CONTENTS

1 Future Resident (including leaseholder)  engagement with Newlon
2 The definitive date for establishing residency for both Old and New Barnsbury leaseholders
3 Refurbishment work in Old Barnsbury
4 Legal Advice for Old Barnsbury leaseholders

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Hello, the weather has been a bit crazy lately but we hope that you’re enjoying the summer and getting away for a holiday without too many extra hoops to jump through. Here is an update for what has been happening with the Old Barnsbury refurbishment. As ever, if you find out any information that could be useful to the group, please email us: barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com

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1. Future Resident (including leaseholder)  engagement with Newlon

As you know, currently, there is no Residents’ Association at Barnsbury but Newlon’s community team (led by Graham Watts and Emma Preston-Dunlop) has started a new initiative to help establish one. It’s very early days, but a meeting was held in early July with c.10 residents (mix of leaseholders and tenants, Old & New Barnsbury) to discuss the broad principles. The meeting included two of the Old Barnsbury resident leaseholder reps, and a New Barnsbury resident leaseholder rep. had also been invited.

It was suggested that this Group starts informally, potentially split into sub-groups (including Old and New Barnsbury, Leaseholders etc) and a follow up meeting is to be held in August to draft a terms of reference.

We have suggested that both Source and New Barnsbury Leaseholder reps – resident and non-resident – are invited along to the group. We’ll update next month and share the draft terms of reference. If anyone is keen to get directly involved, please email barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com and we can pass your details on, bearing in mind that Emma and Graham are keen that the group is not dominated overall by leaseholders or tenants and is generally as diverse as possible. The role this new group will play in developing the Residents’ Charter etc is to be further bottomed out at the next meeting. Watch this space.

Note: Source is still available to provide independent support to residents and leaseholders – they have advised that their current commission through Newlon runs up until the submission for planning permission.

Section 20 process explained +  find out what we can about the planned refurbishment of Old Barnsbury and impacts for leaseholders Newlon (Bill Henderson & Symon Sentain) and Source have confirmed that they will hold a zoom meeting session for leaseholders on Thursday 5th August 6-8pm. 

Please hold the date and try to join this session, you’ll receive more details from Source including details of how to register for the session but please reserve the slot now in your diaries. Lots of very helpful information will be shared and you’ll have an opportunity to ask questions.

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2. The definitive date for establishing residency for both Old and New Barnsbury leaseholders

Source expects this to be the target date of submitting the planning application but this is still to be confirmed by Newlon. On the issue of the potential sliding scale of costs to apply where the residential status of an Old Barnsbury leaseholder changes,  no updates have been made to the draft charter in this respect, but Source continues to flag the position with Newlon so we have much more certainty on this point.  It is something we can also press for as the draft Residents’ Charter gets developed and raise at the Leaseholder meeting on 5th August.

3. Plans for Refurbishment work in Old Barnsbury

On our behalf, Source has been seeking clarity on the phasing / cost of recharges of works for Old Barnsbury but this detail is still unconfirmed. We understand from Source that  Newlon is currently conducting surveys of Old Barnsbury.  We can ask more about this at the Leaseholder Section 20 meeting on August 5th.

4. Legal Advice for Old Barnsbury leaseholders

Thank you to everyone who has responded and committed to sharing our initial legal costs, we are now close to commissioning this independent expertise. Contribution payment details have been sent out. It’s not too late for anyone who has yet to respond to offer a contribution!  Please see recent emails sent to all of the Group’s Old Barnsbury Leaseholders. Any questions, please email the Old Barnsbury reps barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com

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Many thanks from your Old Barnsbury Leaseholder Reps
barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com

CONTENTS – 1 Key Docs Review Going Ahead – 2 Lease Types – 3 Ballot Turnout Letter – 4 Changes to Phasing? – 5 Many Qs about Newlon’s new Residents’ Group – 6 New NB Rep – 7 How to catch up on past NB updates

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Hello and apologies for the silence from us over the past couple of months. With lockdown easing it’s been a busy time for everyone. And to be honest there hasn’t been much to report back to you since our last update in April. No news about Newlon’s search for an investment partner, and we haven’t had any recent meetings with Source. As ever, if you find out any information that could be useful to the group, please email us: barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com

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1. Key Documents Review Going Ahead

Key Documents Review – Thank you for your donations to our legal fundraiser. We raised enough to go ahead with the document review, and the documents have been sent to Compulsory Purchase Valuer Keith Murray to look at. We will be in touch with you when we receive his report. 

Keith is one of the most experienced and respected CPVs in the country, and working with him so far has been straightforward and informative. Please see his website for more info – HERE

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2. Lease types on New Barnsbury

Fewer than one in four of you fed back to us about the type of lease they had. Based on the small number of people we heard from, we were able to select 3 representative leases that have been submitted to Keith Murray along with the Offer Document and Draft Residents Charter. 

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3. Ballot Turnout Letter

Ballot turnout letter – all leaseholders (res AND non-res) should have received a letter to their home address (the address held by Newlon on their database) with information about the turnout and majority of the ballot. If you did not receive this letter, please contact Newlon to make sure they have the right address for you. 

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4. Potential changes to Phasing (aka when your block will be knocked down and when your flat will be bought back by Newlon)

Source has reminded us that the Phasing outlined in the Offer Document may well be subject to change between now and planning permission being granted/construction beginning (approx. spring 2022). This makes it very difficult for any of us to plan the next few years. All we can do is wait and see, and ensure we share information as it emerges.

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5. Lots of questions about Newlon’s new “Residents Group”

A small number of leaseholders were approached personally by Newlon recently to join a (new?) Residents’ Group set up by Newlon. A couple of the Reps (one New Barns, the other Old) will go along to the first meeting to find out what it’s all about. 

We have many questions: What is the function of the group? Is it to shape the Residents Charter? Where is the formal TRA (tenants and residents association) that Source said they’d help us set up? Will this new “Residents Group” be representative – i.e. will it have 20% leaseholders like the estate does? Is the system for choosing members fair? Will both Old and New Barns be represented equally? Will non-resident leaseholders be represented? Will this new Group actually have any power or influence? 

So far we haven’t been able to get any of these questions answered. We will get back in touch when things become clearer.

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6. Additional New Barnsbury Rep

I’m delighted to say that another New Barnsbury Leaseholder (resident on the estate) has volunteered to help to run the leaseholders group. We’re very grateful to her, and we’ll introduce her once she’s had a chance to find her feet.

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7. Catch up on past updates

All the New Barnsbury and whole-group updates since before the ballot have been copied onto this blog – so if you think you have missed something, scroll down and have a look.

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Many thanks from your New Barnsbury Leaseholder Reps
barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com

CONTENTS – 1 Fundrasing update – 2 Lease review last chance – 3 HELP Ten minutes leafletting please! – 4 Timescale for NB redev – 5 NB blocks with outstandin repairs – 6 Early buy-backs – 7 Res/non-res cut-off date – 8 Lost rental income compensation

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1. Fundraising update

Thank you so much to the 17 of you who have contributed to legal costs via our GoFundMe campaign which ends Fri 30th April. Unfortunately, with 3 days to go, we have only raised half (£925) of the £2000 that we need for specialist legal review of the key documents relating to the redevelopment.

I will send reminders today to the leaseholders who haven’t yet responded/contributed, and see if anyone responds (we can see who is/isn’t opening our emails!) If we don’t meet our target by Friday (it seems unlikely that we will) we’ll have to have a rethink.

The fastest and most guaranteed option is to double up on the contributions of all of us who have given already, and limit legal information sharing to that group. If you’d be happy to do this, please do go ahead, and we are very likely to hit our goal.

• Another option is to extend the fundraising drive by weeks or months (though this is more work for me that I can’t take on at the moment).
• Alternatively, we could abandon the legal review and go it alone. This is very much a last resort!
• If you have any other fundraising ideas that you would like to put into action yourself, let me know via barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com
  
  Many thanks, Annie (NB Rep)

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2. LAST CHANCE to compare your lease against our samples – Fri 30th April deadline
   Please see our previous update emails or our blog for information on this.

