Activists occupy homes left empty for a decade

Campaigners say they occupied two blocks on Saturday

Housing campaigners say they illegally occupied empty government-owned flats in north London in protest at them being left vacant for a decade.

Activists from the group Housing Rebellion say they entered the units, which are inside the grounds of HMP Pentonville, on Saturday.

The group, which left the flats the same day, is calling for the 3-4 bedroom homes to be filled with local families in need of accommodation.

The Ministry of Justice (MoJ), which owns the homes, says it is "looking for the best way to use the property".

The 28 flats on Wellington Mews and Roman Way were previously occupied by prison officers.

One of the campaigners who entered the blocks, Tamsin Stirling, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): "The flats were occupied to highlight the outrageous fact that these homes have been left empty for so long while many, many families are living in cramped temporary accommodation with little chance of being rehoused.

"Three and four-bedroom homes are in particularly short supply."

Currently, there are 15,000 households waiting for council homes in the borough of Islington, while more than 1,000 households are living in temporary, council-run accommodation.

"The longer they are kept empty, the worse they will get, but it's fundamentally a good building," she said.

Ms Stirling added that passers-by supported the protest and were "shocked" the flats had been empty so long.

The Met Police said officers were called to the protest, but no arrests were made.

Housing Rebellion says the flats are in a "shocking" state and will get worse if they are left empty

The MoJ has paid £600,000 in council tax on the flats over the past seven years, according to the LDRS.

Under government rules, it must now pay 300% council tax, the rate charged for homes vacant for a decade or more.

The MoJ said an application to build new homes on the site had been turned down by Islington Council in 2021, a decision later upheld by the planning inspector.

Islington Council said the MoJ had not made a planning application since.

Councillor Diarmaid Ward, executive member for finance, planning and performance, said the council had been "fighting" for many years to get the flats into use for local families.

"If the MoJ want to talk about how we can work together to get these desperately needed homes back into use, my door is always open. I will happily meet with them as early as this afternoon,” he said.