Advisory Service for Squatters
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The Advisory Service for Squatters (A.S.S.) is a
non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
group based in London and run by
volunteers Volunteering is a voluntary act of an individual or group freely giving time and labor for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency rescue. Others serve ...
. It aims to provide practical advice and legal support for
squatters Squatting is the action of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied area of land or a building, usually residential, that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have lawful permission to use. The United Nations estimated in 2003 that there ...
. It was founded in 1975, having grown out of the Family Squatters Advisory Service. After being based for many years in St. Paul's Road in
Islington Islington () is a district in the north of Greater London, England, and part of the London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the ar ...
, A.S.S. moved its offices to
Whitechapel High Street Whitechapel High Street is a street in the Borough of Tower Hamlets in the East End of London. It is about 0.2 miles (350 m) long, making it “one of the shortest high streets in London”. It links Aldgate High Street to the south-west with ...
, in the same building as
Freedom Press Freedom Press is an anarchist publishing house and bookseller in Whitechapel, London, United Kingdom. Founded in 1886, it is the largest anarchist publishing house in the country and the oldest of its kind in the English speaking world. It is bas ...
.


History

In the late 1960s, the Family Squatters Advisory Service (FSAS) was founded in London, England, to help defend the rights of squatters. In the 1973 case of ''McPhail vs. Persons Unknown'', the Court of Appeal stated that a landowner could re-enter a squatted property and use reasonable force to evict those occupying the property, while remaining exempt from the
Forcible Entry Act Forcible Entry Act is a stock short title used for legislation in the jurisdictions of both the United Kingdom and Ireland relating to forcible entry. List Acts of the Parliament of England *The Forcible Entry Act 1381 *Statutes concerning forc ...
. Thus, as a result of this ruling, all power lay in the hands of the possessor of the property, rather than the occupants.Law and the Underprivileged, Smith, Chris and Hoath, David C. 1975, Routledge and Kegan Paul Ltd, London This case sparked a division amongst those fighting for squatters' rights at the FSAS, for new-wave advocates thought that the FSAS did not do enough to protect the unlicensed squatters' rights. The division gave rise to a different organization called the All London Squatters (ALS). The ALS was geared more toward direct action and was open to licensed and unlicensed squatters, thus it was perceived as more militant. As tensions heightened in London, FSAS split even further. The division between those for and opposed to unlicensed squatters grew deeper, and by 1975, splits within the group led to its dissolution and the Advisory Service for Squatters (A.S.S.) was formed by one faction.Squatting: The Real Story, Wates, Nick and Wolmar, Christian, 1980, Bay Leaf Books A spokesperson for the group told ''
The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'' in 2003 "Today's squatters are highly organised and efficient. Many have full-time work, and drug problems are rare." Speaking to ''The Independent'' in 2011, A.S.S. estimated that there were between 15,000 and 17,000 squatters across the UK. Squatting in residential buildings was criminalised in England and Wales in 2012 by the
Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 The Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO) is a statute of the Parliament of the United Kingdom enacted by the coalition government of 2010-2015, creating reforms to the justice system. The bill for the act was intro ...
, prompting A.S.S. and the campaign group
Squatters' Action for Secure Homes Squatters' Action for Secure Homes (SQUASH) is an activist group formed first in the 1990s in the United Kingdom to represent the interests of squatters and to fight the proposed criminalisation of squatting. It then reformed in 2011, when there ...
(SQUASH) to release advice on the changed legal situation. A representative of A.S.S. told
Vice News Vice News (stylized as VICE News) is Vice Media's current affairs channel, producing daily documentary essays and video through its website and YouTube channel. It promotes itself on its coverage of "under-reported stories". Vice News was create ...
in 2020 that the
COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom The COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom is a part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In the United Kingdom, it has resulted in confir ...
had resulted in a general increase of illegal evictions by bailiffs and members of the public in London. The
Metropolitan Police The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), formerly and still commonly known as the Metropolitan Police (and informally as the Met Police, the Met, Scotland Yard, or the Yard), is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and ...
responded that for most bailiff actions the police were not involved.


''Squatters Handbook''

The A.S.S. publishes the ''Squatters Handbook'' which both serves as a guide for how and where to squat and explains the legal issues involved. 150,000 copies have been sold since 1976. The thirteenth edition was published in 2009, and the fourteenth in October, 2016. The ''Squatters' Handbook'' details guidelines on how to find property to squat in, what to do in confrontations with the police, how to maintain the property and set up temporary plumbing, and generally how to survive while squatting. It can be purchased for a small fee from the Advisory Service.


Media controversies

In June 2008, the A.S.S. was subject to controversy in the mainstream media after
Eric Pickles Eric Jack Pickles, Baron Pickles, (born 20 April 1952) is a British Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party politician who served as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Brentwood and Ongar (UK Parliament co ...
, Conservative MP for Brentwood and Ongar, criticised councils for listing the ''Squatters Handbook'' and contact details for A.S.S. on their websites. He said "Homeowners will be horrified that town halls are giving squatters the green light to break into law-abiding citizens’ homes ..Promoting such lawlessness is breathtaking, but is sadly an indictment of social breakdown that has become rife under Labour and the prevalence of human rights laws."Advisory Service for Squatters – Squatting is Still Legal
Advisory Service for Squatters
Durham County Council was one of seven councils reported to be recommending the guide. In response, the A.S.S. issued a press release explaining that councils listed it "because we offer free advice to homeless people and those with housing problems ..A.S.S does not promote lawlessness, as squatting is still legal. We help disadvantaged people to find housing, to help themselves when no-one else will. We often recommend that people who are eligible for Priority Need Housing apply to their local Council." In 2011, an A.S.S. volunteer won a case (''Voyias v Information Commissioner and the London Borough of Camden EA/2011/0007'') against Camden Council and the
Information Commissioner's Office The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) is a non-departmental public body which reports directly to the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is sponsored by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). It is the independe ...
which compelled the council to release a list of empty properties. ''
The Daily Mail The ''Daily Mail'' is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper and news websitePeter Wilb"Paul Dacre of the Daily Mail: The man who hates liberal Britain", ''New Statesman'', 19 December 2013 (online version: 2 January 2014) publish ...
'' then wrote an article entitled "Professional agencies marketing empty homes to potential squatters?" which criticised the decision, leading A.S.S. to respond that the article was "misleading and inaccurate". The following year, A.S.S. responded to two ''Daily Mail'' articles written by
Max Hastings Sir Max Hugh Macdonald Hastings (; born 28 December 1945) is a British journalist and military historian, who has worked as a foreign correspondent for the BBC, editor-in-chief of ''The Daily Telegraph'', and editor of the ''Evening Standard' ...
and Andrew Levy which both talked about "Moldovan squatters", describing them as lacking in evidence and "clearly designed to stir up tensions against people because of their nationality".


See also

*
Squatting in England and Wales In England and Wales, squatting—taking possession of land or an empty house the squatter does not own—occurs for a variety of reasons which include needing a home, protest, poverty, and recreation. Many squats are residential; some are ...
*
Social centres in the United Kingdom Self-managed social centres in the United Kingdom can be found in squatted, rented, mortgaged and fully owned buildings. These self-managed social centres differ from community centres in that they are self-organised under anti-authoritarian pri ...


Notes


Further reading

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External links

* {{Authority control Housing organisations based in London Housing rights organizations Organizations established in 1975 Squatting in the United Kingdom