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3. HELP NEEDED – Could you spare 10 minutes to put leaflets through a few doors in your block?

We need volunteers to leaflet the New Barnsbury Leaseholders who aren’t in our group, so we can ensure as many Leaseholders as possible are represented. This is a quick and easy job – there aren’t more than 8 addresses to deliver to (some blocks only one or two) so should only take 10 minutes at the most. Please let Jane know via barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com if you are happy to help out and she can give you leaflets.

Many thanks! Jane (NB Rep)

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4. Timescale for NB redevelopment – nothing happening until Spring 2022 EARLIEST

Negotiating the details of the Joint Venture (e.g. Newlon finding funding partners for the NB redevelopment) can take a year easily. Planning will also take at least a year. No redevelopment will happen until Spring 2022 at the earliest.

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5. Blocks with outstanding repairs – keep detailed records

Are there important works due on your block that will affect the valuation of your flat? Are you worried that Newlon will neglect these in the years before buy-backs? Is there a buildings insurance claim outstanding that Newlon is deliberately delaying (e.g. for subsidence repairs)?

If so, you need to take action to protect the value of your flat:
– Keep thorough records (for example photos, letters, and emails) of the work that needs doing, your attempts to contact Newlon to get the work done, and their responses (or lack of response).
– If Newlon does not respond by carrying out the work, contact the Housing Ombudsman, who will contact Newlon on your behalf: https://www.housing-ombudsman.org.uk/
– Deliberate obstruction or neglect will not lower the value of your property as long as you have evidence that Newlon was aware or the problem and did not carry out their responsibilities.

It is up to you to make sure that this evidence exists, so that surveyors can make sure your flat is valued as if the work had been done.

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6. More on early buy-backs
   
   Source states that early buy-backs will each be determined by individual circumstances, regardless of when individual blocks are due to be demolished. Newlon will establish a committee with transparent guidelines about what circumstances would qualify for an early buy-back

As far as we know, buy-backs will not be happening until planning is approved, so not before April 2022. Source says lots of people want early buy-backs, so we will continue to ask questions about this and update you when more information is available.

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7. Not much more on cut-off dates for who is deemed resident/non-resident
   
   At the moment, according to Source, it looks like the cut-off date for residency (and thus the right to shared equity in the new development) is the time of planning permission. We are not clear on whether this is the application date, or the approval date. Also it’s not clear whether the cut-offs will be in line with each phase, or with the initial master plan application.
   
   Either way, Source says as it stands, the cutoff will not be earlier than 12 months after the ballot (so March 2022).

However, Newlon could default to a baseline position, which is residency at the time of the actual ballot, and they could put this in place retrospectively. A strong Residents Association with leaseholders represented will help to put pressure on Newlon in this area.

**Be aware that Newlon will use credit checks, electoral roll, etc. to check residency status and detect fraud and/or unauthorised subletting**

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8. Lost rental income sure to construction work – keep detailed records

What if you have private tenants, and disruption from construction works means that your rental income goes down or you can’t find tenants?

Source advises that any compensation for this will only happen at the time of your buy-back, and will be assessed according to the evidence that you can provide that you have lost income as a result of the redevelopment.

It is crucial that you keep detailed records of formal rental valuations during the time of the disruption – for example from letting agents – and ask them to make rental valuations with the construction happening vs. without the construction. Also keep records of your attempts to recruit tenants, and for what amount of rent, and keep the tenancy contracts you have had and income that you receive for the duration of the redevelopment.

Unfortunately you will have to manage any loss of income as it happens, and attempt to claim it back during the phase that you are bought out by Newlon. Keith Murray (Compulsory Purchase Valuer) will be able to advise us in more detail as time goes on.

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Many thanks from your New Barsnbury Reps
barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com

Welcome to the latest Barnsbury Estate Leaseholders Group Update We are an informal, self-organised group of leaseholders, who seek to help each other access information around the Barnsbury Estate transformation proposals. Please refer to our website for further details NOTE: Replies to this email will go to barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com where they will be picked up by the Reps

CONTENTS 1 Reminder to review leases by 30th Apr – 2 Flyers/recruiting – 3 Anonymous flyer update from Newlon – 4 Latest updates from Source meeting – 5 Source’s post-ballot role – 6 Numbers of res/non-res LHs – 7 Section 20 process help – 8 Sinking fund clarity – 9 Islington Local Plan feedback opportunity – 10 OB improvement leases

Please review your leases! Both Old and New Barnsbury Leaseholders have been asked to do this. Old Barns info is here: https://barnsburyleaseholders.wordpress.com/2021/03/30/members-update-email-old-barnsbury-only-30th-march-2021/ New Barns info is here: https://barnsburyleaseholders.wordpress.com/2021/04/15/new-barnsbury-only-leaseholders-update-15th-april-2021/ The time to do this and respond with what you find, has been extended to the 30th April 2021 for both Old and New Barnsbury leaseholders.  Thank you to those of you who have done this already and have let us know what you found. We appreciate the lovely messages we have received from some of you about the work the reps are doing to co-ordinate the group, as we have very busy lives. Our time is limited and we will not be able to remind you again to check our lease. If you need help to do this, please contact Source who may be able to help with some aspects, or we suggest you get support from your own legal advisor.

2. We are still doing flyer drops to non-group member leaseholder addresses across the whole estate – this has already generated some new members of the group, good news. Please let us know your flat number if you haven’t already done this (so we don’t waste time/effort putting flyers through the doors of existing members). Please continue to spread the word if you know of any leaseholders who are not part of our group already.

3. Anonymous Flyer – we received a response from Newlon to the final open points we were chasing them on on the anonymous dropped through doors across the estate in February 2021.   How does Newlon justify the poor state of the estate given that they have managed the estate for c. 20 years? The estate was transferred to Newlon in 1999 but as you know it came back to Newlon to manage and maintain in early 2019. Prior to this the estate was managed by the Tenant Management Organisation that came into being at the point of transfer. On the point above, can you please confirm that you are saying that Newlon has no accountability whatsoever for the poor state of the estate between 1999 and 2019?  I am not saying that Newlon had no accountability for the estate post transfer. I was just stating the facts as they stood. In holding a deep dive consultation with residents over a 16 month period leading to the proposals, Offer Document and the resident ballot, Newlon has signalled its clear responsibility and intention to deal with the poor condition of the housing stock in a comprehensive manner for present and future generations, working closely with residents during the process. Thank you for confirming that Old Barnsbury was built in the 1930’s and Aldrick house and Amory House built in the 1950’s. Can you now advise whether Aldrick and Amory fall into the category of better stock or not, as Newlon defines it?  Aldrick an Amory do not fall into the category of better stock as they exhibit all the problems of the 1970’s stock.

