I am, therefore, very pleased to have been involved in a new Association of Retained Council Housing publication entitled Home truths: tenants’ tales of council housing, which was launched yesterday at the ARCH annual tenants’ conference in Milton Keynes.
Home truths describes council tenants and their homes as they really are and not as the media makes them out to be. Council tenants have all too often been wrongly portrayed as somehow second class and living on grotty estates beset by anti-social behaviour. It’s time for a better, more realistic image for council housing that shows council tenants are no different to anyone else.
This is why we wanted ordinary residents in local authority homes across England to tell their stories in this booklet. People such as 82-year-old community champion Rene Brown from Birmingham; Maria Hason, who runs a charity for terminally ill people from her south Derbyshire council bungalow; my neighbour here in West Lancashire, Mandy Hardwick, who works as a cook in a local special school and says she wouldn’t move even if she won the lottery. Or families in North Kesteven, who are overjoyed to move into new, eco-friendly homes.
The ARCH Tenants’ Group ensures the views of those of us who live in stock-retained council housing are heard. We are not claiming for a minute that everything is perfect. There are certainly challenges ahead. But we believe council housing can provide a secure base upon which to build lives for individuals, families and communities and we wanted to demonstrate the more upbeat side of life in council homes.
Jennifer Holmes is chair of ARCH Tenants’ Group
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Readers' comments (11)
Chris | 20/05/2011 10:22 am
Strength to your elbow Jennifer - I wonder how widely the Tory press will cover your campaign though, in favour of their delight in blaming you and your peers for ever ill that stalks the land. I can hope.
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MBPB | 20/05/2011 11:16 am
The kind of story that raises the spirits. The problem for council tenants is that there are just a handful of politicians that will listen to ARCH and DCH and so we get the ongoing stigmatisation from their failed policies and the ill-conceived Localism ideas for the near future. One day (and it might take some time) it will be time to sit around the table and sort the mess out and hopefully ARCH and DCH will have a seat at the table.
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Matt Murdock | 20/05/2011 1:02 pm
Also worth praising the ARCH Tenant of the Year which was awareded at the conference yesterday. The tenant, from Lewes DC, set up a Credit Union which, they estimate, has saved local residents thousands of pounds in repayment charges to other 'dodgy' lenders. One of the lenders has stopped operating in the area and the scheme is being expanded to two other locations.
Another uplifting story about council residents!
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MBPB | 20/05/2011 1:04 pm
Would like to see DCH and ARCH join forces to be reckoned with, they both share the same goals after all.
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Bill Pearson | 21/05/2011 11:32 am
Hi Jenny
Wish we had never supported the transfer at least when we were with the council we had some councilors who would stick up for the us tenants. Now we have no one both the council and the tenants were not told the full story and there is a trail of broken promises from day one. we have had to take our case to the Independant Complaints
Reviewer and now the Parliamentary Ombudsman after being given the run around by Green Vale and the TSA.
More power to your elbow. Regards Bill BSTMO
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MBPB | 21/05/2011 11:49 am
An option for tenants to transfer back might prove popular?
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SIMON COOK | 23/05/2011 0:14 am
Well well I always wondered where you had been hiding. I wonder if your new colleagues know what a brilliant strategist they have in their midst. Never thought you would come out of retirement!!!!
Good luck with your new fight, to my knowledge you have never lost one yet!!!!!
Still with the firm if you need help Simoncc007
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kass | 23/05/2011 9:54 am
While one can appreciate this so-called positivennes of the article, surely it is no much balm to millions of social residents...
How can tenants feel proud at a time like this with landlords and government undermining security of tenancy, level of rents, services and support getting worse and wholesale downing down and out of social housing?... I would have thought tenants are now upset, frustrated and angry.
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MBPB | 23/05/2011 11:36 am
You are spot on kass but perhaps that is what Jennifer and ARCH are trying to do .... sow the seeds of much needed change? It is certainly a welcome change from the ongoing kicking that tenants get from government and the popular stigmatisation from those slightly better off.
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patriciadartlady | 23/05/2011 3:24 pm
As a member of ARCH and a Council House tenant I totally agree with what Jennifer says. It is so good to have someone saying things as they are. We need to keep moving forward and in Cornwall, where I live that is exactly what we are doing.
Pat Jago
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