Simon Lee, secretary of Hastings Area Southern Housing Tenants’ Association, describes the chaos unfolding as Southern Housing repair Bevin Court so it can be demolished. Shirley lives a quiet life on the tenth floor. She loves her neighbours and often has her meals with Jennifer and Brian who live a few floors lower. Their support…
Merlin Betts News in brief involves a Hex journalist summarising the news displayed in another local media outlet for that week or fortnight. The summaries will likely include personal comments and additional research not present in the original article. If you don’t like that, well, you were warned. Last week’s news in brief was covering…
On 29 March, Hastings Assembles held a community assembly for two hours in Hastings Town Centre, for local people to meet and discuss the planned changes to local government, including the plan to abolish Hastings Borough Council and bring in a new elected mayor for all of Sussex. The afternoon kicked off with Julia Hilton, leader of Hastings council, explaining the overall…
Grace Lally Shared from Hastings Extinction Rebellion, summarising points Grace made at a public discussion on 5 October 2024. Environment v Housing Need? Why do we NEED to build new housing? REAL reasons to build new housing? Myth 1: New houses are more sustainable Other environmental impacts of construction Myth 2: We have a shortage…
Merlin Betts This week it feels like reminders of the obvious. Roadworks go on well past their timeframe. The pier might get slightly less noisy – maybe. Ill-conceived housing schemes push onward under Labour’s national encouragement. Southern Water embarrasses itself, and Helena Dollimore quotes facts and figures according to her latest sealed instructions from Labour…
Merlin Betts Sandrock Bends, an ancient woodland and wildlife corridor to Sussex Weald, is being considered for housing by a private developer. Campaign group Save Sandrock Bends (SSB) say that the terrain and water infrastructure cannot cope with the removal of plants and building of houses, with their foundations and sewage needs. They suggest that…
Merlin Betts Hey reader. I’ve gone a bit rogue here and written you a 4,000 word article. I realise in this day and age that makes it less appealing to read. I’ll probably break down parts of it into other shorter articles, but in the meantime this is my best attempt at a proper overview…
David Williams For this article, I had a chat with Mat, the current project leader at the Hastings Bike Project (HBP). We talk about the origins, past, present and future plans of the project, as well as the challenges and joys of cycling, mastering the mechanics and running a community bike workshop. A Little Goes…
Sharon Moore writes about the upheaval and mixed emotions surrounding Southern Housing’s sudden demolition announcement. Four courts or not Four Courts? That is apparently not the question. Imagine our surprise when, Tuesday 18 February, with no prior notice or consultation, everyone in Bevin Court had a pamphlet pushed through the door telling us, they –…
Andrea Cowhig, Treasurer of Hastings Area Southern Housing Tenants Association (HASHTA) recalls how the tenants’ association started, discusses Southern Housing’s ongoing miscommunications and contradictions, and recounts her battle with damp and mould. So, my journey first started when I saw Southern Housing Action which was an online community for tenants of Southern Housing that have had…