CONTESTED REPAIRS

Cressingham Gardens Estate (CGE) faces demolition by Lambeth Council who argue it is too costly to repair. The screen displays repairs data held by Lambeth Council for CGE, alongside comments from residents who have been contesting these repairs. The data is obtained via custom software that scans service charge statements sent to residents of CGE. The software employs computer vision technologies to identify and extract repairs data, then convert repairs jobs into a spreadsheet format. This file helps residents coordinate efforts to contest repairs data. This software has exposed underlying data structures and technical process involved in the management of Lambeth’s housing. This knowledge helps residents fight regeneration proposals and ensure Council officers do not allow CGE to fall into a state of disrepair.

In 2012, residents of Cressingham Gardens Estate were informed that the estate was too expensive to repair which prompted Lambeth council to include the estate in a regeneration program instead of carrying out repairs. Since 2012 residents have struggled to obtain evidence that the estate is too expensive to repair by submitting FOI requests for building surveys, repairs data, and contractor invoices. One of the most significant pieces of evidence has been a resident led ‘peoples audit’ of data which, to date, has uncovered lack of evidence of structural issues, and £138,000 of contested repairs in a two year period.

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