15/09/2026
HASL members turned out in force this morning to try and stop Southwark council passing their new disastrous housing waiting list rules which will push homeless families and severely disabled households down the waiting list, worsen overcrowding, and give even more power to council officers to make up rules as they go along.
The council has been trying to rush through the new policy and have ignored 390 consultation responses from HASL in their efforts to pass their unpopular new rules.
With only 1 weeks notice that the Executive committee would be meeting to vote on the new housing allocations policy, HASL mobilised 150 members outside Southwark Town Hall on the morning of the vote. We mobilised from 10am to ensure that we could engage with councillors before the vote took place at 11am. We chanted ‘vote no’ to every councillor entering the building to make sure our message was heard loud and clear.
Unsurprisingly, the councillors in the Executive committee meeting passed the new policy. But we're ready to continue the fight! As warned the councillors at our protest this morning, HASL members will be taking legal action against the new policy and that we'll be continuing our campaigning. As we chanted together this morning “We’ll be back!”
And there was not just one housing protest this morning outside Southwark Council HQ but two housing protests as residents from St James Estate in Bermondsey are fighting evictions by their rogue landlord and Southwark council's complicity with these evictions. It was great to hear from them and their struggle - together we are stronger✊
