Ewan’s story
Ewan,
Chris(not his real name) and William Green were living at 17 Beveridge Street
in Moss side, Manchester. The house was managed by Cornerstone Day Centre.
Through a series admissions by William Green it was obvious he was hiding a
dark secret. Green was a former catholic priest and child sex offender. Ewan
and Chris decided to confront Angela Shannon who managed the house for
Cornerstone.
Shannon was
very angry threat Ewan and Chris had uncovered Green’s secret. First there was
denials then threats and finally financial bribes to leave the property. Chris
took the money, Ewan stayed. Ewan had now decided that Shannon was persona non
grata. The following day in an act of spite Shannon came to the property and
removed items from the property. This even included the toilet rolls.
Shannon
twice broke into Ewan’s locked bedroom with her own key. The first time she
came with a colleague and told Ewan he would have to leave. The next day she
came and said she would be sending
Gary
Coward, an employee of Cornerstone Day Centre, to the property to intimidate
Ewan to leave the property.
Ewan had
suffered from depression and he was now isolated and thought the whole world
was against him in this situation. When he did leave the property and returned
the locks had been changed. Ewan text Shannon who confirmed this was the case.
·
Q.
Was Shannon within her rights to evict Ewan from the property?
·
A.
No, legally you need a court order or give a reasonable period of notice.
Changing the locks is an illegal eviction and a criminal offence. This is why
Shannon would not call the police when Ewan requested her to do so.
·
Q.Were
there terms in Ewan’s contract that could require him to leave the property?
·
A.
No, Ewan had no contract so in law he had the rights reflected in a standard 6
month tenancy. Your landlord must provide you with a statement of tenancy terms within 28 days of the tenancy commencement date.