Friday, October 14, 2005
October and the meeting room
In September a member of Cedar Tenants Association had attended a meeting of the STO - the Scottish federation of tenants associations and tenants organisations - and had told them of Cedar Tenants Association's trouble in getting the GHA to allow us access to our own meeting room and facilities. On the back of the case presented to their meeting, the STO was motivated to write to the GHA on behalf of Cedar Tenants Association, such was the flagrant abuse by the GHA of its publicly available policies on tenant participation.
However when Cedar Tenants again asked why it was that they were being prevented from accesing their facilities, they received the startling response, in writing from a GHA representative (Jane McGrory), that 'there are other facilities that can be used if the tenant [sic] wish'.
Naturally Cedar Tenants wished to find out about these other facilities, and book them for our meetings, but, when pressed about it, the line from GHA (Queen's Cross LHO) was that we had to return the original letter we had received concerning these facilities (presumably so that it could be destroyed, and the miscreant who wrote it punished), that the GHA representative had passed on incorrect information, and the the manager at Queen's Cross wished to have a closed meeting with members of the Cedar Tenants Association, ostensibly to find out what their needs were.
When asked to put this in writing Steven MacAvoy - heid bummer at Queens Cross (echoing a letter he had written previously on the same issue some months previously) wrote:-
"I am sorry to advise you that the room at Cedar is unavailable for use at this point in time.
The room presents some potential health and safety difficulties for GHA. The room in question is actually an integral part of the concierge workstation.
Can we suggest some alternative venues such as Woodside Halls or Maryhill Community Centre [sic].
I am on holiday until 01/11/05. however I would be happy to meet with you anytime thereafter."
THANKS STEVE!
So Cedar tenants are supposed to use community centres at a cost of around seven pound an hour because 'there is some potential health and safety difficulties' (what he is refering to here is the hole in the wall made some two years ago to fit an extractor fan that was never installed. it has hitherto, or at least before the inception of Cedar Tenants Association, never been an issue for any groups meeting in the room. Indeed while Stevie-boy was writing missives telling us the room was unsafe for us to meet in may months ago, he was simultaneously allowing a benefits advice drop-in organised through Queens Cross HA to meet there. Apparently the hole in the wall - some five inches or so, suspended 9 feet in the air - only presents health and safety problems to those of us with jobs? or is it something else Steve?)
The battle for use of our basic facilities as tenants in the area continues.
However when Cedar Tenants again asked why it was that they were being prevented from accesing their facilities, they received the startling response, in writing from a GHA representative (Jane McGrory), that 'there are other facilities that can be used if the tenant [sic] wish'.
Naturally Cedar Tenants wished to find out about these other facilities, and book them for our meetings, but, when pressed about it, the line from GHA (Queen's Cross LHO) was that we had to return the original letter we had received concerning these facilities (presumably so that it could be destroyed, and the miscreant who wrote it punished), that the GHA representative had passed on incorrect information, and the the manager at Queen's Cross wished to have a closed meeting with members of the Cedar Tenants Association, ostensibly to find out what their needs were.
When asked to put this in writing Steven MacAvoy - heid bummer at Queens Cross (echoing a letter he had written previously on the same issue some months previously) wrote:-
"I am sorry to advise you that the room at Cedar is unavailable for use at this point in time.
The room presents some potential health and safety difficulties for GHA. The room in question is actually an integral part of the concierge workstation.
Can we suggest some alternative venues such as Woodside Halls or Maryhill Community Centre [sic].
I am on holiday until 01/11/05. however I would be happy to meet with you anytime thereafter."
THANKS STEVE!
So Cedar tenants are supposed to use community centres at a cost of around seven pound an hour because 'there is some potential health and safety difficulties' (what he is refering to here is the hole in the wall made some two years ago to fit an extractor fan that was never installed. it has hitherto, or at least before the inception of Cedar Tenants Association, never been an issue for any groups meeting in the room. Indeed while Stevie-boy was writing missives telling us the room was unsafe for us to meet in may months ago, he was simultaneously allowing a benefits advice drop-in organised through Queens Cross HA to meet there. Apparently the hole in the wall - some five inches or so, suspended 9 feet in the air - only presents health and safety problems to those of us with jobs? or is it something else Steve?)
The battle for use of our basic facilities as tenants in the area continues.