4. The Leaseholder Group Reps had a meeting with Source  to find out what we can can about the next stages of consultation/involvement, and how we make sure LHs are much more formally represented in future, how arrangements will reflect the changing requirements for Old & New Barnsbury residents and leaseholders, how details in the charter will be bottomed out and the timing and implications of Residential or Non-residential leaseholder status etc. Source has advised that Newlon is in a post-ballot re-grouping phase, so there is not a lot to share at this stage but we did establish that: Source is pressing Newlon for their proposals on the shape and form of a new Residents Committee – this is to be led by Graham Watts from Newlon.  We want to ensure that all flavours of leaseholders as well as residents are represented on this when it forms. Sub-committees can be expected.   Source understands that Old and New Barnsbury will have separate Newlon leadership assigned, although there will be some overlaps. They believe that Symon Sentain will lead on the Old Barnsbury side, the New Barnsbury lead for Newlon is tbc.   The planning application process, which will combine works in New and Old Barnsbury (required to go together because the offer document integrated both) but is it tbc what the planning application will look like and it is expected to take at least 1 year to progress with Islington Council. While we do not expect any of the refurbishment work to begin in Old Barnbury ahead of planning permission being granted, not least because the funding for it is dependent on the income Newlon expects to receive through New Barnsbury, it is possible that Section 20 notices could be issued ahead of this, depending on the approach Newlon decides to take to the work.  There is no clarity, for example, over whether Newlon intends to appoint a single refurbishment contractor and sub-contract from there for the different elements or let multiple contracts for specific chunks of work. We don’t yet know anything about the phasing of the work. Meanwhile, it’s business as usual for repairs and maintenance. Currently Newlon and Mount Anvil, the appointed contractor for New Barnsbury, are in discussions about the set up of their joint venture company for the New Barnsbury development which could also take anything up to a year to establish.   The New Barnsbury Reps will update leaseholders on other details only relevant to NB leaseholders in the coming days We plan to meet Source again in late May and will update you again after that. Let the Reps know if you’d like us to ask anything on your behalf – barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com

4. The Leaseholder Group Reps had a meeting with Source  to find out what we can can about the next stages of consultation/involvement, and how we make sure LHs are much more formally represented in future, how arrangements will reflect the changing requirements for Old & New Barnsbury residents and leaseholders, how details in the charter will be bottomed out and the timing and implications of Residential or Non-residential leaseholder status etc. Source has advised that Newlon is in a post-ballot re-grouping phase, so there is not a lot to share at this stage but we did establish that: Source is pressing Newlon for their proposals on the shape and form of a new Residents Committee – this is to be led by Graham Watts from Newlon.  We want to ensure that all flavours of leaseholders as well as residents are represented on this when it forms. Sub-committees can be expected.   Source understands that Old and New Barnsbury will have separate Newlon leadership assigned, although there will be some overlaps. They believe that Symon Sentain will lead on the Old Barnsbury side, the New Barnsbury lead for Newlon is tbc.   The planning application process, which will combine works in New and Old Barnsbury (required to go together because the offer document integrated both) but is it tbc what the planning application will look like and it is expected to take at least 1 year to progress with Islington Council. While we do not expect any of the refurbishment work to begin in Old Barnbury ahead of planning permission being granted, not least because the funding for it is dependent on the income Newlon expects to receive through New Barnsbury, it is possible that Section 20 notices could be issued ahead of this, depending on the approach Newlon decides to take to the work.  There is no clarity, for example, over whether Newlon intends to appoint a single refurbishment contractor and sub-contract from there for the different elements or let multiple contracts for specific chunks of work. We don’t yet know anything about the phasing of the work. Meanwhile, it’s business as usual for repairs and maintenance. Currently Newlon and Mount Anvil, the appointed contractor for New Barnsbury, are in discussions about the set up of their joint venture company for the New Barnsbury development which could also take anything up to a year to establish.   The New Barnsbury Reps will update leaseholders on other details only relevant to NB leaseholders in the coming days We plan to meet Source again in late May and will update you again after that. Let the Reps know if you’d like us to ask anything on your behalf – barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com

5. Source’s role and responsibilities We asked Source to clarify their role and responsibilities from this point on. They responded as follows, we do have access to funds to help us with production of materials (e.g. recent flyers) and will explore other areas.:  We are currently working up a programme to planning but this will include support for the buy-back process for at least phase 1 and early buybacks by request, supporting tenants in their rehousing options, explaining the CPO and section 20 processes;  producing advice leaflets; supporting the formal consultation process; individual casework; enhancing the Residents Charter; outreach to residents who have not engaged; supporting Newlon to establish representative residents group.

6. Numbers breakdown: Resident and Non-resident Leaseholders by block. Source believes that Newlon has underestimated the number of NRLs by about 20 as more of us have sublet than their official records indicate. Source believes Newlon will re-validate this information at some time by asking leaseholders to certify and prove their residential status and use credit references, mortgage buy to let checks, etc, but we have no detail on the timing for this.

7. Section 20 process for repairs and improvements – many of us are not familiar with this so we will be approaching Newlon to ask them to run a meeting on it, perhaps late Jun/July 2021, so they can explain how it all works. In parallel, Source will produce an easy to understand guide so we are all better informed. We will let you know when we have a date for this meeting/s.

8. Sinking fund query – what happens to this were I to sell my flat? Does the new leaseholder inherit the value of ‘my’ sinking fund? Or do I get it back when I sell and the new leaseholder starts with a balance of zero? Source has advised that Newlon does not allow ”cash-out” of accumulated sinking fund and therefore it would transfer with the lease upon sale and be reflected in the value. This would apply to both open market sales and compulsory purchase buy-backs. This means that any new buyer of your flat will inherit the balance of your sinking fund at the point of sale

9. Islington Council has recently written to every leaseholder asking for feedback on the Draft Local Plan – Barnsbury Estate.  They would like comments back by 9th May 2021. This is your chance to feedback anything you feel should influence the future of the estate – what is important to you etc, and it’s really important that as many of us do this as possible. Anything from limits to heights of blocks, impacts on light, green energy, social integration, etc.  To find out more – www.islington.gov.uk/consultations – comments via email to planningpolicy@islington.gov.uk.

10. OLD BARNSBURY Improvement Lease – how do I know if I have one? Source and Newlon believe everyone has an improvement lease. Source will help you confirm this directly if you send your lease to them but you can also look for details as follows in your own lease depending on whether you have a Newlon or Islington Lease:

NB Update

From the New Barnsbury Leaseholder Reps, to all New Barnsbury leaseholders – resident and non-resident

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1 INFO – Ballot Result

2 ACTION NEEDED – GoFundMe for sharing legal costs is open until 30th April 2021   

3 ACTION NEEDED – Check your lease against our samples by 30th April 2021

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1 INFO – Ballot Result

The ballot result at the end of March 2021 was a “Yes” to redevelopment. We understand that both the turnout, and the proportion of “yes” votes, were around 70%.

Now that the redevelopment is going ahead, New Barnsbury (NB) and Old Barnsbury (OB) are on very different tracks – we are facing demolition and buy-backs etc., OB is not. 

The Barnsbury Estate Leaseholders Group will continue to support all leaseholders, but the NB Reps will focus on NB leaseholders’ particular needs and interests. To contact your NB Reps, email us barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com

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2 ACTION NEEDED – Sharing legal costs – £50 to benefit from expert advice – closes 30th April

The New Barnsbury Reps have set up a Go Fund Me page so that we can all contribute safely and securely to share the costs of a key document review by Compulsory Purchase Valuer Keith Murray. He will look at examples of the types of leases we have, the Offer Document, and the draft Resident’s Charter, and provide us with an analysis that will inform us in our future negotiations with Newlon.

We are aiming to reach £2000, which will cover Keith Murray’s review. If every New Barnsbury leaseholder who is a member of this group contributes £50, we will reach our target.

If we don’t reach our target, we cannot share group advice, and it will be a lot more expensive to each individual to get equivalent expert advice.

**update – our GoFundMe closed to new donations on 30th April 2021**

3 ACTION NEEDED – It’s time to check your lease – please action and respond by 30th April 2021

Why is this important?
Now is the time to check your lease for any details important to future negotiations with Newlon. Since Keith Murray can only analyse 3 or 4 examples of the types of leases we have, it’s important that you find out now if your lease is the same or significantly different from the examples he will see.

Newlon’s description of leases
In our update email w/c 22nd March 2021 we included some information about what Newlon understands to be the position on the general content of our leases. All the updates we send are on our website’s blog – you can review the info by scrolling down.

What do I need to do? 
The next step is for each New Barnsbury leaseholder – Resident AND Non-Resident – to read your lease, compare it to the 4 samples. Please tell us if your lease differs from the samples in any way you consider to be significant. These details could be important and affect your future negotiations with Newlon.

The sample leases are on our website for you to download. You need to click on this link: SAMPLE LEASES HERE and use a password – if you did not receive this update as an email on 15th April 2021 containing the password, please email your Reps on  barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com

What if my lease is different from the samples?
If you do find significant differences between your lease and the samples, please let us know ASAP by emailing barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com. Tell us which clauses you feel are different, and in what way, e.g. is there any significant different information or wording, missing or additional clauses etc.

