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21
May
Ripon vicar issues statement amid eviction row
The vicar of Holy Trinity Church in Ripon has issued a statement about the eviction of a mother of four children from a flat run by a charity linked to the church.
Holy Trinity Properties Trust raises money for the church by letting four flats on Kirkby Road in the city.
It is governed separately to the church by three trustees.
The trust served a ‘no-fault’ eviction notice on one of its tenants, Linsey Reeves, 42, two days before the government banned the practice.
Ms Reeves told the BBC this week the family were "devastated" and feared becoming homeless. They have until the end of July to find a new home.
The decision by a charity linked to a church to issue a no-fault eviction, whereby landlords don’t have to give a reason for their actions, shortly before the practice was outlawed has shocked people in Ripon.
At last night’s (May 20) annual Ripon Parish Meeting, Councillor Andrew Williams, the Mayor of Ripon, read a statement by Reverend Phil Carman, which explained the church was not involved in the decision.
Revd Carman said:
This is a sensitive matter for all involved and it would not be appropriate to comment on individual tenancies. The property is managed by the Holy Trinity Properties Trust, which is an independent organisation with its own board of trustees and it is not church-run or managed by church officers.
Decisions about individual tenancies are taken by the trust board in consultation with their letting agent Linley and Simpson.
'This reflects on us all'
Former mayor John Richmond urged the city council to send a letter to the church, asking it to intervene, adding: “This surely reflects on us all, as Christians.”
Cllr Williams said:
“The church want to make it very clear that Holy Trinity Church are not directly involved at all either in the management of the property or decisions taken by the trustees.”
Cllr Williams said he had spoken with the chair of the trustees, who are due to meet tonight. He added:
I am hoping to meet with representatives of the trustees later this week to see what can be done to resolve the situation so this family don’t find themselves homeless at the beginning of July.
Mayor Andrew Williams (left) and former mayor John Richmond at Ripon Parish Meeting.
'We need to support this family'
Cllr Barbara Brodigan, whose Ripon Ure Bank and Spa division includes Kirkby Road, said she and her husband were given two months to evict their home at the end of January under the same legislation.
“I empathise completely with this family because I know what it’s like,” she said.
Cllr Brodigan said she too had spoken to the chair of trustees and Linley and Simpson and would meet the chair after tonight’s meeting.
The trust, she said, “cannot disclose any information because of data protection and neither can the letting agent”.
Cllr Brodigan added:
I personally doubt the decision will be changed but what we need to do is support this family into trying to find alternative accommodation so that they will not end up in a hostel.
No notice evictions were outlawed under the Renters' Rights Act from May 1.
Holy Trinity Properties Trust has three trustees — Robert Thew, Susan Crompton and Marjorie Warner — listed on the Charity Commission website.
According to its latest accounts, for the year ending December 31, 2024, it generated income of £41,180 and incurred expenditure of £67,950. Its total assets are £742,394.
The Stray Ferret has attempted to contact Linley and Simpson and Holy Trinity Properties Trust.
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