Housing associations slammed for selling off Wiltshire homes

Marlborough Councillor Lisa Farrell, who grew up in social housing herself, has lifted the lid on the situation in Marlborough, stating that housing associations are selling too many homes and using ‘bullying tactics’ on residents to do so.

“Every time a three-bedroom house comes up in Marlborough I have so many texts from people in dire straights who don’t know what to do,” she said.

Former Marlborough mayor Lisa Farrell grew up in social housing (Image: Marlborough Town Council)

“They’ve got four children all sleeping in one room, but the housing associations seem to be selling every three-bedroom house in Marlborough.

“They use bully tactics on our vulnerable elderly people. I don’t understand how they are allowed to get away with this.

“It’s not just Marlborough either, I get comments from Burbage, Pewsey, Ogbourne, you name it.

“We’re all entitled to live somewhere and the housing association needs to be stopped now."

Since a change to the law in 2015, it is easier for housing associations to sell stock that can’t easily be upgraded to meet environmental and efficiency criteria.

There is also no legal obligation for them to replace social housing that is sold off.

Wiltshire Council approved a motion demanding better standards from Aster Group and GreenSquareAccord, who were both reported as removing residents from properties that were then put for sale on open markets.

A spokesperson for GreenSquareAccord explained: "Investing in our existing homes to make sure they are of a high standard for our customers is a top priority for us.

Marlborough declared a 'housing emergency' in 2023 (Image: Getty Images)

“In some instances, the cost of investing to bring a property up to the required standards cannot be justified and, in those cases, the responsible decision is to sell that property.

“When this happens we provide tailored support and compensation for impacted customers and help them to move on to suitable alternative accommodation.”

A spokesperson for Aster Group added: "In a very small number of cases, we will sometimes sell a property that is unsustainable.

“We support any customer affected by this throughout the entire process, providing them with suitable alternative accommodation and assistance with moving to their new home.”

But Marlborough councillor Jane Davies pointed out that even though the sales are legal, they are "totally against the spirit of keeping communities together and thriving, which is exactly what social housing was intended to do."

Other residents have stated that social housing is particularly important in Marlborough, which declared a 'housing crisis' in 2023 due to high prices.