Have you ever been charged a fee for not having something? Canal & River Trust announced on 19th September 2023 that from 1st April 2024 it will impose an escalating 5% to 25% surcharge over 4 years on the licence fees of boats without a permanent mooring, and increased surcharges for wide-beam boats. This is on top of above-inflation increases to all boat licence fees over the next 4 years, starting with a 6% increase in April 2024. Section 17 of the British Waterways Act 1995 makes it clear that the licence to use the waterways can be held either with or without a permanent mooring. MORE INFORMATION Canal & River Trust has already raised boat licence fees by 8% in 2022 and 9% in 2023. The 6% increase and surcharges are on top of that already vastly inflated sum. Taking the escalating surcharges together with annual above-inflation increases, we estimate that by 2028, the licence for a narrowboat will cost 64% more, and for a wide-beam 130% more, if they don’t have a permanent mooring. We think this surcharge is unfair. It penalises a minority in favour of the majority. We are only 20% of the boats, yet Canal & River Trust want us to pay a surcharge to keep fees down for the majority of licence payers. The surcharge is a direct attack on our nomadic way of life, designed to pressurise us to move off the water. It will generate 0.6% of Canal & River Trust’s total income. Canal & River Trust says it aims to “balance pricing and affordability” in a way which is “fair” to all boaters. It would be much fairer to add another 1% to all 35,000 licences, instead of picking on a minority of 7,000 boats. The surcharge is not about raising finance, it’s about marginalising our community. Most of us live on our boats, and many will be at risk of losing our homes if we can’t afford the licence fee. Socio-economic change has made living on the waterways without a permanent mooring the only route to affordable housing for many people. We are on the lowest incomes of all boaters. If a boat dweller cannot afford to license their boat, their home can be seized, removed and sold by Canal & River Trust under Section 8 of the British Waterways Act 1983. Please sign our petition and help us to make sure the surcharge is defeated now!

Hostile architecture perpetuates systemic inequality by excluding and marginalising homeless individuals from public spaces, reinforcing stigma, and violating basic human rights. It's a manifestation of a larger issue of homelessness and housing insecurity that affects vulnerable populations worldwide. By advocating for compassionate solutions and inclusive urban design, we can create communities where everyone is valued and respected, regardless of their housing status. Together, we can make a meaningful difference in the lives of those who are most in need.

Currently private landlords need no reason to evict you. They just need to give you two months' notice and you have to uproot your life and find a new place to live. No-fault evictions let landlords bully tenants into staying quiet about disrepair or accepting unaffordable rent increases. It means you can never really know if you can trust your landlord or how long you can stay in your home. Five years after they promised to scrap them, new laws are being held up by a few dozen MPs who want landlords to keep calling the shots. But because of support from other parties, the Prime Minister has the votes he needs to make the laws reality, but newspapers are reporting that he's still refusing to schedule the vote because of a small number of rebel MPs. If enough of us come together, we can force the Prime Minister to do what’s right and ban no-fault evictions NOW!

This is equally if not worse than the post office scandal The government is aware Leaseholders are trapped in homes they cannot sell, there have been suicides, bankruptcies, severe mental health issues, all because freeholders are literally fleecing LH We cannot sell, mortgage and the properties are not maintained? Wales, and England are the only countries in the world with this feudal system, which the conservatives will NOT change as most are freeholders themselves

This seems to be a huge problem at the moment for people of all walks of life. If you join this campaign and sign the petition we could together make a change so people can more easily find a home to live in. The more people who sign, the better..Especially if they are being forced to, as I and many others are right now. Sign this petition to get the Government to change this awful and unattainable for some, requirement for a Guarantor and upfront costs, which we don't all have, in order to have a roof over our heads. People are being forced to find new homes in too short a space of time ordered out in 2 months time by our Landlords..and fighting for homes to rent with hundreds or more of other people in a 'comperition'. Let's get this changed.

Over the last decade, we have participated in hundreds of meetings, investing our time, energy, and money in the fight for our basic rights. We attempted to collaborate with Newham Council by developing our community plan and setting up a co-production Steering Group. We waged a determined battle to rid ourselves of MEARs, the outsourced landlord that charged high rents for living in disrepair. Although we successfully compelled Newham Council to transfer the management back to its own hands, our unsafe living conditions and uncertainty continues. Despite winning investments for our homes following a petition from over 90% of residents, our housing issues persist, as the root causes are often ignored and we are left in the uncertainty and insecurity of temporary tenancies. Our physical and mental health has suffered from the stress of insecure tenancies, living in unsafe homes and the closure of community spaces and high streets. Many among us, including our children, have been left disabled or chronically ill due to these living conditions. Each morning brings the uncertainty of receiving a letter that could uproot us and place us in another temporary property outside the area. We face the threat of eviction if we refuse these offers and want to stay in our homes and community. Given these exceptional circumstances, we are asking Rokhsana Fiaz (Mayor of Newham), Darren Levy (Director of Housing), and Donna Morelli (Assistant Director of Housing) to use their authority and exercise discretion. The urgency of our situation cannot wait any longer for the regeneration. We need them to facilitate the transfer of all our temporary council tenancies to permanent, secure council tenancies. We need your support to get them to listen. Please show your solidarity by signing this petition and spreading the word. We all deserve a safe and permanent home. #PermanentSafeHomesNow #KeepOurCommunityTogether See full demands here: https://bit.ly/PEACH-demands

Students are facing financial struggles and feel exploited by Unite Students in Joseph Stones accommodation. Considering the substantial amount we are paying, the return on our investment appears to be disproportionately low. This raises questions about the allocation of our funds and prompts us to inquire where exactly our money is being utilised.

New laws are being developed that are meant to give renters in England better rights, but they only protect renters for SIX MONTHS before a landlord can decide to sell their house or move in, and if that happens, renters will only be given a measly eight weeks to find a new home. We all deserve to be secure in our homes, and at a time when the number of rental homes are at an all-time low, this isn’t good enough. [1] The Government originally said that renters should be given two years of protection, but have since backtracked. [2] This means that despite claiming that “no-fault” evictions will be abolished, landlords will still be able to throw renters out of their home if they decide to sell up or move in themselves. [3] These laws are being debated right now, so if enough of us come together to demand stronger protections from eviction, they’ll be forced to listen. Six months is NOT enough time to make a house a home before being at risk of losing it: sign and share the petition today to demand renters get a secure home! [1] https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tenancy-reform-renters-reform-bill https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-67543835 [2] https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/a-new-deal-for-renting-resetting-the-balance-of-rights-and-responsibilities-between-landlords-and-tenants [the original proposal can be found in paragraphs 3.16-3.19 of the consultation response] [3] https://www.gov.uk/guidance/guide-to-the-renters-reform-bill

Make sure we keep our parcels safe and correctly delivered to our flats. No more missing parcels!

The Keepmoat development in the Central Park area of Darlington is a consistent issue for residents. The residents of Central Park have had to put with years of delays from Keepmoat. They deserve to live in an area that is continuously used as a building site. Ensure the roads are of a high standard in which the Council can take ownership, creating a paved area at John Dixon Lane/John Williams Boulevard and the promised bus gate, and ensuring all construction has ended.

It's important because there are a lot of families displaced or living far from where they work because they can't afford housing in popular tourist areas which are also their home villages and where their families live

We implore you to join us in our campaign as we believe that adequate housing is a basic human right. Many asylum seekers have fled from persecution and violence, experiencing extreme trauma in the process of being displaced from their original homes. It is vital that they get support and the human right to the safety of their own home.