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Future of Boundary Estate community launderette still uncertain despite support from councillors

Campaigners battling to save the Boundary Estate community launderette and stop it from closing down for good say it’s in a ‘state of uncertainty’ until a permanent lease is secured with the council.

On July 17, a petition addressing the future of the Boundary Estate Community Launderette in Shoreditch received cross-party support from councillors during a full council meeting in Tower Hamlets.

The petition, which received over 2,800 signatures, asked the council to recognise the launderette as a community premise and not a commercial one so it could benefit from a reduction in rent.

Jonathan Moberly, vice-chair of Boundary Tenants and Residents Association (TRA), said it was ‘amazing’ to receive such huge cross-party support during last week’s council meeting.

He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): ‘What we wanted to do was raise the profile and we wanted a really good display of cross-party support from everyone in the council chamber, that’s what we were hoping to get from the meeting and we got that, it was amazing.

‘It was incredible from all sides of the house, every party was in agreement which has probably never happened before.’

Earlier this year in February, workers had turned up to start their shifts only to discover the locks had been changed by Tower Hamlets Council, leaving the local community shocked and staff worried they had lost their jobs.

Residents have relied on the launderette to wash their clothes for decades and were left ‘absolutely devastated’ by the sudden closure.

The launderette has also played a pivotal role in reducing damp and mould issues in people’s homes, which is something many residents living on the historic Boundary Estate battle with regularly.

A council spokesperson said at the time that the launderette had been informed in July 2023 about renewing its lease, but did not hear back.

Campaigners claimed there had been ‘no explanation’ on the original notice left by bailiffs and said the council wanted to increase the annual rent from £2,000 to £12,000, in line with market levels for the area.

A campaign quickly gained momentum and a few weeks later the council returned the keys to the launderette and granted a tenancy for up to 12 months while the council and the launderette negotiate a new type of lease.

Aspire councillor, Kabir Ahmed who is cabinet member of regeneration, inclusive development and housebuilding, said: ‘It’s of the utmost importance that we don’t only see best value in financial terms, we see best value in terms of what is growing a community, sustaining a community and bringing people together.

‘This launderette plays a vital part in how we as a melting pot, we as a society, we as residents of Tower Hamlets, come together through the most basic functions of washing our clothes.’

Labour councillor, Asma Islam said: ‘The laundry is considered a commercial building and therefore commercial rent supply but in reality, this laundry is a community asset, a community need and we should explore options of reassigning this space as that.

“The laundry is run by volunteers and is a not-for-profit and is completely run by and for the community. We cannot allow the laundry to pick against commercial lease price as we all know how difficult that will be as hard as they try.’

Cllr Islam added: ‘If we are to lose the laundry and not explore options of making this sustainable for the long term, it won’t just be a loss for the Boundary Estate, it will be a loss for this borough.’

However, Aspire councillor and cabinet member for resources and the cost of living, Saied Ahmed, said the premises can’t be added to the council’s community premises portfolio because it does not meet the criteria.

Cllr Ahmed said: ‘One of the criteria excludes retail properties, this criteria was agreed at cabinet in 2021 however, the mayor has now called for a review of our rent and leases policy across our corporate asset portfolio.’

He said the council remains committed to communicating with the launderette and exploring alternative options that will allow for it to continue existing there for ‘as long as needed to provide a sustainable long-term basis’.

Later on in the meeting, Mayor Lutfur Rahman said he wanted to find a permanent solution and new permanency as soon as possible.

After the meeting, Mr Moberly told the LDRS the launderette will ‘continue to be in a state of uncertainty’ until a long-term agreement is signed with the council.

The launderette pays its staff their wages and affords council rent through the income it makes from customers, and a Crowdfunder was launched to make up for the seven weeks it was closed, cover staff wages as well as raising money for legal costs.

He said: ‘There are four employees at the moment, they are on rolling casual contracts because since the closure they had to be put on notice, but we have continued paying them for the seven weeks it was closed.’

He added: ‘…we can’t issue them security beyond tomorrow because technically, even if we have a tenancy of will, technically we could be thrown out with one day’s notice.

‘From the point of view of the staff, it’s just not acceptable to have that complete insecurity thrown around because from their point of view this needs to happen as quickly as possible.’

The LDRS understands campaigners are meeting with council officers this week and will receive a written response from the Corporate Director of Communities within 28 days.

See the Boundary Estate Crowdfunder here .

If you liked this, read Court date for the judicial review of the Mayor’s LTN reversal delayed for another five months

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