CHA's privatisation of community space

For 30 years - since long before Community Housing Association/One Housing Group took control of Hillview Estate - no.1 Midhope had been a community space available for use to all who lived on the estate. But a few months ago our landlord CHA, without warning, changed the locks and so denied access to the keyholders of Hillview Residents Association and the wider Hillview community. Since then we've been told by CHA officials that 'all CHA community spaces must make a profit'. But CHA is officially registered as a charity (yes, amusing, isn't it?) so why the talk of profit making? Ah, well, that was a temporary slip of the tongue - CHA/OHG usually call it a "surplus". Even though OHG are expanding property speculators - using tenants' homes as assets to lend against/as security for investment risks - and the top management personnel get massive wages several times the average wage of most of their tenants, regular well above-inflation pay rises, and a big fat pension waiting at the end of the line THERE IS NO PROFIT. Nobody profits, got that?

Since CHA privatised 1 Midhope they have insisted that anyone who wants to use the space must pay a commercial rate of £30 an hour. (We believe - and hope - there have been no takers so far.) CHA say this is the same policy across all their estates and that the charge helps cover costs of electricity bills and cleaning etc. But tenants already pay for all these costs in their service charge - so CHA are trying to charge us twice for use of 1 Midhope!

There is a regular youth club in no. 1 Midhope; but this is also used by kids who don't live on the estate - so why should tenants also pay the bills for what is a public youth club? If it is available to the general public then the council, government and/or CHA should bear the cost as they do for other similar public services. Otherwise Hillview tenants are paying twice again - by the service charge and by paying taxes. We intend to challenge this. Feel free to write to CHA and ask for an explanation.

Hillview Residents Association (HRA) have been using and managing 1 Midhope for 30 years and holding its meetings there. But since CHA's change of locks coup they have insisted that HRA phone up to book usage of the room - then couriers will be sent to deliver the keys at the time the room is booked for. All this extra cost for couriers will presumably be added on to our future service charges, as the £30 fee charged for the room will probably be eaten up by courier costs. A typical example of the financial efficiency and common sense of CHA/OHG...

The privatisation of no. 1 Midhope is a small incident - but one that shows the larger general attitudes of CHA/OHG towards tenants and finances.