Tag Archives: Paul Sylvester

REHOUSING DOMESTIC ABUSE VICTIM ‘MS X’ – A HAPPY ENDING…?

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Web ExclusiveFollowing our recent articles on the horrific domestic abuse suffered by ‘Ms X’ – and the failure of senior Bristol City Council officials to rehouse her into a place of safety – we can report that those running our city have… Done precisely NOTHING.

Well, nothing except:

  • BLAME the victim
  • Make FALSE ALLEGATIONS about Ms X
  • Attempt to WASH THEIR HANDS of their legal duties

As we reported on Friday, senior BCC managers NICK HOOPER and PAUL SYLVESTER as well as City Mayor GEORGE FERGUSON all IGNORED extensive paperwork detailing the case of Ms X.

FACT: Ms X reported her abuse months ago.
FACT: Ms X has fully cooperated with the council and other agencies.
FACT: Ms X – for a range of reasons we cannot divulge here – made it clear she could not go to a ‘refuge’.
FACT: Bristol City Council made serious errors in its initial assessment of her needs.
FACT: Ms X is under an imminent and ongoing threat of extreme violence from her abuser if she stays where she is.

If all this didn’t sound grim enough on its own, The BRISTOLIAN can now reveal that:

  • Ms X has been repeatedly FAILED by local authority services in the past.
  • Ms X is also responsible for a YOUNG CHILD – whom she is terrified that she will lose if she is thrown into a refuge.
  • Ms X was initially put into the LOWEST housing band when originally assessed – a mistake that cost valuable weeks and caused great anxiety and stress to Ms X.
  • Ms X has received NO APOLOGY for her shameful treatment.

Since The BRISTOLIAN first brought the issue out into the open – and emailed an outline of the sickening situation to all SEVENTY COUNCILLORS to ensure that there would be no whitewash, no brushing of the matter under the carpet – there has been a flurry of activity behind the scenes at City Hall.

Ms X, her advocate and The BRISTOLIAN – plus a small number of councillors who have admirably taken an interest – took this to mean that the decision-makers were finally taking this seriously, and working to protect a survivor of domestic violence.

That belief was misplaced. That trust has been abused.

Want to know what happened next? Read on…

REVEALED: EMAIL PROOF OF BRISTOL HOUSING BOSSES’ FAILURE TO FIND SAFE HOME FOR VICTIM OF SADISTIC ABUSE

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Web ExclusiveWe’ve had so many inquiries from concerned councillors regarding the horrifying domestic abuse story we highlighted on Friday that we’ve decided to publish an urgent email sent, on behalf of the victim, to Bristol City Council housing boss PAUL SYLVESTER on Thursday that has gone unheeded and unanswered. We hope this shows just how potentially serious the situation is.

Letter received by Bristol City Council housing boss Paul Sylvester on 7/11/13 about his department’s failure to rehouse domestic abuse survivor (click to see full size version)

This email didn’t come out of thin air. It was a follow-up email to one sent last Monday to Sylvester’s boss NICK HOOPER, the leader of the council Labour group HELEN HOLLAND, and the globetrotting couldn’t-give-a-toss MAYOR GEORGE FERGUSON. It clearly outlined that a vulnerable domestic violence victim had been subjected to death threats the previous week and was in need of urgent rehousing. It has not even been acknowledged, let alone acted upon.

Indeed, on Friday evening Nick Hooper was issuing DENIALS to councillors that he had any idea what the issues we were raising were about. This means he either does not bother to read his correspondence or – that if he does – he sees nothing worth remembering when DEATH THREATS are issued to a working class Bristolian woman. How many of these cases is he ignoring a week?

It makes you wonder what’s going on with domestic violence policy at Bristol City Council. The victim applied for rehousing three months ago, has never been allowed to have a conversation with one of Hooper’s housing officers to discuss her situation, and every week is listed as about 30th in line to get rehoused. How bad must it be to be first in line?

The email has been redacted to avoid the victim being identified. After you have read this, we urge you – again – to get calling, get tweeting and get emailing to demand that posh, well-paid men at Bristol City Council start DOING THEIR BLOODY JOBS!

And ask yourselves – what are the chances that The BRISTOLIAN discovered the only person in the city suffering from domestic abuse who is having trouble getting rehoused?

A CLEAR & PRESENT DANGER: BRISTOL CITY COUNCIL ABANDONS VULNERABLE BATTERED WOMAN

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Web ExclusiveDespite its LEGAL OBLIGATIONS to immediately rehouse her, Bristol City Council is FAILING to place a vulnerable victim of ongoing brutal domestic violence into safety, according to information passed to The BRISTOLIAN.

The woman in question – whom we choose to identify only as ‘Ms X’ – has been targeted by a predatory sexual sadist over an extended period of time, and has reached out for help from a number of agencies.

Yet in a harrowing tale of municipal hand-wringing, thanks to a combination of INDIFFERENT POLITICAL HACKS and LAZY SENIOR OFFICERS, and despite her acute need to be rehoused away from her abuser, she remains trapped and at the mercy of a very dangerous man.

Credible information leads The BRISTOLIAN to believe that unless Ms X receives the rehousing support to which she is legally and morally entitled within days she is in real danger of serious harm.

And what can be done?

Well, the politicians and council officers who have already been made aware of the precise circumstances facing Ms X could pull their fingers out of their arseholes and (i) acknowledge the detailed information sent to them about this matter; and (ii) ACTUALLY REHOUSE MS X. Not when she’s in hospital – or worse – but NOW.

Of course, given their failure to take seriously either this particularly grim individual situation, or the wider issues of domestic abuse, we have decided to start NAMING AND SHAMING those who were told about the case of Ms X – but who have DONE NOTHING – starting with the overpaid men at the top…

So get calling, get tweeting and get emailing to demand that they DO THEIR JOBS!

Don’t let them sit on their hands until Ms X becomes that most unfortunate statistic of all.

* If within 24 hours of this post we don’t hear that practical steps have been taken to help Ms X, we reserve the right to leverage these – and other – complacent decision-makers even further.
** We are not naïve and realise that Ms X is not the only person at risk from domestic violence who is being failed by Bristol’s authorities. If you or someone you know is in a similar position as Ms X, and no one else can help, get in touch and we will see if there is anything we can do.