Please respond no later than 30th April 2021, advising of your observations, including the specific information you’d like to highlight that is significantly different from the 4 sample leases.

If you don’t contact us by 30th April, we will assume that your lease is the same as the sample leases.

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**Remember, none of the Reps are legal experts. We will not be able to read your lease for you, nor help you interpret the contents of your particular lease. Please seek individual legal advice if you are unsure.**

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With best wishes,

from your New Barnsbury Leaseholder Reps

barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com

To all Old Barnsbury Leaseholders – Resident and Non-resident

It’s time to check your lease – please action and respond by 16th April 2021

Dear all, in our last update email (w/c 22nd March 2021) we included some information about what Newlon understands to be the position on the general content of our leases. If you did not receive the last update email, please let your Reps know on barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com

Now is the time to check your lease for any details which could be relevant in future negotiations with Newlon. This is more important than ever in light of the transformation ballot returning a ‘YES’  vote.

What happens next on Old Barnsbury leases? As previously advised, we intend to supply c.3 differing samples of lease to be reviewed by a specialist housing solicitor, so we are all clearer on where we stand legally based on typical leases in place across Old Barnsbury.

What do I need to do? The next step is for each OB Leaseholder – Resident AND Non-Resident – to review your lease, and advise if it differs in any way you consider to be significant to any of the 4 lease samples you can now view and download. 

The sample leases are on our website for you to download, but require a special link, and and a password. This information is in the original email sent to OB leaseholders on 30th March 2021. Please email your Reps on barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com for information on how to access the sample leases, if you are an OB leaseholder and did not get the original message.

If your lease IS different to the 4 samples, please let us know ASAP which clauses you feel are different, and in what way, e.g. is there any significant different information or wording, missing or additional clauses etc. These details could be important information to supply to our legal advisor.

Please can you respond no later than 16th April 2021 advising of your observations, including the specific information you’d like to highlight if you have found any significant differences in content to the 4 sample leases supplied by Newlon. 

If you don’t reply, we will assume that your lease does not differ significantly from the samples supplied.

Remember, none of the Reps are legal experts, so we will not be able to read your lease for you, nor help you interpret the contents of your lease. Please seek individual legal advice if you are unsure.

While you are checking your leases, we are getting more detail on the cost and options for engaging legal support. As previously advised, we are expecting to have to make an initial investment of c. £1500 and will be in touch again to ask whether you are willing to make a financial contribution towards this.

Best wishes,
Old Barnsbury Leaseholder Reps
barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com

Barnsbury Estate Leaseholders Group Update w/c 22nd March 2021

Welcome to the latest Barnsbury Estate Leaseholders Group Update We are an informal, self-organised group of leaseholders, who seek to help each other access information around the Barnsbury Estate transformation proposals. Please refer to our website for further details NOTE: Replies to this email will go to barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com where they will be picked up by the Reps

CONTENTS Ballot closed, results soon – Newlon’s further response to anonymous flyer – Flyer to promote our group – Sinking funds – Newlon info about lease types – What next on leases? (NB, OB) – New Barnsbury legal update, Keith Murray meeting – Fire Safety Bill

Ballot closed – results expected soon The ballot on the Barnsbury Estate regeneration proposals closed on Friday 19th March.  Results are due by the end of March.

Newlon’s further response to points made in the anonymous flyer Newlon previously did not respond to this question, so we re-submitted it to them:  How does Newlon justify the poor state of the estate given that they have managed the estate for c. 20 years? Newlon has responded to say: The estate was transferred to Newlon in 1999 but as you know it came back to Newlon to manage and maintain in early 2019. Prior to this, the estate was managed by the Tenant Management Organisation that came into being at the point of transfer. We’ve gone back to Newlon on this point again for more clarity on how Newlon defines its overarching responsibilities as a landlord, during the period of delegation of some of its obligations to Belmo. We’ll let you know when we hear back on this.

Flyer to promote the Barnsbury Leaseholder Group to new members It’s really important that we drive up membership as much as possible to share information, expertise and potential legal costs – in either a YES or a NO ballot result scenario.  Our new flyer has kindly been printed by Source. Reps will be in touch with a resident leaseholder from each block to ask them to drop flyers through doors of all leaseholders. The envelope will ask tenants to pass on to any NRL landlords. Thanks in advance for your help – if you’d like to volunteer for your block, please let your rep know otherwise we will find people.

Sinking Funds We have a question or two about this. This is what we’ve established so far with help from Source (summary, not direct quotes): 1. How do I find out about the level of my sinking fund? Each Leaseholder has a different amount in their sinking fund, depending on how long they have been paying into it. The  amount in yours can be found on the end of year service charge statements. Newlon sends statements out in September each year, and your sinking fund value is included there. If you need a copy of yours, you can ask Newlon for it. Newlon also issues an estimate in the Spring for services in the following financial year. You should recently have received yours, so contact Newlon if you haven’t. This shows you how much you will be contributing via your service charges for the upcoming year. 2. Does the sinking fund only get used for works that fall under a section 20 notice? In general Newlon only uses it for major works which would follow the Section 20 process and be consulted upon.  Occasionally they might do a programme of works beneath the £250 per leaseholder threshold, or a one off major piece of urgent work (e.g. roof water tank) and use it for that.  Occasionally if a charge is too high for a particular building for some unforeseen reason, they might use it, but rarely. Newlon advises that this happens approx once a year for one of their buildings. Newlon will be reviewing sinking funds next year. They are discussing about whether they should collect in anticipation of all likely costs or alternatively just a notional amount to be offset against costs, or just in respect of say cyclical decoration.  The Section 20 process will be fully explained by Newlon post-ballot if there is a yes vote. Newlon has also offered to run a seminar/session on charges if people are interested. Previously these have apparently been very well received by residents and may be a good starting point for the Barnsbury Leaseholders Group whatever the outcome of the ballot. 3. The discretionary offer to resident leaseholders has been stated as “no cost” for the transformation work for Old Barnsbury resident leaseholders – but if the sinking fund is offset (used to pay for transformation work) then this is not equitable as leaseholders have varying amounts in their sinking funds. In normal times, let’s say there’s 5K in your sinking fund and a bill for £20K from Newlon. Your £5K would automatically get used for works leaving you a bill of £15K – but Newlon does not intend to offset the sinking fund for resident leaseholders. So there is no discrimination against those with higher sinking funds. The transformation works will be consulted upon via a Section 20 Notice in the usual way. For further general information, you can also see the Leasehold Advisory Service page on Major Works/Section 20

Newlon information about types of leases On 19th March, Newlon kindly provided the Reps with a digital file containing 4 types of leases, and a set of paper copies. Newlon also sent us some explanatory info, including noting that aspects will be open to different interpretation. This emphasises the need for each of us to take personal responsibility to understand and take advice on our own lease content. Below is a summary of the Newlon assessment of the leases in existence on the Barnsbury Estate. If you would like the full notes Newlon sent to us, with more detailed background, please email barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com and we will send this to you.   1. Right to Buy (RTB) leases The first RTB sale at Barnsbury was in 1989. They are covered by Schedule 6 to the 1985 Housing Act – see https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1985/68/schedule/6 – which sets out the sorts of terms to be granted. RTB leases allow for improvements to be charged. 2. Leases at Barnsbury The transfer from London Borough of Islington (LBI) to Newlon in 1999 was handled by a firm of solicitors called Towers and Hamlins.Newlon has reviewed copies of the four specimen leases it was given at handover. They were for properties at Ritson (Nov 89), Vittoria (July 89), Corbett (Feb 92) and Amory (Feb 98).Looking at the four leases, Newlon assesses that they are all quite similar despite difference in typefaces and layout. They have compared a few clauses across them and they are very largely the same.  One difference is in the third Schedule Parts 1 & 2 where the Ritson lease is different (that relates to historic defects).  There are few markings on them that indicate they were derived from similar but slightly different drafts (one is marked ED3AAB another SM5AAC). They are surprisingly uniform and similar in length and structure.   They all have Improvement clauses  The Ritson Leases in the Third Schedule Parts 1 sections f & h and Part 2 section g. The Vittoria, Corbett and Amory leases have improvement clauses and in the third schedules Part 1 g & h and Part 2 f and g.  By inference, and based on the start dates for leases we have, then all leases should have improvement clauses. It is possible that one doesn’t or some don’t, but Newlon states that they have not come across this. After Newlon took ownership, they granted leases but similar in terms to those above. The Premises is now defined in the first schedule but the content is fundamentally the same.  Newlon has looked at a few other leases and cannot find any real differences. Again they are 26-28 pages in length. They have spoken to their Resales Team who do extensions, and no notable differences have struck them.

