More than 40 veterans living in purpose-built accommodation next door to Chelsea FC ’s stadium are facing eviction from their West London homes, amid plans for the site to be majority sold to the residents’ illustrious neighbours. Hammersmith and Fulham Council is calling on both Chelsea and Stoll, the charity which owns the complex, to pause the sale while a viable solution is found for the veterans.
One of those at risk of being moved told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) they are concerned they will return to a ‘dark mental health place’ if the deal proceeds, with veterans to suffer from not only the stress of moving home, but the loss of the community at Sir Oswald Stoll Mansions.
Stoll’s Chief Executive, Will Campbell-Wroe, said the charity is ‘fully committed’ to helping each resident find suitable accommodation, and that they have been in regular communication with officials from Hammersmith and Fulham Council throughout the process.
Currently home to 157 flats, Sir Oswald Stoll Mansions was established in 1915 to provide respite for those returning home from the front. Various facilities feature on-site, including a communal space and medical centre, the latter of which also serves 6,500 patients across the wider community.
In October last year, Stoll’s Board of Trustees agreed to sell the 1.2 acre site to Chelsea for a reported £80 million, having received a total of 13 bids. The Premier League team’s stadium, Stamford Bridge, is right next door to the veterans’ homes, and can easily be seen from the site’s courtyard. It is understood the sale is expected to be finalised early this year.
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Mr Campbell-Wroe, who became Chief Executive of Stoll around six months ago, said the deal was necessary due to the cost of refurbishing the properties.
He has since told the LDRS many of the flats are beyond such repairs, and that demolishing and rebuilding new properties would cost a minimum of £25m. “These are funds which the charity simply does not currently have and would have had no realistic prospect of raising,” he said.
Veterans living at Stoll Mansions, which includes people who have served in countries from Northern Ireland to Afghanistan as well as widows and other family members, have however raised serious concerns about plans to evict those on assured shorthand tenancies if the sale is to be finalised.
While this would not happen immediately, with one resident saying Stoll has committed to hold off any enforcement for two years after the potential deal is done, veterans have sounded the alarm about where they will be re-housed, and what support they will receive.
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Of the 157 flats at Sir Oswald Stoll Mansions, around 20 will be retained under Chelsea’s plans. Those who are on secured tenancies will be re-housed elsewhere, with support from Stoll. However, those who have lived in the complex for less than five years, equating to around 40 flats, will have to make their own arrangements.
Guy Cholerton, 58, who served for more than 20 years in the Coldstream Guards and is one of those liable to be evicted, said a primary issue throughout the whole saga has been the lack of ‘clarity and communication’ from Stoll.
“That could make this whole process a lot easier, just by being upfront and honest. There’s a lot of us in here. Not everyone, but probably 80% of the people here are veterans. They really don’t like being treated like children. We can take bad news as well as good news.”
One veteran the LDRS spoke to said that as well as the loss of their homes, with some of the residents having lived at Sir Oswald Stoll Mansions for many years, the dispersal of the community will have a significant impact.
Mr Cholerton similarly spoke favourably of the camaraderie built up with other tenants since he moved into his flat in 2019, and the likely effects if residents are to be relocated. “If you haven’t seen somebody in a couple of days, you actually in here sort of think, ‘I’d better go tap on the door and make sure they’re all right’. Because I think possibly in the civilian world outside, is anybody concerned if they don’t see you for two or three days? I don’t know. I mean, maybe I’m being a bit judgmental. That’s what we get here. You know, you build some good friends here.”
Source: My London News
