Leaseholders of Islington ex-local authority properties and our aim is to to ensure that Islington Council, its managing agent(s) and Partners, provide leaseholders with a better service and value for money
For Leaseholders when dealing with Islington Council
Those of you who have regularly attend the Associations monthly meetings over the last 17 years,
ILA meet at St Marys after being excluded from the TownHall
will be aware of the importance of the following list of Do’s & Don’ts in dealing with Housing based problems. (Many of which whilst appearing to be very obvious, need to be repeated continuously to be effective) So for those who do not know, and are new to these meetings…
Please be aware that the ILA Never gives or Offers any form of LEGAL ADVICE, or Recommendation…If you require legal advice we suggest you consult a professional such as, a SOLICITOR, SURVEYOR, BUILDER, LEASE. Etc..
However…
The following list of Do’s and Don’ts are simply observations drawn from 25 years of personal experience whilst dealing with Islington Council, as Chairman of both the ILA & FITA…and as a LEASEHOLDER…!!!
1 / never TALK to the council…Verbal promises, assurances, sympathy, are very easily forgotten, disputed, ambiguous, devious…also, staff leave, Die. Etc…So, PUT IT ALL ON PAPER…Letters, or/and Emails. THEN YOU CAN RELY ON THE CONTENT AND CONTEXT OF THE INFORMATION OBTAINED FROM ANY “CONVERSATION” and insist on acknowledgement to all email traffic. Never send originals bills Etc, always send photocopy’s…
2 / PHOTO’s are invaluable, there is no arguing with photographic evidence. If you haven’t already done so…photograph ALL available parts of your property, in as much detail as possible, ideally showing before and after repairs.Etc. Courts and Tribunals love photos…(I have hundreds of my property, both internal and external, and from a selection of angles)…
3 / When contacting the Council, alway’s start at the VERY top…The ILA can supply a list of all senior Council officers if required. Complaints and answers always reach their logically effective level while traveling Down from the Top…rather than Up from the bottom…
4 / Remember The Council only charge you what they pay out on your behalf, SO they do not charge you…They Re-Charge you…and you are therefore entitled to demand to see ALL the bills that they pay on your behalf…
5 / Do not shout at Council staff…they are usually just doing as they are told, and do so to retain their jobs. If you experience problems, email a senior employee and stress your disappointment with the service..Remember write NOT talk…
6 / Having unsolvable problems with Council Work, Staff, Policy, Including complaints procedure. Next step is an Official Complaint. Make sure you state at the top of your email/letter in large letters…“OFFICIAL STAGE ONE COMPLAINT”
7 / Still unhappy/not satisfied with the Council’s response to your complaint? Contact the HOUSING OMBUDSMAN and escalate your complaint…It cost you NOTHING and usually expedites the councils response to you complaint…
8 / Un-satisfied with the results of your complaint?… a/ Contact the ILA and see if we can assist in solving your problem. b/ Contact the LEASE organisation, this is completely FREE advice supported by government funding… c/ Still unhappy, book a hearing and decision at the First Tier Tribunal, they do charge a small application fee, but you can attend with or without a solicitor or surveyor and simply represent yourself and present information and argument from anyone you please…d/ Lastly you may decide to take the council to Court…However, the main problem here is that the courts do have, and often do award costs…Remember when defending leaseholders challenges at court, the council are using council funds to pay for terribly expensive legal representation, SO THEIR COSTS NEVER SEEM TO BE A PROBLEm, for them…!!!
9 / I have frequently found that highlighting the councils short comings in the local press…WORKS WONDERS. Even better still the National press and magazine coverage tends to provoke an instant action on many subjects, as does a quick statement on one of the news Channels but Massive viral coverage on the WEB is best of all…
10 / The simple secret to solving a housing problem, I have discovered, is to make One Individual totally responsible for the issue. When such a person is selected the problem remains attached to them personally, and in order to be seen to be doing their job property, they process the problem until its resolved to the leaseholders satisfaction…
11 / Another piece of information which is of extreme importance, is that frequently leaseholders emails /letters appear to disappear into the “wide blue yonder”, the way to counteract this effect is to ask questions under the Freedom of Information Act…this will always ensure that your questions are answered…and you can rely on the veracity of the content.