What happens next on leases – New and Old Barnsbury? —————————– NEW BARNSBURY (NB): As we wrote in previous updates, NB leaseholders’ course of action will depend on the outcome of the ballot. If it’s a NO vote, we will be in the same situation as OB Leaseholders, and will be able to share legal advice with them. If it’s a YES vote, we will need to engage Keith Murray, the Compulsory Purchase Valuer, and he will review samples of leases, and the offer document/draft resident’s charter for us. See below for info on our initial meeting with Keith. We will be back in touch with you when the result is announced, to advise on next steps. In the meantime, please find your lease, and make an electronic copy of it (pdf file). —————————– OLD BARNSBURY (OB): As previously advised, we need to supply c.3 differing samples of lease to be reviewed by a specialist housing solicitor, so we are all clearer on where we stand legally, post-result. Soon, all OB Leaseholders will be emailed copies of the 4 leases Newlon has provided. The next step is for every OB Leaseholder – Resident AND Non-Resident – to review your lease and advise if it differs in any way you consider to be significant to any of the 4 lease samples we send you.  If yours IS different, please let us know ASAP which clauses you feel are different, and in what way (present or missing, additional clauses, etc.) as this could be important information for any future legal advisor Please can you respond no later than 31st March advising of your observations, with detailed reference to your lease. If you don’t reply, we will assume that your lease does not differ significantly from the samples supplied. Remember, none of the Reps are legal experts, so we will not be able to read your lease for you, nor help you interpret the contents of your lease. Please seek individual legal advice if you are unsure.

New Barnsbury (NB) legal update – meeting with Keith Murray, Compulsory Purchase Valuer The NB resident and non-resident Leasholder Reps had a preliminary conversation with Keith Murray, a highly experienced and respected Compulsory Purchase Valuer, last week. His website: keithmurrayconsultants.com He has very wide and deep knowledge of working on redevelopment projects such as ours, from both the tenant and landlord sides. We felt that he could be extremely useful to us.  If there is a YES ballot result, he is willing to advise us as a group of NB Leaseholders. Keith will initially conduct a review of leases, and the key documents relating to the redevelopment. We are awaiting an estimate for the cost of this. When he’s done the review, he will be able to advise further on what actions we might want to take, and what the future costs might be. We will be in touch with New Barnsbury Leaseholders following the ballot result, to let you know what we need to do next. Can we challenge the demolition of Amory House and Aldrick House? One issue that he was seemed completely clear on, was that there would be no point trying to get Amory and Aldrick exempted from demolition, even if they are well-built and viable for refurb. Keith said that even if we took them to court, Newlon would be granted a Compulsory Purchase Order if they made a case that demolishing Amory and Aldrick would provide financing for the wider project – to provide an improved environment, with more housing (social or otherwise), with the support of the London Mayor and Islington Council. Amory and Aldrick are crucial to the financing of the redevelopment, since they front the canal. Improved public space around the canal will also be an important part of the development. Keith stated with confidence that to challenge this would be extremely expensive (100s of thousands of pounds) and very unlikely to win. Even if we did win, he clarified that Newlon would not be responsible for covering all our costs. Unless we find significant information that contradicts Keith’s advice, as a Leaseholders Group we will not be pursuing action to reclassify Amory House and Aldrick House to exempt them from demolition.

Fire Safety Bill passing through Parliament Keep an eye on updates on legislation that may affect us in the near future. The Fire Safety Bill is rapidly progressing through the Commons and may have serious implications for leaseholders (irrespective of the transformation ballot outcome).  See endourcladdingscandal.org for more information. The Leaseholder Knowledge Partnership also provides regular updates and analysis – here’s their latest news article on the Fire Safety Bill.

Barnsbury Estate Leaseholders Group Update w/c 8th March 2021

Welcome to the latest Barnsbury Estate Leaseholders Group Update We are an informal, self-organised group of leaseholders, who seek to help each other access information around the Barnsbury Estate transformation proposals. Please refer to our website for further details. NOTE: Replies to this email will go to barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com where they will be picked up by the Reps

CONTENTS Response from Newlon to anonymous flyer – New Barnsbury contractor info – Finding more leaseholders – All: find and scan your lease – Old Barns leases – New Barns legal update

Response from Newlon to anonymous flyer  Last week, we shared the informal fact-checking response from Source. Newlon has now responded to most points. We’re chasing the unanswered point and will update you when we hear back. 1. What is the confirmed current state of the estate? Newlon has built the case for transformation on the grounds that it is in disrepair and the only way forward is transformation etc but are there are any specific facts /data about its current state of disrepair? Newlon: The 1950s and 1970s properties on the New Barnsbury side of the estate exhibit multiple problems much of which are a function of their original systems built construction. Stock condition surveys indicate the properties are in poor condition with many components having failed or come to the end of their useful lives. Increased repairs reporting, degraded drainage, concrete dilapidation, poor thermal performance due to thermal bridging, thermal bypassing and poor insulation have led to damp, mould, excessive condensation in flats. Poor acoustic performance, and the lived experiences of the residents living on the estate – the stock on the Barnsbury estate is the least well performing, and residents are our least satisfied customers – all point to the need for a fundamental treatment to resolve the issues. When we add to this the high level of overcrowding and health needs on the estate and poor prospects for transfers either to stock owned by Newon or Islington Council via the housing waiting list, the case for the transformation of the estate was even more compelling, and this was borne out the resident consultation over the last 15 months and set out in the Offer Document. The 1930’s stock on Old Barnsbury, though older was better designed and constructed and with better materials so has fared a lot better. In this case, therefore, we have consulted with residents on the basis of full refurbishment works and this is set out in the Offer Document. NOTE: The Leaseholders Group understand that Amory and Aldrick are in fact 1930s buildings, and are on a separate Freehold Title from the rest of New Barnsbury. We will investigate further and seek to understand the implications if any. Does this put leaseholders in those blocks in a different position than the rest of New Barnsbury? See legal update below.  2. How does Newlon justify the poor state of the estate given that they have managed the estate for c. 20 years? Not answered by Newlon – response requested 3. What are Newlon’s obligations re estate maintenance and repair under business-as-usual? Newlon’s obligations as a landlord are set out in statute, regulations and the tenancies and leases held with residents on the estate. Currently, rented dwellings must meet the Decent Homes Standard set out by the Regulator for Housing England. This is a minimum standard. 4. Has Newlon ever promised not to demolish blocks 2 years ago? If so, when/why? I’m not aware of any promises made regarding the demolitions of buildings. 5. What did Newlon promise with respect to the community centre when built? On the Community Centre, I am not aware of any promises that were made, but there would have been planning conditions associated with the uses of the buildings and obligations to residents. You will be aware that proposals set out in the Offer Document include a much larger community centre at the heart of the estate with much improved facilities. 6. Is the £2M revenue generated from the estate figure quoted accurate? I have asked colleagues in our Housing Services Department to provide me with the figure of the rental values generated for the estate and will revert to you on this once I have the information.  7. Is the 950 new flats instead of the current 358 on New Barnsbury accurate? We do not yet know the exact number of dwellings that will form the redeveloped New Barnsbury as the proposals will need to be submitted for planning approval and thus far the designs are not sufficiently developed to enable this. Much more consultation with residents is needed, or course, too. 8. Which aspects of the para on ‘What a No vote really means’ are accurate or inaccurate? A No Vote will mean that Newlon ensures its rented properties meet the Decent Home Standard, meet the current statutory minimum for standard housing, be in a reasonable state of repair, have reasonably modern facilities and services and provide a reasonable degree of thermal comfort. Many of the problems described above would take a lot longer to deal with as there would not be the funding cross subsidy that a transformation exercise can achieve.  9. Ditto ‘What a Yes note really means’? A Yes Vote will mean we could bring the new Barnsbury side of the estate to a high quality, sustainable, modern and affordable standard, and undertake full refurbishment works to Old Barnsbury to bring those flats up to a modern standard as well taking advantage of the existing sustainability of those building.

