The scene, we’re assured, was “completely and utterly hilarious and it was hard to keep a straight face as this ludicrous Scottish banshee whined her dismal song of the thoroughly EXPOSED.”

Meanwhile, over in HR, President Assad look-a-like, HR Director Mark “BASHAR” Williams has been telling anyone who will listen (which isn’t many) that, “The BRISTOLIAN has been giving me sleepless nights.”

No, we’ve no idea why either. But if your caring, sharing BRISTOLIAN is inducing nervous breakdowns in pointless Bristol City Council middle managers, who are we to complain?

Heard a boss whinging about The BRISTOLIAN? Get in touch. STAY TUNED: this story is only going to get bigger… Victorian man: Drooper

Finally word arrives from Housing Service Director, Nick “Drooper” Hooper, on this small matter of the RAW SEWAGE in the basement of one his private sector homeless hostels showered with public money that he personally authorises.

Drooper confirms that, yes, there was indeed a load of human shit in the basement of the hostel. However, – possibly exposing a few flaws in his expensive education here – he goes on to claim “there are NO HEALTH RISKS from what was found.”

Really? No health risks from raw sewage you say? You’d probably have to go back to the 19th Century to find the over-privileged and powerful so IGNORANT on matters of human sanitation and the poor.

On the matter of the poor quality building work at the hostel – where two buildings have been joined together so uselessly you can put your hand through the outside wall and into the kitchen – Drooper appears to have forgotten to respond!

Odd, when the first line of his email claims it will deal with the “OUTSTANDING ISSUES”. Except the ones it doesn’t presumably? However, rest assured we’ll be chasing Drooper up about this.

What will his response be? That the hostel is fully compliant with 19th Century building regulations as they apply to the poor?

Drooper also managed to address the vexed issue of Anthony Palmer’s housing priority as an ex-serviceman. He claims:

“We changed our allocation scheme in 2013/14, following extensive consultation, and this was introduced in May 2015. We give additional preference (increase by 1 band) if someone has served in the forces and had been discharged within the last 5 years and also come within a reasonable preference category.”

Alas, we’ve read Drooper’s Bristol HomeChoice Allocation Scheme a few times now and find no mention of this five-year limit on ex-services receiving additional preference. Neither does it appear in the Housing Act (1996) or its Amendments (2012) as Drooper’s staff have claimed.

Where on earth is this five-year mystery clause of Drooper’s? It’s almost like he’s making it up!

Here’s latest Drooper’s email and Steve Norman’s response:

From: Nick Hooper <email@example.com>
Sent: 23 May 2016 09:49
To: ‘steven norman’
Cc: Mary Ryan

Mr Norman – further to my e-mail below to you I am now able to advise you on the outstanding issues.

We have checked Mr Palmer’s services record. This confirms that he was 16 when he signed up. He left the Army on 21/6/2007 (8 years 11 months ago), a week before his 18th birthday. Regulations were introduced in 2012 which said that local authorities should give additional preference to applications from certain serving and ex-members of the armed forces (and reserve forces) who come within what are called the ‘reasonable preference’ categories. We changed our allocation scheme in 2013/14, following extensive consultation, and this was introduced in May 2015. We give additional preference (increase by 1 band) if someone has served in the forces and had been discharged within the last 5 years and also come within a reasonable preference category.

With regard to the puddle of sewage water at the North St property this has been inspected by our private housing team. Their finding was that there was a small puddle of sewage in the basement (1m by 100cm by 1cm). The leak had been fixed some days before. The small puddle of sewage did not smell. The door to the basement had a padlock on it so access could not be by an unauthorised person. There was no one living in the basement and it was not being used for storage. The puddle was cleaned up last week by the property manager. There are no health risks from what was found.

Nick Hooper
Service Director – Housing Solutions & Crime Reduction
People Directorate
Bristol City Council
100 Temple Street

Tel. 0117 922 4681

Email: firstname.lastname@example.org

On Mon, May 23, 2016 at 10:53 AM, steven norman <email@example.com> wrote:

Dear Nick,

Thank you for your latest email, which I’ve now had time to consider and consult the Allocation Scheme you refer to.

To make this easy, I’ve attached a copy of the scheme. Perhaps you could print this off, mark the section which says you only give additional preference (increase by 1 band) if someone has served in the forces and had been discharged within the last 5 years, scan the document again and return it to me by return (say, within 24 hours) with this simple proof?

