Thursday, May 24, 2007

Squatters Rights in the UK

Harry Hallowes, 70, who came to London from Ireland when he was 20 and has been living for decades in a self-built shanty deep in the woods of Hampstead Heath has won the title to his house and garden. He applied for the deed based on adverse possession after a property firm tried to evict him. The BBC has details.

4 comments:

Deadmanshonda said...

WAY to go for HIM. This is what i like to hear....What the hell kind of people try to evict 70 year olds? Grrr...

Anonymous said...

Hi all! What a great story and timely reminder that justice does prevail every now and then!
Have just discovered the site and like it very much. I was under the impression that squatting was a thing of the past in the UK. Being active myself since the 80s it is encouraging to see that this sort of grassroots activism is not dead, at a time when we need it more than ever.

EmpodérateConsultores, SC said...

Hi. I am reading your book, shadow cities, now and I am very moved by the stories. I just finished my first year at the Kennedy School. I lived in a shantytown for over a year, in santiago, chile. I am going to spend a summer in Mumbai-do you have any contacts or friends in Dharavi or other slums that I can contact to show me around those communities? Please contact me at karinaweinstein@gmail.com!

Thanks!

dick fischbeck said...

Thanks for your work. I've posted your blog, etc., to the Bucky Fuller Institute. I've just started to read your ideas and experiences. I'm sure I'll have more to say later.

http://bfi.org/our_programs/bfi_community/shelter_for_all

In Oakland, California, the city is proposing a safe, healthy ultra-low-cost community on the old army base there. I hope they succeed. We need more full-size models of what-we-can-do with what-we-know.