Nearly half of Lambeth Council homes are substandard

The latest report from Lambeth Council shows that there has been an increase in the number of substandard homes in the borough from 30 per cent (March 2009) to 49 per cent.

During May's election campaign, Lambeth Workers Power highlighted that the council's own figures in its annual report showed that 50 per cent of homes were "Not Decent".

Now we learn that substandard homes in Lambeth have increased by more than 60 per cent since March 2009.



Lambeth Living crisis

The borough's Labour group set up Lambeth Living as an Arms Length Management Organisation (ALMO) in order to win £230 million funding from the then government. Lambeth Living has been in severe financial difficulties since its inception and has struggled to improve housing in the area.

But it still managed to pay out loads of money to consultants and appoint former Streatham MP and housing minister Keith Hill to lead it.

Now with the Con-Dem package of coalition cuts it is a possible that Lambeth Living won't receive any of its £230 million from the government, meaning that the residents will suffer.


The Lib Dems in Lambeth have put the blame on the "shambolic management of the housing stock" but their masters in Westminster are busily carrying out cuts that will worsen our local homes.

Fighting cuts in Lambeth
The revelation over the housing stock comes at the same time that the council is cutting about 400 jobs and closing services. We need a united campaign to fight the housing, public service and job cuts that should include trade unionists and workers; housing campaigners, community groups, pensioners and local people wanting to defend their services.


In Lambeth, the various campaigns and activists should come together in an anti-cuts committee which can link up the struggles and lead a fightback in the borough. An anti-cuts committee can also link up with other anti-cuts campaign such as the one in neighbouring Southwark and others nationwide in order to build a united national fightback.

We should also mobilise in support of a budget based on need; whatever money the people of Lambeth require to improve jobs and services, including raising the standard of housing, should be spent and demanded from the government. The bankers and the rich made this crisis and now are cutting our services to pay for it. We say make them pay.


• For a Lambeth-wide anti-cuts committee
• For a budget based on need
• Tax the rich, the banks and multinationals