Call for solidarity FROM St. Agnes Place and the Kennington Play Project in South London.
On Wednesday 23rd November 2005 at Brixton Town Hall, Lambeth Council will be holding a full council meeting. We want to discuss the future of St Agnes Place and the nearby Kennington Play Project. Their plan is to close the playground and knock down twenty one properties (52 54 56 58 60 62 64 66 68 70 72 74 75 77 79 81 83 85 87 89 and 91) in a £16m deal with London Quadrant Housing who want to buy the land.
For more than 30 years, the squatters of St Agnes Place have formed one of Britain’s most distinctive communities and have established themselves as a positive part of the wider community. The Kennington Play Project has offered a safe open-access play facility for local children which is as in demand now as it was over 25 years ago when it opened. Once the council takes a decision like this, the likelihood of further land sales and demolition in the area increases. Where will this stop and where will the children who use the playground go to play?
The demolition notice has already been served, and it is now a matter of time before they act on it. Lambeth Council has been trying to get rid of the residents of St Agnes Place for years – Councillor Keith Fitchett recently described them as ‘parasites’. This is the same man who is at the centre of a Council Housing fraud scandal which has recently cost £2.8m of tax payer?s money. Police fear this money may never be recovered and Fitchett may be forced to resign as a result. We are being expected to put our trust in a council which is knee deep in scandal and financial mismanagement.
The meeting on the 23rd is your opportunity to make your views heard. We need to let Lambeth know that their plans are totally unacceptable and will have an extremely negative impact on the local residents. The more people we can get down to Brixton Town Hall the better. Please pass this information on to your friends and arrange to meet at 6:00pm.
For further information please feel free to call: 07795 542 458