Discussion on Barry Road Hostel (formerly thread called Number 12 Bus)

[Barry Rhode]

Now, I don't want to offend anyone's sensibilities...

Around 8am, on the number 12 bus there's an unfortunate (and I imagine) homeless lady who sits at the back

Unfortunately, she reeks to high heaven and it gets really uncomfortable for the other passengers, even quite a few seats away

It gets especially bad when the bus isn't moving, even with the windows open

There's also been a gentleman with the same problem who also gets on at the start of he route at the same time

My question is, is there some kind of hostel at the top of Barry road where these people stay, that kicks them out at 8am?

If so they should offer their residents some kind of help with washing

If there isn't a hostel what are they doing up there? Why Barry Road?

[James]

Refugees from The Plough now it's been gentrified?

[Muttley]

What's the former church with the spire (next to Christ Church) used for these days? Used to be an old people's home, but might have changed use in recent years.

[ratty]

Not one that I know of and I have worked with the homeless for 15 years, however I could be wrong. My missus also works with the homeless and she thinks there may be one.

Not much help!

[ChavWivaLawDegree]

It is a hostel.

It used to be full of kids on the council waiting list but I think it's mainly filled with asylum seekers now.

Apparantly it was an old people's home before that, but the Irish guy who owns it didn't think that made enough money, so kicked all the wrinkleys out and turned it into a hostel.

[snorky]

( I may be incorrect in this one instance but ) Hostel owners are the worst kind of rapacious landlord scum

[ChavWivaLawDegree]

By the looks of his Bently, he's doing alright. Not sure if his former elderly tenents are tho.

[Keef]

What Snorky said!!!

I hate these people, they are giving people that really need somewhere to stay, nothing more than a very no thrills roof over their head, and a kitchen to share between loads of them, and charging the council (via housing benefits, or funding for those with "No recourse to public funds", who are "destitue plus") a fortune for it!

Chav, I think you're correct that it is mainly made up of asylem seekers these days... That was definitely the case a couple of years ago.

[ChavWivaLawDegree]

I'm gonna try to find out how much he charges now. It was ?360 a week per person a year ago for a bunkbed in a shared room for one of my kids friends, but now I think he wouldn't have switched to Asylum Seekers if it wasn't cos he can get more dough. He even provides coaches to ship the poor sods to and from detention centres etc.

[Keef]

And I bet he tells himself he's doing something good.

[ChavWivaLawDegree]

I doubt it! Prob just takes the dough and forgets about it.

[Rockets]

Well he has a steady stream of punters - every morning when I run past there on the way to Dulwich Park there seems to be two more white vans full of men, women and children turning up there. Always wondered whether it was housing asylum seekers and now thanks to the forum I know!!!

[Jamma]

The hostel is for homeless people, in reality mainly asylum seekers/refugees these days. There was some fuss when he changed the use as certain locals made objections on the grounds that there would be more litter and crime based on nothing more than the fact that the people would be foreign. One of the conditions of the change of use was that there had to be a sign out front with phone numbers on that a manager can be contacted on 24 hours in case of any trouble. But I've never had any bother from the people that unfortunately have nothing more to do than sit out the front of the old church and I walk past a couple of times every day. I'm sure most of them are just pleased they are not having to dodge bullets any more.

I'm not sure if the white vans are delivering asylum seekers/refugees every morning or bussing them off around the country and to the immigration office in Croydon.

[Keef]

Yeah I remember all the kicking off about it, people are so stupid sometimes.

Basically, first thing an asylem seeker will do when they get here is walk in to a housing office and declare themselves homeless. The coucil has a duty of care for these people who are generally penniless, and labelled "destitute plus", which means the council will house them, and give them something rubbish like ?30 a week to live on. For those out there who think they're living the life of riley, please try and survive for a month or 2 on ?30 a week.

I think the majority of these people are eventually granted leave to remain * (usually within 6 months to a year), at which point they have more or less the same rights as a British Citizen.

* I say this based on what I know through my work. The Asylem Seekers Team in my local authority had onlt known of one person sent home. There is a big difference between Asylem Seekers, and people that turn up requesting immigration on, for example, medical grounds... They will get no financial support, and will wait an age!

[mockney piers]

AS long as you're not seeking asylum from a country we screwed up of course.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,1557308,00.html

[Keef]

Good point, and that is disgusting.

However, did those flights ever take off? That was August 2005, and these things are often stopped. I'm not sure.

[mockney piers]

I'm not sure to be honest, but I know this is still rumbling on, was it dispatches about how under political pressure we're sending far too many genuine asylum seekers home to die. In one congolese airport there were army trucks waiting to take them away at the airport.

Nice :(

[Michael Palaeologus]

Congolese number 12?

[SeanMacGabhann]

Being ripped off by landlords aside, I'm quite proud of the place on Barry Rd. It's right on my doorstep and I pass by several times a day as well

The asylum seekers are inevitably friendly (if they suspect you aren't one of the locals who isn't about to abuse them) and the mixture of looks in their eyes reminds me of a younger me

"What the hell am I doing here and what am I going to do next?"

versus

"At least I'm not there anymore"

[bob]

It was indeed a old peopls home each person having their own room and run for a private landlord not the Irish man. with the money from the local council who ever owned it was making lots of money, bast888ds but the council stoped the funding and the home was run down with the poor old people suffering it then got so bad it lost its licence to operate as a residential old peoples home, was then sold to the Irish man and converted in to a home for asylum seekers.

Bob S

[MadWorld74]

what happened to the elderly that were bumped out onto the streets in favour of the asylum seekers?

[Michael Palaeologus]

They are currently to be found sitting on the back seat of the number 12 bus.

[bob]

Madworld74 I cant say for sure but I think one of the conditions of sale was that all the old residents had to be relocated be for the sale was allowed.

Bob S

[SeanMacGabhann]

[

concern for the elderly in question could have been expressed without the second half of that sentence, no?

Greed landlords is greedy landlords - favouritism doesn't come into it

[Debi]

Yes - it's for refugees.

And yes - they're shipped in and out very fast these days and dispersed round the country.

Inside it's pretty grim, believe me ...

Not meaning to self-promote here, but it features in my 2nd book.

http://www.debialper.co.uk/booksmain.shtml#tt