick by Brick, the failed housing company set up by … Continue reading
Posted in Alison Butler, Brick by Brick, Business, Colm Lacey, Coulsdon, Croydon Council, Housing, Improvement Board, Jo Negrini, Mayor Jason Perry, Paul Scott, Planning, Simon Hall, Tony McArdle, Tony Newman
Tagged Alison Butler, Brick by Brick, Colm Lacey, Conservative, Coulsdon, Council Tax, Croydon, Croydon Council, Jo Negrini, Labour, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Paul Scott, Tony Newman, Tory
12 Comments
‘Filled with dread’: private renters’ growing mental health crisis
The pressure of paying sky-high rents for often inadequate homes, some of which are blighted by mould, damp and vermin, is causing a mental health crisis affecting millions of people. That’s according to a shocking new survey published today by … Continue reading
Posted in Community associations, Housing, London-wide issues
Tagged Croydon, London, London Renters' Union, Mental Health, private rental sector
1 Comment
Croydon escapes worst effects of Gove’s ‘Developers’ Charter’
Tory minister takes a swipe at London Mayor as he moves to reduce planning restrictions and allow ‘some incredibly poor quality homes which should not have been built’ Croydon and Sutton might just escape the worst excesses of Michael Gove’s … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", 2024 London elections, Business, Centrale, Croydon Council, Housing, London-wide issues, Mayor of London, Planning, Property, Sadiq Khan, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre
Tagged Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Department for Levelling Up, George Clarke, Housing, Labour, London, London Assembly, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor, Michael Gove, Paul Scott, Tory, Westfield, Whitgift Centre
2 Comments
Brick by Brick posts £7.6m loss in latest annual trading report
CROYDON IN CRISIS: Yet more bad news finally emerging into the public record. By BARRATT HOLMES, our house building correspondent Even when it is no longer paying above the odds to build new homes, Brick by Brick continues to lose … Continue reading
Bridge to Nowhere could finally be about to stage a grand exit
Could it be that, at long last, after several false dawns, a piece of vital public infrastructure, costing £22million when it was built more than a decade ago, might finally get its long-awaited finishing touch? In so many ways, the … Continue reading
Posted in Addiscombe West, Business, East Croydon, Housing, Mayor Jason Perry, Menta Tower, Planning, Property, Transport
Tagged Bridge to Nowhere, Cherry Orchard Road, Clarion Housing Group, Conservative, Crescent Gardens, Croydon, Croydon Council, East Croydon, East Croydon station, Mayor Jason Perry, Menta, Morello Quarter, Tory
9 Comments
Garbett wants commission to put a brake on London’s rents
Zoe Garbett, the Green Party’s candidate for Mayor of London, has announced her “Renters Charter”, a plan to tackle the capital’s out of control private rental market. Garbett’s Charter prioritises action to tackle the private sector’s rocketing rents. Garbett has … Continue reading
Posted in 2024 London elections, Housing, London-wide issues, Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, Zoe Garbett
Tagged Green Party, Labour, London, Mayor, Mayor Sadiq Khan, Renters Charter, Zoë Garbett
2 Comments
Gove’s extra cash barely touches the sides of Croydon’s debts
Michael Gove’s £600m hand-out to local authorities in England, announced yesterday, won’t go very far, especially if you consider that the Government’s own expert panel reckons Croydon alone needs £540m to wipe out a chunk of its toxic debt. By … Continue reading
Posted in 2024 General Election, Adult Social Care, Andrew Fisher, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Housing, Improvement Board, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Tony McArdle
Tagged Andrew Fisher, Conservative, Council Tax, Councils in Crisis, Croydon, Croydon Council, Department for Levelling Up, Department for Levelling UP Housing and Communities, Jason Cummings, Labour, Liberal Democrats, Local Government Association, London, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Michael Gove, Tory
2 Comments
Council loaned Brick by Brick additional £47.3m last year
CROYDON IN CRISIS: In its latest report to Michael Gove, the Government’s improvement panel reveals a £38m hole in cash-strapped council budgets for the next four years – and repeats plea for unprecedented half-a-billion pounds loan write-off Croydon’s cash-strapped council … Continue reading
Posted in Adult Social Care, Children's Services, Croydon Council, Housing, Improvement Board, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Report in the Public Interest, Section 114 notice, Tony McArdle
Tagged 15% Council Tax hike, £540m debt write off, Brick by Brick, Colm Lacey, Conservative, Council Tax, Croydon, Croydon Council, Department for Levelling Up, Department for Levelling UP Housing and Communities, Improvement and Assurance Panel, Katherine Kerswell, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Michael Gove, Tony McArdle, Tory
5 Comments
Foundation brings forward Old Palace prep closure by a year
CROYDON IN CRISIS: Early closure of the fee-paying primary school will speed up sale of the site in South Croydon – probably to a profit-hungry housing developer. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES The financially troubled Whitgift Foundation is seeking to accelerate … Continue reading
Posted in Charity, Chris Philp MP, Housing, Jane Burton, Old Palace, Property, Sarah Jones MP, Schools, South Croydon, Whitgift Foundation
Tagged Chris Philp MP, Croydon Central, Croydon South, Jane Burton, Melville Avenue, Old Palace, Old Palace of John Whitgift School, Old Palace Prep School, Old Palace School, Sarah Jones MP, South Croydon, Westfield, Whitgift Foundation
4 Comments
Residents ‘deeply concerned’ over developers’ parking claims
A £100m scheme to build nearly 250 retirement homes could strip hundreds of car parking spaces from Purley town centre – with no alternatives available as claimed by developers. By STEVEN DOWNES Purley residents are “deeply concerned” over plans for … Continue reading
Posted in Business, Croydon Council, Housing, Parking, Planning, Polaska, Polaska Assets Ltd, Property, Purley, Purley Pool, Simon Brew
Tagged British Virgin Islands, Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, HM Revenue and Customs, HMRC, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Polaska, Polaska Assets BVI, Polaska Assets Ltd, Purley, Purley Pool, Save Purley Pool Campaign, Tesco, Tesco Purley, Tory
7 Comments
Council claims it is ‘learning’ over repeated housing errors
Following the Housing Ombudsman’s finding in four cases of severe maladministration by Croydon Council, the authority issued this “learning statement”: We acknowledge that there were significant failures in the way we handled these cases and would like to offer our … Continue reading
Fresh shame for council in 4 ‘severe maladministration’ cases
Ombudsman orders Croydon CEO Katherine Kerswell to make apology to resident, as housing complaints allowed to drag on in some cases for five years. By STEVEN DOWNES All suggestions that Croydon Council’s failing housing department is being drastically improved under … Continue reading
