Janice Asker is disabled. She is a regular feature seen around what little is left of Farnborough town centre. She, along with the other tenants of Firgrove Court, were forced out of their homes by Pavilion Housing Association, a totally owned subsidiary of First Wessex. Their homes have, along with half of the town centre, been demolished for an unwanted development by St Modwen, known across the country as the Developer from Hell for their destruction of town centres.

 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/06/401760.html

Board members of Pavilion sat on the planning committee that rubber-stamped the development! They were found guilty by the Standards Board for England of a very serious offence, then let off on the grounds that they had been badly advised by the borough solicitor!

 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2005/11/327535.html

Farnborough town centre has lost most of its retailers and more are planning to leave. It has all the hallmarks of a failing town centre: card shops, charity shops, boarded up shops, yobs hanging around.

 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/04/396016.html?c=on
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/04/397176.html?c=on
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/04/397758.html?c=on
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/06/401765.html?c=on
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/07/402534.html

Things are so bad, that even the card shops and charity shops are now pulling out, as they have already done in nearby Aldershot.

Poetic justice, St Modwen is now facing bankruptcy.

 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/10/411503.html

As is possibly First Wessex.

 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/04/396859.html

Janice Asker, along with several other former tenants at Firgrove Court, was forced to relocate to an ugly block of flats, vastly inferior to the homes they were forced to leave. Their homes at Firgrove Court, social housing, demolished for a car park!

Janice Asker has now been served with a Possession Order by Pavilion, claiming she owes Pavilion rent.

Since being forced out of her home at Firgrove Court, Janice Asker has not received a penny in compensation, not been reimbursed for her moving expenses. Far from owing Pavilion money, it is Pavilion that owes her money!

This treatment of their tenants is the norm, and bodes ill for any council tenant who thinks they are better off being privatised.

Peter Sandy, a Pavilion tenant on one of their slum estates in Aldershot, has recently had his home trashed by Pavilion, they called it renovation. They brought down part of wall, destroyed rare and first edition books, ripped down a light fitting and threw it away, killed the family pet bird, damaged white goods, left the house in a filthy state for he and his wife to clear up the mess. The stress of what happened made his wife Doris very ill. Peter Sandy has filed a claim for compensation.

Earlier in the year, Peter Sandy was threatened by Pavilion for daring to criticise them.

 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/04/396759.html

During the summer, Andrew Lloyd, chief executive Rotten Borough of Rushmoor, visited one of the slum estates in Aldershot, following his crass, ill-informed comment that things were getting better. Tenants asked that he come and see for himself and not talk a load of nonsense. He has done nothing since his visit, not even kept people informed of any progress. He has all the time in the world to meet up with developers and push their unwanted agendas, but no time for tenants on slum estates.

Things must be getting bad on the Pavilion slum estates, as Labour councillors who up until recently were claiming things were improving (they actually weren't) are now circulating the slums estates with a flyer regarding the poor state of the estates. Or are they simply looking ahead to the May 2009 local elections?

In Farnham, the Tory-controlled Waverley council is trying to sell off its council housing. This follows the unsuccessful attempt to sell off the stock when under Lib Dem control. First Wessex are waiting in the wings, hope to snap up a bargain, to add to their growing property empire.

 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2005/01/303958.html
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2004/02/285538.html
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2005/12/330415.html
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2006/01/332593.html

Council tenants in Farnham need to take a look at the Pavilion slum estates in Aldershot and ask the Pavilion tenants how they are treated to see what will happen to them and their homes if they are foolish enough to vote yes to privatisation. Tenants on the Pavilion slum estates in Aldershot and Farnborough were once council tenants and regret they day they ever agreed to the sell-off of their homes.

Defend Council Housing are holding a Housing Conference Tuesday 25 November 2008 at University College London, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HY.

 http://www.defendcouncilhousing.org.uk/

web

 http://www.heureka.clara.net/surrey-hants/
 http://www.defendcouncilhousing.org.uk/

background

Keith Parkins, Pavilion – the new slum landlords, Indymedia UK, 9 April 2008
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/04/396006.html?c=on

Keith Parkins, Pavilion asbestos scandal, Indymedia UK, 14 April 2008
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/04/396456.html

Keith Parkins, Pavilion gets greedy, Indymedia UK, 15 April 2008
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/04/396672.html?c=on

Pavilion threaten critics, Indymedia UK, 16 April 2008
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/04/396759.html

Keith Parkins, Pavilion facing bankruptcy?, Indymedia UK, 17 April 2008
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/04/396859.html

Keith Parkins, Housing association police state, Indymedia UK, 16 June 2008
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/06/401291.html?c=on

Keith Parkins, Firgrove Court demolition to begin soon, Indymedia UK, 23 June 2008
 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/06/401760.html