New Barnsbury contractor information Mount Anvil – awarded the development partnership with Newlon for New Barnsbury – has shared some information about their other projects and initiatives.  NOTE: The links below contain promotional material from Mount Anvil. The Barnsbury Estate Leaseholders Group neither endorses nor opposes Mount Anvil. News and articles page on the Mount Anvil website: https://mountanvil.com/news/ Barnsbury residents page on the Mount Anvil website:https://mountanvil.com/barnsbury/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/mountanvil The Verdean in Acton: https://mountanvil.com/find-your-home/the-verdean/ – this is the Estate we’re transforming with Catalyst and is most similar to Barnsbury, you’ll find updates on its progress and our resident engagement activities on our news section Keybridge in Vauxhall: https://mountanvil.com/find-your-home/keybridge/ – our joint venture partnership with A2Dominion, here we’ve provided lots of new homes and an extension to the existing Wyvil Primary School Some of ours and our partners residents talking about their Mount Anvil homes: https://youtu.be/Q7YyZAYc1sA – Rosangela, a Newlon resident living at our Hampstead Manor development https://youtu.be/5_LI6XTWIbk – Barchyn, Kevin, Sarah & Justin and Robert discussing their homes https://youtu.be/NdGT9uc0Rcw – Andrew Terrey, Head Teacher of Wyvil Primary School at our Keybridge development

Finding more leaseholders to join us Over the coming week, we’ll be drafting a flyer about our group, which Source has agreed to print for us. Once we have the copies, we’ll be looking for a volunteer from each block to drop off to other leaseholders in their block. The flyer will try to ensure as many leaseholders as possible are aware of this group and can share information and any future legal or other costs.

All – find and scan your lease A reminder to all leaseholders to make sure you have a copy of your lease. It will be helpful for you to have a scanned electronic copy. You will need to find help if you are unable to do this by yourself.

Old Barnsbury (OB) legal update The OB Reps have compared their 3 leases and found that they represent 2 different forms of lease. There may be more out there. We are still waiting for Newlon to share the information they hold on lease varieties. Once we have this, the an example of each form of lease we have found will be emailed to all Old Barnsbury Leaseholders so you review against theirs. We can then proceed with the steps outlined last week to ask for a specialist lawyer to analyse for us. As soon as we receive the generic lease information, we will forward it on to all Old Barnsbury leaseholders via email.

New Barnsbury (NB) legal update As we wrote in last week’s update, the specialist advice that NB leaseholders will need is completely different from the advice that Old Barnsbury leaseholders need. The NB res and non-res Reps are having a preliminary conversation early next week with Keith Murray, a highly experienced and respected Compulsory Purchase Valuer. We will find out whether he can help NB leaseholders as a group, what actions we might want to take, and what the costs might be. We will let you know in the next update what we learn from him.  In the meantime, here’s Keith’s website: keithmurrayconsultants.com – he was recommended by Sarah Finch, the housing solicitor working with Old Barnsbury leaseholders.

Barnsbury Estate Leaseholders Group Update w/c 1st March 2021

Welcome to the latest Barnsbury Estate Leaseholders Group Update We are an informal, self-organised group of leaseholders, who seek to help each other access information around the Barnsbury Estate transformation proposals. Please refer to our website for further details NOTE: Replies to this email will go to barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.comwhere they will be picked up by the Reps

CONTENTS: Is official info getting to all leaseholders? – fact check of anonymous flyer – will Newlon share info about our group? – increasing leaseholder membership/leaflet drop – LEGAL UPDATE: update for all – legal update for Old Barnsbury only – legal update for New Barnsbury only

Is written communication from Newlon and Source reaching all leaseholders and their private tenants? Last week we updated you on the addresses Source uses for its communications to all categories of leaseholders – they leaflet every property on the estate. Source also post their information to non-resident leaseholders for whom they are given contact details by Newlon.Since then, Newlon has informed us that for all communications to named resident and non-resident leaseholders, the Best team use the address used for billing service charges held in the central Newlon database. Private tenants do not receive information from Newlon.This means that all leaseholders need to have up-to-date address details in Newlon’s central database. If you are not receiving communications from Newlon or Source, or need to change your receiving address for them, please contact them directly to get your details updated. If your private tenants need information about what’s going on, Source can help. See our website for contact details for Source and Newlon.

‘Fact check’ of anonymous flyer posted through doors in Barnsbury in February (response from Source) Source will not be responding publicly to the flyer, but has replied to us informally. We have asked Newlon to comment further. We will let you know when we hear back. Qs & responses from Source: 1. What is the confirmed current state of the estate? Newlon has built the case for transformation on the grounds that it is in disrepair and the only way forward is transformation etc but are there are any specific facts/data about its current state of disrepair? This is a question for Newlon. However,  at the early workshops they stated they have based their decision to pursue transformation on data regarding property condition, tenant dissatisfaction and the budget they would have available from rental income and capital programme. 2. How does Newlon justify the poor state of the estate given that they have managed the estate for c. 20 years? Again one for Newlon to justifyWhat are Newlon’s obligations re estate maintenance and repair under business as usual (i.e. a “no” vote)? Under business as usual Newlon would need to prioritise repairs and estate maintenance  within an existing capital  budget (around £5-6million) 3. Has Newlon ever promised not to demolish blocks 2 years ago? If so, when/why? Not as far as we know 4. What did Newlon promise with respect to the community centre when built? Again, Newlon will need to answer this as we were not party to these discussions 5. Is the £2M revenue generated from the estate figure quoted accurate? It seems about right as there are 506 rented homes. 6. Is the 950 new flats instead of the current 358 on New Barnsbury accurate? The exact number of new homes is not yet established as it is subject to discussion with Islington Planners, there are currently 371 properties on New Barnsbury and these will all be replaced an additional 500-600 homes is feasible in planning terms not any higher 7. Which aspects of the para on ‘What a No vote really means’ are accurate or inaccurate? Not entirely accurate – as there is only a legal obligation for health and safety works, other improvements have been carried out on a needs basis or to bring a property up to a lettable standard and this will continue. The programmes for painting and replacement of kitchens (around 20 were replaced last year for example)  are subject to available funding and cannot be enforced. 8. Which aspects of the para on ‘What a Yes vote really means’ are accurate or inaccurate? Not entirely accurate – as there is an obligation to minimise disruption; the community centre is intended to be self-funding with “free” sessions for community uses; and the programme for replacing bathrooms and kitchens for Old Barnsbury does not exist.

Will Newlon share information about our Barnsbury Leaseholders Group?We sent a request to Newlon asking them to share links to our Leaseholder Group website on their relevant websites and in relevant communications. Newlon states that this cannot be done during the ballot period. We will re-request this from Newlon once the ballot period is over (March 19th).

Increasing Leaseholder group membership – leaflet drop later this month. With continued help from Source, we have some new members this week. Welcome to our new members, this is good news. Please continue to make other leaseholders aware that this group exists, and point them to our website and email address (links). Later this month (within Covid rules) we plan to organise a leaflet drop to leaseholders on the estate. Reps will be in touch to ask a volunteer from each Block to help with this. We’ve asked Source to help by printing a flyer for us. Please note: Since this Leaseholders Group is non-partisan with respect to a yes or no vote, our leaflet will not seek to influence voting, nor express an opinion in response to the outcome. The purpose of contacting more leaseholders is to ensure that we can share information, and potentially future legal costs, among as many leaseholders as possible.

