Complaints Grow About Management of Acton Gardens

Rupa Huq presents petition in parliament about L&Q's practices

Residents claim communal areas at Acton Gardens are poorly maintained

March 21, 2023

A group of residents in the Acton Gardens development are becoming increasingly vocal in complaints about the management of the estate.

A petition has been drawn up which was presented to the House of Commons this Monday (13 March) by their local MP Rupa Huq detailing what they describe as the poor practices of London & Quadrant (L&Q) Group and asking the Government to intervene.

This follows the raising of over £10,000 to commence legal action against L&Q.

The mixed tenure housing development will eventually comprise 3,400 and was meant to be the model for the regeneration replacing the South Acton Estate. However, now residents claim that they are experiencing high service charges which rise without justification, non-delivery of paid for services, poor maintenance of the amenity space and garden areas and non-functioning lifts. It is claimed that residents are frequently left without heating, hot water, and lift access.

Both social housing tenants and those in privately owned flats say they have been affected by a range of problems which also include entrance doors and park gates being left unrepaired for months leading to an increase in crime and anti-social behaviour.

Failure to let retail space is believed to be contributing to anti-social behaviour

It is alleged that when residents report crimes on the estate to police, L&Q have been so slow in supplying CCTV that cases are eventually closed due to lack of evidence.

The group representing the residents who are unhappy with L&Q management says that there has been no explanation given for year on year increases in service charges and sinking funds despite many of the services charged for not being properly delivered. It is claimed that in some cases charges have risen by 700% since the occupant has been living at Acton Gardens.

It is also contended that a lack of Service Level Agreements (SLAs) on the resolution of reported defects means that problems can persist for years or cases are closed without any action being taken.

Concerns are also expressed about the failure to let retail units on the development and a failure to repair damage to communal areas which it is believed has contributed to a rise in anti-social behaviour.

Residents say they are not getting the level of garden maintenance they pay for

Homeowners who bought their flats as new are now finding that they would be selling them at a loss should they choose to move out.

Residents got in touch with local MP Rupa Huq for support following what they say was months of failed attempts at getting help from the developer.

When Dr Huq presented the residents’ petition to the House she said, “It’s not even a decade old and leaseholders are concerned about spiralling service charges paid to London & Quadrant in the face of incomplete repairs to communal doors and security, malfunctioning water and energy supplies, unanswered inquiries and the bottomless pit of the sinking fund leaving them to wonder where the money is going. Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urge the government to take into account the difficulties faced by Acton Gardens residents who’ve been fighting for increased transparency of service charge accounts and expenditure from L&Q and take immediate action to ensure that lease holders are granted that transparency.”

The escalation of the problem to the House of Commons comes as a result of residents saying they have been let down by L&Q’s lack of response to their concerns. Louisa Golden, one of the residents of Acton Gardens, spoke of her “demoralising” experience trying to resolve issues with the development and said that “L&Q have such a high turnover of staff that every time you feel you are getting to a solution you have to start again. They also just stop replying when things have still have not been sorted”.

Paul Davie, another resident of Acton Gardens, said that, “now with the involvement of Dr Rupa Huq, who kindly offered her time and energy to investigate things we hope we can move forward with L&Q to help us gain traction on getting outstanding issues resolved and more importantly provide us the transparency on the rapidly increasing charges we see on our bills. This whole episode has caused a lot of stress and worry so the quicker we can find a resolution the better for all”.

Following the petition, Dr Huq hopes that the intervention will lead to L&Q resolving residents’ concerns and, more widely, make housing associations more accountable for rogue practices.

She said, “it is unacceptable that L&Q are able to get away with charging extortionate fees in return for below-par conditions and non-existent repairs. These are private homeowners who have paid hundreds of thousands of pounds for what they expected to be their dream homes. A decade on from the development’s launch these are not just snagging issues but a disgrace.”

A request has been made by the House of Commons to L&Q for a response to the petition.

We have asked L&Q for a comment on the complaints.