Dear fellow residents.
Yes, we are still here despite everything that happened in 2017. However, the Kingston Federation of Residents is in a transitional period.
We have been here for over 25 years working tiresely for the residents of Kingston. Sometimes our efforts have not been well received by some residents, but I can assure you that things have always been done with the best intentions in mind.
Kingston Federation of Residents has been run by residents for residents
over the past five years, receiving a grant from Kingston Council in order
to be able to reach out to more and more residents. During this time the voice of
combined residents’ associations was able to achieve better things for the
residents of Kingston, having an input into council housing policy and providing an advocacy service for residents who had problems with the council.
The Federation had some clout with the council due to its combined voice of residents. But in recent years we have seen resident-input being slowly eroded.
Things the Federation battled for years to create, such as the housing consultative committee – a meeting called by residents for residents to voice concerns directly to the Guildhall, the heart of decision making – were just simply stopped by the council. This showed the writing was on the wall for people who believed in the
residents’ voice. It was clear that voice was being silenced and at the beginning of 2017 that voice became a mere whisper when the Federation’s grant was stopped and it lost its office space at Tadlow, an office it had occupied for 20 years at least.
But despite the setbacks the Federation is still here, as demonstrated by this publication re-appearing after a successful bid for funding from the National Lottery, instigated by our brilliant company secretary Barry Mitchell and the
fantastic Matthew Page, one of the Federation’s directors and the Chair of
Glenbuck Court Residents’ Association, who is doing the leg work to keep the Federation alive. With a new outlook from people
involved, and a new direction being taken, the Federation is rebuilding its
status as a voice for the people. We are seeking even more grant funding and an office to re-establish ourselves – where this will be we don’t as yet know – but in the meantime we are still meeting to discuss policies and problems and we still voice our concerns via the Housing Sub-Committee.
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All groups associated with housing in Kingston need to come together to
tackle issues they have in common on topics such as health and well-being,
and also to battle for the rights of tenants.We need to be together to make sure
we as residents are not silenced and that we are once again a voice that
should be listened to.
If we act together, those in power will have no choice but to listen to us.
Harry Hall
Chair
Kingston Federation of Residents