[Diggers350] Marsh Farm Outreach in Luton win Judicial Review to save Marsh House community hub

[Mark S Brown]

Luton community group win permission for Judicial Review in campaign to
save Marsh House community hub

Marsh Farm Outreach (MFO) have won permission for Judicial Review following
a hearing at the High Court in London on Wednesday. They say they have been
unfairly hit with a large backdated rent bill and threat of eviction
despite volunteers ploughing their own funds and resources into rescuing
and restoring the community building which the group say was at risk of
demolition before they took it over.

The group say a 'rent earned' agreement was in place where MFO volunteers
did all of the building work needed to rescue and restore the building,
with the value of their work credited as rent paid. The dispute started
when LBC disputed the duration of the agreement and began charging rent.

MFO took the matter to court after the council refused to implement the
recommendations of John Jones - a member of it's own Independent Standards
Committee. The council had commissioned Mr Jones to review their handling
of a complaint MFO made against the Director of Property and to find a
resolution to the rent dispute.

When the Executive in charge of Luton Borough Council met to consider John
Jones' findings in July 2022, two hundred Lutonians gathered on the town
hall steps urging councillors to defer their decision because vital
information they needed to make their decision was being kept from them.
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