Squatters

'Sq-what' a waste of time

May 9 2003
By Robert Dex

South London Press

SQUATTERS are still living in six huge £500,000 houses three months after a council vowed to get rid of them.

The three-storey, five-bedroom homes in Brook Drive, Kennington, were due to be refurbished by Southwark council to house large families.

But squatters took over the properties in February and have been making themselves at home ever since.

Adrian Taylor lives near the squats and says the council has not done enough to get rid of the uninvited visitors.

He said: "We got a newsletter through our door a while back telling us there was a housing shortage in Southwark - well we've got six houses in this street at least.

"There was a screaming match in the middle of the road last Sunday at 1am.

"And we've had people being brought home by the police some nights.

"People living in this street have kids at home and they don't need to be woken up by this noise. We even have bongo players going on at all hours."

The houses were originally boarded up last April when the council evicted a different group of squatters.

The homes then sat empty until a new group took them over.

A council spokeswoman said legal action was under way.

She added: "We wanted to start work on June 2.

"We actually went to court last Monday and we are just waiting for the final exclusion notice from our legal department."

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