Legal Update Please note, the Barnsbury Estate Leaseholders Group is unable to provide access to individual legal advice to you. If you wish to have individual advice based on your circumstances, you must seek your own professional legal advice. UPDATE FOR ALL Leaseholder Reps from Old and New Barnsbury recently had a very productive hour’s preliminary conversation with leasehold-specialist housing solicitor Sarah Finch (Hamlins). She had many insights into our situation and the legal protections for leaseholders. Sarah has a lot of experience and expertise in acting for leaseholders in blocks, including around Section 20/service charges/disrepair. However, Sarah was clear that if there is a “yes” result from the vote, she would only be able to represent Old Barnsbury leaseholders. Under a “yes” vote, the issues facing New Barnsbury would be very different, and would be better served by other specialists (more info below). If there is a “no” vote, Sarah would be able to represent leaseholders on the whole estate.Whether it’s a Yes or No vote, whether you are resident or non-resident, it was clear that our leases are going to be key documents. Now is the time to find your lease, and make an electronic copy of it, so it can easily be shared for review.Further information and actions below are separated into Old Barnsbury and New Barnsbury, since if there is a “yes” result in the ballot, Old and New will be in different legal situations.  ——————————————————————————– OLD BARNSBURY ONLY (see next section for New Barnsbury)  When might the renovation of Old Barnsbury start? In the event of a ‘Yes’ vote, Source has advised that the earliest issue of a Section 20 Notice for significant renovation would be at planning permission time. But if there is a ‘No’ vote, we need to be as well prepared as possible for any significant ‘business as usual’ proposals which could follow at any time after the ballot result at the end of this month. How can we understand our leases? First, we need to find out how many forms of lease there are for Old Barnsbury. What do we know about the forms of leases already? Anecdotally, we understand that there are at least 2 types, but the significance of any differences requires an expert legal view. In trying to find out more about leases generally, we’ve had this response from Source, and are following this info up with Newlon (they are aiming to get back to us within a week):  “[Source] have reviewed around 12 leases (three “flavours” but generally similar). They are merely updated versions pre-1985, 1985 with the Council and post 2000 with Newlon. The leases for the properties above the shops on Caledonian Road differ in that they are sub-leases of a head lease that Islington granted to a third party but the responsibility for services and charges rests with Newlon as it did previously with the Council. We are separately advising those leaseholders some of whom declined to join the wider group. So far all of them include the provision for recharging for improvements. The leases do not differ on the basis of residency or non-residency, very few leaseholders have extended their lease since Newlon took over. Newlon will need to tell you how many leases and where the freehold title can be found. When asked, Newlon has advised that all leases are rechargeable and we have seen no evidence to the contrary” How can we find out more about the number of forms of lease? Among the Old Barnsbury leaseholder Reps, we are currently comparing our 3 leases. We aim to complete our initial check exercise and update you on it by no later than the 19th March. We will report back on what we find so you (other Old Barnsbury leaseholders) can review your lease against ours, and find out what yours has in common, or not, with our sample. What do I need to do now? If you haven’t already, now is the time to find and scan your paper lease so you have an electronic copy for your own review. Unfortunately, the Reps will not be able to help you to scan the paper copies, or review your leases for you. If you need assistance, we suggest you line up some help to do this. Then after March 19th you will be able to compare your lease with the different forms of lease we’ve found and report back to the reps on what you find by the end of March 2021. Then will leases be reviewed by a legal expert?  Once we establish, as best we can, by the end of March latest, the number of flavours of leases in existence, we propose to ask Sarah Finch from Hamlins to review one of each form for us. Sarah has offered to review up to 3 forms of lease, along with Newlon’s Offer Document and draft Residents Charter, for c. £1500 plus VAT. We’ve asked Sarah to set out what information her lease review would provide for us, along with a timeline for delivery. We will advise you when this info is received. Note:  For any further legal support beyond this initial lease review, additional funding will be needed. Also, of course, you are free to commission any legal advisor independently now or in the future. How can I contribute to the cost of the specialist lease review?  We are hoping that Old Barnsbury leaseholders will be happy to club together to contribute to this initial cost of reviewing leases. Obviously, the more of us who do, the lower the cost to each leaseholder. Old Barnsbury leaseholders will be emailed separately on this to check who would like to benefit from this initial lease review. By default, only those contributing will be updated with the specific legal findings, but we will always aim to share principles. When we contact everyone for contributions to legal costs, we will also ask anyone to advise us of extenuating circumstances meaning that this won’t be possible for them, so we can consider the best way to help.  —————————————————————————————————– NEW BARNSBURY ONLY – If there is a “no” vote, we will be able to join with Old Barnsbury Leaseholders and be represented by Sarah Finch as a single group, if we wish. – If there is a “yes” vote and redevelopment goes ahead, the issues facing New Barnsbury Leaseholders will be completely different from those on Old Barnsbury. – If New Barnsbury leaseholders want legal help as a group, Sarah Finch suggests that the professional we should contact is a specialist Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) valuer, as soon as possible. Even though Newlon seems not to be going down the compulsory purchase route, and intends to do buy-backs via voluntary surrender from each leaseholder, a CPO valuer will be able to advise us on how to proceed and provide us with the facts and figures that will empower us to negotiate with Newlon in future. The New Barnsbury Reps are awaiting a recommendation of a CPO valuer from Sarah Finch. We will update you on this ASAP. – We are also advised by Sarah that a specialist Planning solicitor will be required further down the line in the redevelopment, but not at this stage. – We are hoping that New Barnsbury leaseholders will want to club together to finance group legal advice. Obviously, the more of us who do, the lower the cost to each leaseholder. By default, only those contributing will be updated with the specific legal findings, but we will always aim to share principles with all New Barnsbury leaseholders in the group. When it’s time to cover legal costs, we will ask anyone to advise us of extenuating circumstances meaning that it won’t be possible for them to contribute. Note: You are, of course, free at any point to commission any legal advisor independently to advise you on your individual lease and circumstances.

CONTENTS new website – legal advice – finding other barnsbury leaseholders – ballot result date – connecting with poiticians – connecting with leaseholders on other estates – residents charter – more info on what a “no” vote means – fact checking the anonymous flyer – source’s role in the consultation – home loss & disturbance payments on buy-back – avoiding group emails – who’s my rep?

NEW WEBSITE First and foremost, we have a group website, thanks to one of our Reps: https://barnsburyleaseholders.org This will be the simplest place to direct leaseholders to for information. Also, Leaseholders who wish to join us can submit their info on the website, so we hope it helps build our membership.The website is intentionally simple in structure and our focus will be on providing factual information rather than opinion. The external links section gives pointers to helpful organisations for leaseholders of all persuasions. In the spirit of impartiality, we are not intending to link to social media channels, but will add further content as we go along. The website will work along with our new email address – barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com – and our membership list which is now being used to send communications like this. We can now direct emails to groups of specific categories of leaseholders which will really help reduce email overload.

LEGAL ADVICE An initial, no charge conversation has been booked with Sarah Finch from Hamlins who is a specialist housing solicitor, to find out if/what support she could provide and what the cost implications could be should we wish to collectively engage legal support. Summary on what we find out to follow next week.