12 / Finally, a real instant money saver…Check your new service charge bill against all previous bills…we have found that the Councils accountancy and billing leaves much to be desired, so check all the “job numbers” for repairs on the bill…as you may have been charged for the same repair repeatedly for any number of years…However, this form of over charging can be re-claimed retrospectively by simply informing the COUNCIL that you have been OVER CHARGED…So…Do this NOW…
As stated this SHORT LIST is simply to assist leaseholders in their dealings with Islington Council, but I am quite sure that it is applicable to most, if not all Councils…
Please stay connected and attend our meetings every month… If you would like to be kept updated on events effecting leaseholders we will need your email address…
REMEMBER…You ARE the Islington Leaseholders Association…One of 11000 Islington leaseholders…!!!
Start a file of Council documents correlated by date. Keep ALL documentation with and from the Council Find and become familiar with your existing lease Obtain a copy of the OLD law on Leasehold Obtain a copy of the NEW Leasehold Law Check your s20’s
Knowledge is Power So defend yourself by acquiring information by attending our meetings.
ISLINGTON LEASEHOLDERS ASSOCIATION MEETING on WEDNESDAY
13th November 2024 in St Mary’s Church Upper Street (located approximately 100 yards from the Town Hall walking towards the Angel.) 7-9pm Meetings are still held on the second Wednesday of every month www.ila.org.uk
Please be aware that the ILA will still be taking place AS usual…But since the Council will no longer allow us the use of a room in the Town Hall we will re-locate as above…Please watch future posts for important up-dates on this situation…. 😥 and other developments…
Dr Brian Potter said it was disgraceful that the council won’t take bookings from the ILA
A FAMILIAR face is looking to upset a council by-election contest with the message that leaseholders are being treated as the “magic cash cows”.
Dr Brian Potter, the chair of the Islington Leaseholders Association (ILA), revealed this week he will be among the candidates on the Junction ward ballot.
It is the third council by-election in six months and comes in a year when voters have already taken part in the London and general elections.
Dr Potter is furious that the council has told the ILA that it can no longer book the Town Hall in Upper Street for its meetings.
It has held one there every month for the past 10 years.
“It’s disgraceful,” said Dr Potter who says the organisation, which represents a third of those living in the borough, no longer has a place to meet.
The action came after the ILA said it was un-invited to a council-run “home owners’ event”. Dr Potter decided to hand out leaflets for an ILA meeting outside this event, and at this point was approached by a council officer telling him that the association would not be allowed to use the space.
Dr Potter said: “We’re the best-attended meeting in the borough and now they won’t let us have a room. It’s crazy.
“If they were to do that to anyone else, it would go viral.” He added that he would be “getting on the internet” to spread awareness of the injustice.
The Town Hall say, however, that Dr Potter was not barred from the event last week and claim that the ILA can no longer use the council chamber because it does not represent the council.
The ILA advocates for the rights of leaseholders in the borough and says they are often hit by repairs bills totalling thousands of pounds that they cannot afford.
Dr Potter said: “We get extremely bad works, and the cost given by the council to leaseholders is astronomical and unjustifiable.
“The council are letting the contractors run riot. The billing is absolutely crazy.”
He added that his campaign in the Junction ward would raise awareness of the ILA and encourage “any leaseholders with problems” to contact the association.
“They just see us as the magic cash cow, we just keep producing money but it doesn’t matter what you do, you can’t justify these bills,” he said.
An Islington Council spokesperson said: “Here in Islington we’re determined to ensure that everyone has a safe and decent place to call home.
“As part of that we work closely with leaseholders to provide the best quality service, to keep them updated on any works that are being carried out and to ensure that these works offer value for money.
“We know that local people, including leaseholders, know their borough better than anyone and we’re committed to listening to their views.
“That’s why we’re in the process of setting up an independent Leaseholder Forum, which will give leaseholders the opportunity to share their views with the council, hold us to account, and be properly governed.”
The known candidates declared so far for the Junction by-election are James Potts from Labour, Rebecca Jones for the Liberal Democrats, Devon Osborne for the Greens, Jackson Caines from the Islington independents and now Dr Brian Potter.
Any other candidates need to have applied to stand by today’s (Friday’s) deadline.
