An 83 year-old grandmother says she has been made to feel like a “squatter” in sheltered housing after being pushed out of her home for eight weeks for repairs. Lambeth Central Hill estate resident Mlynn Thomas is in sheltered accommodation in West Norwood while Lambeth Council undertakes repairs to her kitchen that she says were meant to take just three days.
She told MyLondon : “I’ve been working in my community for 35 years, with Age Concern, St John’s Ambulance, and hosting a tea party for older residents every month for decades. I’m living in such a state now – I feel dead, just terrible.” Pensioner Mlynn, who has mobility issues, says she has no access to the kitchen while in sheltered accommodation, and is being forced to spend £9 a day on dinners, plus at least £16 a week on taxis.
Mlynn said she heard someone at the sheltered accommodation asking how long she has been living there, which was upsetting. “I feel like I’m squatting. I’ve been in this area since the 60s,” she added. Mlynn says she is losing weight and has involuntarily lost two dress sizes amid the stress of her living conditions.
READ MORE: The families forced to live on bottled water as dangerous levels of lead found in estate
Local Green Party councillor Pete Elliot has been helping her with her case. He told MyLondon: “She’s been living in a guest room without being told what’s going on for eight weeks. There are no home comforts.” Mlynn even took to occupying Lambeth Council’s building in anger over her treatment last week, demanding a meeting with a housing officer.
The 83-year-old, who moved into temporary accommodation on February 14, was previously stranded upstairs in her Lambeth Council flat as the authority had not installed a stairlift. Mlynn had been forced to wash in her bathroom basin for months and sleep downstairs rather than her upstairs bedroom. Lambeth Council’s property company, Homes for Lambeth, intends to rebuild the Central Hill Estate to create new homes, and some residents believe the council is running down the estate ahead of demolition.
Cllr Pete Elliot was speaking at the launch of the Green Party’s local elections campaign. Londoners vote to elect their new councillors on 5 May, and the Greens are hoping to secure more councillors in Lambeth, as well as winning their first councillors in Labour-dominated Newham.
Green Party co-leader Carla Denya told MyLondon at the event: “Residents are trying to resist the Labour council from knocking this estate down. It needs to be renovated and improved. It’s something that we see all over. Councillors should listen to their residents. The way the Labour party often operates tends to be centralised and top down – they don’t listen to the community.” She hit out at the “one party state” mentality of some Labour councils in London. Lambeth Council has been contacted for comment.
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Josiah joined MyLondon as the outlet’s first City Hall Editor in October 2021, reporting on the Mayor, the London Assembly, the Met police, Transport for London, and wider London politics.
He moved to South London from Brussels in 2015, working in communications for the Electoral Reform Society, and covering Westminster politics as a freelance journalist. Originally from Cornwall, he is now also a proud Londoner. Josiah has appeared on BBC Radio 4, Times Radio, LBC and other outlets to discuss current affairs and general political chaos.
If you have an untold story – whether it’s a housing nightmare, an unfair decision or a local scandal, get in touch at [email protected] or contact Josiah on Twitter.
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