Emily Thornberry MP for Islington South and Finsbury: News: Minister marvels at Market makeover: "Minister marvels at Market makeover
25 January 2008, 4:50pm
Minister Caroline Flint MP (left) and local MP Emily Thornberry (right) with new and old Market Estate in the background Minister Caroline Flint MP (left) and local MP Emily Thornberry (right) with new and old Market Estate in the background
The new Housing Minister Caroline Flint MP, joined local MP Emily Thornberry and Holloway’s three Labour councillors earlier this week to the see the £40m transformation under way on the Market Estate in N7.
Under the Government's pledge to bring all social housing in Britain up to the Decent Homes Standard, Southern Housing Association was asked in 2003 - with the support of 88% of residents - to take over and rebuild the much-troubled estate.
In an ambitious scheme, the estate is being rebuilt in phases - allowing all current residents to move into new buildings as they are completed without the need for temporary decanting.
Visiting the estate just before her promotion to Housing Minister, Caroline Flint met representatives from Southern Housing Association to discuss the regeneration, and then visited local residents who have recently moved into their new homes.
Caroline said:
'Decent housing is fundamental to people having decent life chances, so I was"
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Union accuses Shelter bosses of bullying
Union accuses Shelter bosses of bullying
Gareth Jones
Relations between the trade union Unite and management at homelessness charity Shelter soured further this week as the union’s national secretary accused some Shelter bosses of using intimidatory tactics in negotiations over staff pay and contracts, and prepared to hold a ballot for strike action.
Shelter’s chief executive Adam Sampson said he “totally refuted” any allegation of intimidation or bullying by managers and said the charity had kept staff fully informed of the challenges it was facing and how it was attempting to deal with them.
Doug Nicholls, Unite’s national secretary, claimed the union had been left with no alternative but industrial action, and confirmed a strike ballot among Shelter’s 450 union members would begin before the end of the month and conclude in mid-February.
The dispute arose over proposed changes to the staff pay and grading structure, with employees expected to sign new contracts foregoing pay increments and extending the working week to 37.5 hours.
“Our members are very angry that they’ve been forced into considering strike action,” said Nicholls, “and we still hope that management will see sense. We are particularly angry at the bullying and intimidation being used by some Shelter management to seek to force staff to sign new, inferior contracts.”
He praised Shelter staff’s commitment to their cause, but added they couldn’t live on “dedication alone”.
“We recognise that Shelter, like many other voluntary organisations providing vital services across the UK, is facing a continuing funding crisis. But this is partly the result of the government’s competitive tendering system which is forcing down the price of services provided by Shelter’s housing aid centres, for instance.”
Shelter has argued that the changes are necessary for it to be able to compete for grants, particularly from the Legal Services Commission (LSC), from which it currently receives more than £3m a year, but Nicholls said employees should not be the ones to suffer as a consequence.
“Shelter’s argument is with the government and the LSC which is driving down services by cutting funding with little regard to the effect on quality of service. We will happily join with Shelter’s management in lobbying to reverse that injustice.”
However, Shelter chief executive Adam Sampson, said the charity “totally refutes” any allegation of bullying and intimidation. “We have been negotiating with the trade unions, staff and managers for the last nine months, and through emails, management briefings, and questions and answers we are trying to give all our staff all the information we can, while pointing out the reality and hard facts of the situation.”
He said the charity had always tried to keep staff fully up to speed with the changes that are taking place.
“These are very difficult times for the charity, and of course emotions are running high. But the key objective is to move forward in a way that will minimise the impact both on our hardworking staff and the thousands of vulnerable people we work with every day,” said Sampson.
22 January 2008
Gareth Jones
Relations between the trade union Unite and management at homelessness charity Shelter soured further this week as the union’s national secretary accused some Shelter bosses of using intimidatory tactics in negotiations over staff pay and contracts, and prepared to hold a ballot for strike action.
Shelter’s chief executive Adam Sampson said he “totally refuted” any allegation of intimidation or bullying by managers and said the charity had kept staff fully informed of the challenges it was facing and how it was attempting to deal with them.
Doug Nicholls, Unite’s national secretary, claimed the union had been left with no alternative but industrial action, and confirmed a strike ballot among Shelter’s 450 union members would begin before the end of the month and conclude in mid-February.
The dispute arose over proposed changes to the staff pay and grading structure, with employees expected to sign new contracts foregoing pay increments and extending the working week to 37.5 hours.
“Our members are very angry that they’ve been forced into considering strike action,” said Nicholls, “and we still hope that management will see sense. We are particularly angry at the bullying and intimidation being used by some Shelter management to seek to force staff to sign new, inferior contracts.”
He praised Shelter staff’s commitment to their cause, but added they couldn’t live on “dedication alone”.
“We recognise that Shelter, like many other voluntary organisations providing vital services across the UK, is facing a continuing funding crisis. But this is partly the result of the government’s competitive tendering system which is forcing down the price of services provided by Shelter’s housing aid centres, for instance.”
Shelter has argued that the changes are necessary for it to be able to compete for grants, particularly from the Legal Services Commission (LSC), from which it currently receives more than £3m a year, but Nicholls said employees should not be the ones to suffer as a consequence.
“Shelter’s argument is with the government and the LSC which is driving down services by cutting funding with little regard to the effect on quality of service. We will happily join with Shelter’s management in lobbying to reverse that injustice.”
However, Shelter chief executive Adam Sampson, said the charity “totally refutes” any allegation of bullying and intimidation. “We have been negotiating with the trade unions, staff and managers for the last nine months, and through emails, management briefings, and questions and answers we are trying to give all our staff all the information we can, while pointing out the reality and hard facts of the situation.”
He said the charity had always tried to keep staff fully up to speed with the changes that are taking place.
“These are very difficult times for the charity, and of course emotions are running high. But the key objective is to move forward in a way that will minimise the impact both on our hardworking staff and the thousands of vulnerable people we work with every day,” said Sampson.
22 January 2008