FINDING OTHER BARNSBURY LEASEHOLDERS The bigger this group is, the more affordable any shared costs for legal advice will be – so please do all you can to encourage any leaseholders you know, who have not yet joined us, to join us, either on the website or by emailing us onbarnsburyleaseholders@gmail.comSo far, Newlon has not proactively supported Leaseholders’ efforts to find each other. However, Source has been helpful. Here is a summary of our attempts to connect to all leaseholders:140 Leaseholders in total. New Barnsbury = 73, 38 resident leaseholders (RLs), 35 non-resident leaseholders (NRLs). Old Barnsbury = 67, 34 RLs, 33 NRLs.In January 2021, at our request, Source made contact via post to resident and non-resident leaseholders to make them aware of our group. Source has advised that the flyer was posted to all Leaseholders (bar those all already connected with us) including 67 NRLs. The remaining 13 were either abroad, or have not provided consent to Newlon for their address to be shared with Source. For these 13, flyers were posted to their Barnsbury estate flats with a message to ‘please forward’. Note: Corporate property leaseholders (of which there are 5) have not responded and c.12 leaseholders have specifically requested Source not to pass their details on to our leaseholder group.In addition, Source has confirmed that they deliver/post their general newsletters and leaflets to every single property on the estate including those with private tenants of NRLs. Source is contracted to independently advise private tenants as well as Newlon tenants and leaseholders, so has a duty to make them aware of proposals.Source also sent texts in January to the 41 leaseholders whose mobile phone numbers they hold. Landline numbers were not contacted. At the moment, Source says they can’t make calls to landlines, but has offered, should we feel this is a good idea, to do a second posting of an invitation to join us. Perhaps we should consider this following the ballot result. Another action on our to do list is to contact Newlon to double check the addresses they use for correspondence to NRLs so this is clear to all.As above, in the meantime, please do all you can to encourage any leaseholders who have not yet joined our group to join us through our new website link. We may consider posters or a leaflet drop ourselves in the future too. Any other ideas to encourage membership growth are really welcome. This is especially important if we wish to keep to a minimum any collective legal costs.

BALLOT RESULT DATE The Offer Document did not include the date the ballot result will be published. Source advises that this must be within 7 days of the ballot closing, so the result can be expected on or before 27th March 2021.

CONNECTING WITH POLITICIANS We have made contact with our 3 local councillors, plus our local MP, to let them know of our group’s existence. Cllr Rowena Champion and Emily Thornberry MP have both acknowledged our emails.

CONNECTING WITH LEASEHOLDERS ON OTHER ESTATES Contact has been made with the resident leaseholder chair of Kings Crescent Tenants and Residents Association (N4, Hackney) and we have established some similarities and some differences between their re-development situation and ours. They have some valuable insights into how large estate projects work, and what questions we need to ask. Kings Crescent also worked with Source and have experience of how best to benefit from their help. The Kings Crescent residents formed as an informal group 18 months ago, and are now a formal residents association so they can advise us on how to move forward as a sustainable voice for leaseholders. For more info, see https://kingscrescent.org

RESIDENTS CHARTER We raised our concern to Source that the significance of the Residents Charter was underplayed in relation to the Offer Letter (itself lacking in relevant detail). Additionally, we feel that leaseholders have not been well represented in forming the charter to date. If there is a ‘Yes’ vote, it will be vital that we are properly represented, to shape the charter in future. Source will support in ensuring this happens. There has been confusion about the role the draft Charter plays in relation to the ballot and we understand from Source that residents should be voting on the contents of the Offer Document alone. A lot of detailed points on the Charter continue to be raised with Source, and we have their responses to date if anyone would like them. However, nothing in the Charter is set in stone at this point, since it is a non-binding draft. Note: Newlon’s FAQs and the Residents Charter are contradictory with reference to establishing leaseholder residency date post-ballot. Source has confirmed that the date in the FAQs (planning application submission) is the most up to date and will be reflected in the next draft of the Charter.

MORE INFO ON WHAT A “NO” VOTE MEANS Symon from Newlon has responded to this query, raised by one of the group this week, as follows: Q. We would like to know more about what happens should there be a no vote. You intimated that Newlon would be obliged to make improvements and that the cost would be passed onto Leaseholders.I know that there is government legislation that is being looked at but is not yet law so can you give us some indication of what you anticipate the works would be should there be a no vote and what costs could be passed on and how this is offset against the money accrued in the sinking fund? A. As we have indicated throughout the workshops and in the offer document, a ‘No Vote’ means business as usual in terms of the provision and repairs and maintenance., in the first instance.The costs of remedial work, especially to New Barnsbury will be very considerable and if there are no funds to cross subsidise these, such as would be the case in the proposals for the transformation exercise, then a good portion of the costs will fall to leaseholders in line with what is set out in leases. Leaseholders should expect bills of many tens of £000’s, one suspects.It cannot be stated with complete accuracy what these costs will be at present because there is new legislation going through Parliament relating to building and fire safety, and a new Housing White paper soon to become a bill, as well as a requirement to decarbonise stock that will all impact on the costs to bring current properties up to new regulatory standards.We recognise that these costs will be difficult for leaseholders to bear. The most elegant solution to this is the transformation proposals set out in the Offer Document recently sent to you. This is because leaseholders on New Barnsbury will not be required to meet any of the costs associated with the transformation and the works will ensure that properties on the estate meet all new and forthcoming regulatory standards, including decarbonisation as well. This will have a positive knock on effect to service charges as well.I am sorry I could give you a precise figure as to the costs that will fall to leaseholders on New Barnsbury but hope you understand why this is not possible, currently.

FACT-CHECKING THE ANONYMOUS FLYER The recent unauthored communication dropping through letterboxes suggesting a delay to the ballot to allow for more face-to-face consultation has been passed on to Source for fact checking. We await a response.

SOURCE’S ROLE IN THE CONSULTATION Another group member raised a query about this. Question and response as follows: Q. Who pays Source? Do they have a conflict of interest? Are they at all dependent on Newlon or other housing assocs for contracts? If so, how can they give unbiased advice to us? A. Regarding your earlier query about conflict of interest : Although Newlon, in common with all  landlords proposing regeneration, pay the costs of independent advice we and our competitors are bound by good practice  initially established in 2002 by  the government and we are very clear that we do not promote regeneration or any other landlord message or indeed the message of any pressure group of residents. We have a long track record in this field and if we were not impartial then we would not get any work, it would be very poor business sense. We understand your concern but our range of contracts are such that we do not depend on any one contract to stay in business. Very often we work only up until ballot and either there is a no vote or we decide we do not have the capacity to work into implementation. Occasionally residents decide they want a change of advisor, that’s the sector we are in.We were appointed by a panel of residents for Barnsbury and continue to act in good faith to ensure that all tenants and leaseholders understand the proposals. We do understand that the role is hard to separate out from that of a leaseholder case worker (which we are not).

(New Barnsbury) HOME LOSS AND DISTURBANCE PAYMENTS ON BUY-BACKSource has stated that under Compulsory Purchase, the Home Loss Act (1973) sets legal minimum Home Loss Premiums to be paid to all leaseholders. As suggested in Newlon’s Offer Document (page 19) the legislation specifies that for NRLs it is a payment of an additional 7.5% of the market value of the property. For resident LHs it is 10%. Newlon cannot reduce these premiums. But – Newlon’s proposed buyback system would not be via Compulsory Purchase, rather a private agreement with each individual leaseholder to surrender their lease. So we asked Source whether we had grounds to challenge the percentage premiums if we felt they were unfair. Source has suggested that this is possible for individuals via a tribunal, but this is likely to be expensive and lengthy, and would likely end up with a compulsory purchase with the original legal minimum premium anyway. We will check with other sources of advice whether this is true.However, Source said that another area that is easier to potentially challenge is Disturbance Payments – reasonable compensation for the costs of having to move/purchase another property. The offer document gives almost no commitment about this, so Source suggests that it could potentially be negotiated to include all sorts of costs, including (for example) lost rental income due to disruption. We will be seeking more advice on this too.

AVOIDING GROUP EMAILS We’re finding it difficult to keep on top of the large volume of information from “reply all” group emails. For this update we think we’ve managed to cover the key queries and answers from Source and Newlon over the past week, but it’s not something we can continue to do without missing things. For this reason, we kindly suggest that leaseholders raise queries individually with Source, Newlon etc, and send copies of the queries raised and the responses received to our  barnsburyleaseholders@gmail.com  address. This will ensure that relevant information can be shared on future updates more easily