Profit-driven Bristol Catholic Priest increases homelessness and poverty
pigeon post | 24.10.2011 15:08 | Free Spaces
The Parish priest of St Patrick's in Redfield, Bristol, Rev. Gregory Grant, is the Chairman of PG Group, the body which is currently seeking an eviction order against the occupiers of the Factory Social Centre in Cave Street, Bristol. He is also the Chairman of the Grant Bradley Trust, the charitable body which benefits from the profits made by PG group and which claims to have as one of its aims "the relief of poverty and sickness by the provision of affordable housing and associated amenities for persons in need."
father gregory grant in portland square
THE PROFIT-DRIVEN FATHER GREGORY GRANT
The PG group and its associated Trust were set up by Fr. Gregory and the late Peter Bradley. PG is a development company, doing up properties around Bristol for profit and then giving a proportion of the profits to the Grant Bradley Trust. Although PG Group claims to be providing affordable homes, the properties on the PG website
http://www.thepggroup.co.uk/home/ certainly aren't. PG's developments are contributing to the gentrification of areas of Bristol like St Pauls where the Factory is situated, pricing those on low incomes out of both purchase and rental markets. In other words, the work of PG Group is making poverty worse, not better, at least in Bristol.
WHO WOULD JESUS EVICT - quite possibly violently - AND EXPLOIT?
Evicting an established and community-oriented project and making money at the expense of the poor don't seem like very Christian activities (Who would Jesus evict or exploit?), still less something a parish priest should be so intimately involved with.
Read more about PG and Fr. Gregory here:
http://freefactory.wordpress.com/the-pg-group/
COURT HEARING THIS WEEK
The eviction court hearing date was brought forward with just a few days notice from 31 October to this Wednesday, again not a very charitable or 'Christian' action. The Factory is organising a march and demonstration from midday on Wednesday 26 October. Get there to support if you possibly can. Full details:
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2011/10/487300.html
LET THEM KNOW WHAT YOU THINK
In the meantime, if you want to raise your concerns about the activities of Father Gregory Grant and the PG Group, here are some contacts:
Rev. Gregory Grant
Parish Office
St George's Heights
140B Church Road
Redfield
Bristol, BS5 9HN
Tel: 0117 955 7662
The PG Group can be contacted at:
Stewart Gaiger, Director
The PG Group
Stockwood Chambers
Cowper Street
Redfield
Bristol, BS5 9JL
Tel: 0117 955 5537 and Fax: 0117 902 1344
And you can contact the Bishop of Clifton Diocese (who oversees all the parish priests in the West of England):
Rt. Rev. Declan Lang
Saint Ambrose
North Road
Leigh Woods
Bristol, BS8 3PW
email:
declan.lang@cliftondiocese.com
Tel: 0117 973 3072
The PG group and its associated Trust were set up by Fr. Gregory and the late Peter Bradley. PG is a development company, doing up properties around Bristol for profit and then giving a proportion of the profits to the Grant Bradley Trust. Although PG Group claims to be providing affordable homes, the properties on the PG website
http://www.thepggroup.co.uk/home/ certainly aren't. PG's developments are contributing to the gentrification of areas of Bristol like St Pauls where the Factory is situated, pricing those on low incomes out of both purchase and rental markets. In other words, the work of PG Group is making poverty worse, not better, at least in Bristol. WHO WOULD JESUS EVICT - quite possibly violently - AND EXPLOIT?
Evicting an established and community-oriented project and making money at the expense of the poor don't seem like very Christian activities (Who would Jesus evict or exploit?), still less something a parish priest should be so intimately involved with.
Read more about PG and Fr. Gregory here:
http://freefactory.wordpress.com/the-pg-group/ COURT HEARING THIS WEEK
The eviction court hearing date was brought forward with just a few days notice from 31 October to this Wednesday, again not a very charitable or 'Christian' action. The Factory is organising a march and demonstration from midday on Wednesday 26 October. Get there to support if you possibly can. Full details:
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2011/10/487300.html LET THEM KNOW WHAT YOU THINK
In the meantime, if you want to raise your concerns about the activities of Father Gregory Grant and the PG Group, here are some contacts:
Rev. Gregory Grant
Parish Office
St George's Heights
140B Church Road
Redfield
Bristol, BS5 9HN
Tel: 0117 955 7662
The PG Group can be contacted at:
Stewart Gaiger, Director
The PG Group
Stockwood Chambers
Cowper Street
Redfield
Bristol, BS5 9JL
Tel: 0117 955 5537 and Fax: 0117 902 1344
And you can contact the Bishop of Clifton Diocese (who oversees all the parish priests in the West of England):
Rt. Rev. Declan Lang
Saint Ambrose
North Road
Leigh Woods
Bristol, BS8 3PW
email:
declan.lang@cliftondiocese.com Tel: 0117 973 3072
pigeon post
Additions
Details of today's court case for the record
26.10.2011 22:43
Posession was granted forthwith at approx 15:15hrs
The barrister acting for PG Group's apparent shell company Cave Street Ltd was a rather shy Michael Selway QC, who wouldn't tell me his Christian name, of Guildhall Chambers. Solicitors were Clarke Willmott.
The barrister acting for PG Group's apparent shell company Cave Street Ltd was a rather shy Michael Selway QC, who wouldn't tell me his Christian name, of Guildhall Chambers. Solicitors were Clarke Willmott.
Tony Gosling
Homepage:
www.thisweek.org.uk
Comments
Hide the following 3 comments
Stupid question?
24.10.2011 20:39
He probably has a seat on the board because he's heading this charitable trust, the purpose of which is is (trivial?) mitigation of what the development company is doing.
Hey, it's NOT particularly unusual for boards to include a one or two "outsiders" so that they can say "at least we give a VOICE to those interests". But they take care that this representation on the board is a small minority and so without enough votes to change business as usual.
You think such seats should be refused? Why precisely?. Besides at least providing "voice" every now and then there is a fight among the board and then a couple of votes can make a difference.
MDN
Yeah!
24.10.2011 21:20
If you have a look at the PG Group website, you can see that he's the Chair of the development company and a founder member with the late Peter Bradley. PG Group = P eter & G regory. He's also Chair of the Grant Bradley Trust... Gregory Grant & Peter Bradley.
He's quoted as saying "My idea of fun, is working out the best way to make money so we can find ways of giving it away." All very well except that his way of making money is to the detriment of ordinary Bristol people.
nun of the above
the deceitfulness of riches chokes the Word-Mark 4:19
25.02.2012 19:53
michelle