I’ve checked the scheme and I can find no reference to a 5-year limit.

The section relevant to Anthony appears to be ‘4.4 Band 1’:

k) Armed Forces Personnel (Additional Preference)

Applicants that meet The Housing Act 1996 (Additional Preference for Armed Forces) (England) Regulations 2012 (SI 2012/2989) and one of the reasonable preference categories in band 2 are given additional preference in priority by one band.

With reference to your claim in relation to raw sewage that “There are no health risks from what was found”, I find this surprising. The health risks of raw sewage are well known. Your knowledge of science appears even more limited than your knowledge of your own Allocation Scheme.

Yours sincerely,

Mr Stephen Norman

As the council threatens to evict the occupiers of 44 Richmond Terrace – including homeless ex-serviceman Anthony Palmer and his 18 month son – perhaps now is the time to reveal the conditions Bristol City Council Housing Director, Nick “Drooper” Hooper on £90k a year expects the city’s vulnerable to live in.

The photo below shows the basement of the North Street hostel that the council is paying slum landlords Connolly & Callaghan £260 a week to house Anthony Palmer and his 18 month old son in. And yes, that’s raw sewage in the basement of the building, which is directly beneath the hostel’s main kitchen. The second photo shows a bodged attempt by cowboy builders to join two buildings together. You can actually put your hand through the wall and into the kitchen of the hostel! Health and safety? Warmth and security? Not for this city’s vulnerable, not on Hooper’s watch. All this raises the question: who’s getting the backhanders to house our vulnerable and homeless in these shithouse conditions?

Anthony Palmer and his 18 month old son have been dumped by Bristol City Council in a revolting, cockroach infested hostel run by a notorious local slum landlord firm, Connolly & Callaghan.

Since 20 April Anthony and his son have been supporting the occupation of 44 Richmond Terrace, Avonmouth – the former council home sold by Mayor No More to a private investor – while campaigners draw attention to his plight.

Here’s the latest communication to Bristol City Council housing boss Nick “Drooper” Hooper to update you about what’s going on (or not).

Look out for our photos of raw sewage washing around a city council funded hostel coming soon …

On Mon, May 9, 2016 at 9:50 AM, steven norman <email@example.com> wrote:

Dear Mr Hooper,

Thank you for your email, the contents of which have been noted. I attach for your reference the requested updated signed Form Of Authorisation.

There have been a number of developments since my last correspondence, which have left me somewhat perplexed and I feel it appropriate that I bring these to your attention in order that you can address all matters together.

At the meeting I attended with Anthony, Linda Tasker offered a hostel in Southmead – Windermere – as an alternative to the current hostel and informed Mr Palmer he could be put on the list for a place.

Not the ideal solution but a move in the right direction. I have since been informed by Mr Palmer that this offer has been withdrawn as an option because there has to be three people to reside there. f

Firstly why was this offered in the first place if that is the criteria? Surely the housing officer should know the criteria? Secondly, I have concerns as to whether or not this is the true reason. Only I have a very good friend who is a single man and was housed in Windermere prior to being housed at Antona Court. That person being a Mr Donald Baker.

Mr Palmer then received either a telephone call or visit from Lynette Benjamin where I believe he was told he was being moved to Trinity Hostel, Montpelier. A move Mr Palmer was not prepared to accept as it was a shared bathing situation and – with due respect – not much better than what he has now.

He was then informed his refusal could affect his housing application. Will you please clarify if it is now a case of bullying tactics by your department? As it seems Ms Benjamin raised some concern over the length of time Anthony had been in the hostel at Bedminster.

I assume your department was hoping it would then be able to start the length of time Anthony and his son have been in hostel afresh? Which, I believe – according to BCC Policy – is no longer than 4 Months. Mr Palmer is now entering his sixth month in hostel.

I have in my possession a number of photographs which I will shortly be releasing to the press including one that shows raw sewage spilling on to a floor of the North Street hostel just below the kitchen and living area. A further one shows an attempt to join two buildings together where you can put your hand through the wall into the kitchen of the hostel.

I can only reiterate my position. Would you be happy for your son or grandson or any other member of your family to live in such a place and why are we rewarding such hostels with substantial sums of tax payers money?
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