Committee

The following people serve on the St Martins Tenants and Residents Association committee.

We are:

Stephen Kearney from High Trees as chair

Chris Blake from Gaywood Close as secretary (above). “I moved to Gaywood Close in 2011. I remember my first winter here: I had difficulty getting Metropolitan to do a repair. I thought at the time I was just unlucky. It wasn’t until I joined the residents association I realised lots of other people had this problem. So I’m proud of the work we did with big campaigns like the campaign for new youth services and the campaign against damp. I’m also proud we challenged Metropolitan about a very specific repair in my part of the estate. In 2011 I’d have felt helpless at the lack of action. In 2020 we fought and won.”


Terry Curtis from Burnell House as treasurer (above). “I have lived on the estate since 1958, when the estate was run by the London County Council. It was very paternalistic but it was well-run, and I saw its decline as a result of council neglect since then. The estate possibly reached its nadir in the early 1980s when a resident died in Maskall Close, and it was a week or 2 before anyone noticed. I have been involved in tenants bodies since the early 1990s, and I have found that the more active that resident bodies have been the more that the “Authorities”, be they the Council or Housing Assocs have paid attention to the well-being of the estate. That is why I am a member of the TRA”

The following people are also on the committee:

Terry Cooper from Abbots Park

Ed Crawford from Challice Way (above). “I joined the TRA as I feel it is important that residents have a strong voice when dealing with the housing associations and that that will lead to productive relationships and ensure they meet their obligations. I am also keen for improvements to be made to the landscaping of the estate.”

Mimi Discher from Sheppard House (above). “I moved to St Martins in 2018. Since then, issues with MTVH have been regular. I saw that we had a TRA in the estate and contacted them for support and guidance. It was very helpful to see that I was not the only one as well as to get to know people to share experience and knowledge about our area. Being part of the TRA is a way of supporting my community more actively and working to ensure a positive relationship with the housing associations”

Justine Harrison from Williams House (above), “I have been a part of the TRA since 2017 following an introduction by our current Treasurer Terry Curtis. I became actively involved in the damp campaign, and was astonished at how many people were suffering with this issue, along with many other maintenance issues. I knew that as a collective we needed to do what we could to bring about change with our landlords service delivery. As well as having a platform where tenants and leaseholders could source information, and obtain advocatory support and advice. There is often support in numbers, so I would strongly encourage tenants and leaseholders to join the TRA, or get involved involved with our campaign work in order to bring about much needed change on our estate.”

Peter Hurst from Worthington House

Cllr Saleha Jaffer from Kynaston House

Annalisa Premoli from Gaywood Close (above). “Being part of the TRA makes me feel that I’m not alone when I’m asking for better services or repairs from my Landlord. I’ve met great people who I now consider good neighbours and friends, and I’ve now started a gardening project so that we get to meet even more neighbours and improve our green spaces. It’s great to feel supported by the other members of the TRA!”

Craig Williams from Hart House (above). “The TRA has always been a massive support for me when I’ve needed advice or back-up when challenging our Landlords which I am so thankful for. As a resident on St Martins for the best part of 30 years on and off, I feel I owe it to the residents to share some of the experiences and knowledge I have to continue to make our estate a better place to live on”

Please contact us with your thoughts on what we should be doing