Windsor Court landlord says she's had enough of troubled residents

Brighton-resident Nazila Blencowe has been providing the council with emergency and temporary accommodation at Windsor Court in Brighton for more than 20 years.

But The Argus can now reveal she is making the 51 flats in Windsor Street private as she is fed up with tenants who trash the property "within days".

The Baron Homes boss said she has had enough of being “picked on” by the MP Caroline Lucas, who has complained about the accommodation numerous times.

Landlord releases shocking photos so people can grasp the problem

Ms Blencowe, who has released these pictures in the hope readers will understand her decision, said: “Look at the pictures, these are the problems I’ve been facing and it’s running us down.

Before and after pictures reveal property littered with needles and paraphernalia

"These homeless people have no respect for the property and they get trashed within days.

"I ask people to appreciate where I am coming from, I don’t want to look like a really bad person.”

Ms Blencowe said the pictures show how her properties were left after troubled tenants had left or been evicted.

Damage to fixtures, furniture and windows at Windsor Court flats

Some flats appear to be littered with drug paraphernalia including needles, others have been left with mountains of rubbish and identified stains on the carpet.

One flat had its microwave ripped from the fitting, holes punched into the wall, and a window smashed.

Please note that current council tenants in the block will not be evicted.

One flat was found with mysterious brown stains and rubbish

Death and violence in Windsor Court

Ms Blencowe said the caretaker of Windsor Court regularly discovers dead bodies in the flats.

In 2015 caretaker called "Mo" was stabbed in the neck by attackers with a hypodermic needle on the block’s stairway.

Last month an Argus investigation of police figures revealed the street the block is in, Windsor Street, has the second highest level of reported crime in the whole city.

A Windsor Street resident, who did not want to be named, said: "I lived in Windsor Lodge for 17 years.

'I was constantly woken up in the early hours of the morning by blue flashing lights from police and ambulance with fighting from the residents next door and drug dealing went on openly."

READ MORE: The 50 most dangerous roads in Brighton and Hove

The street is the second most crime-ridden road in the city

Trouble erupts over broken lift

Ms Blencowe said: “These flats are a prime location the city centre, my properties are getting trashed and now I’m doing them up and giving them to private hands.

"You need landlords like us otherwise what’s going to happen?

"Those people who would have been housed will now be rough sleeping on the streets - this will put more pressure on the police.

More before and after pictures reveal the state properties are handed back in

Ms Blencowe added: "Caroline Lucas wants to help but she’s made things worse.”

The Baron Homes boss says she has made the decision, in part after the MP highlighted the block’s broken lift.

It has not worked since August and was not likely to not be fixed for weeks.

Ms Blencowe says she has paid tens of thousands of pounds on fixing the lift on multiple occasions as it kept breaking when people “used it to steal furniture”. 

In response, Caroline Lucas said: “I won’t be threatened into submission on this - Brighton is facing a housing crisis and I’ll keep pushing both landlords and the council to fulfil their duty to ensure people have a safe place to live.

“This should be a wake-up call for the council - its priority must now be to find decent accommodation to house those in urgent need.”

Charity boss says don't blame the vulnerable people inside

Sussex Homeless Support deals with many Windsor Court residents

Jim Deans, who campaigns against homelessness, regularly visits the block to provide food, toiletries and other necessities.

He described the block as “Brighton’s biggest ghetto”.

He said: “I can sympathise with the owner of the property because her properties are getting smashed up.

“But at the end of the day, we’re dealing with people who are mentally and physically disabled.

"You can’t blame these people, I think the blame lies at the council’s door because they’re not supporting people who need to be supported. 

“The fact Windsor Court is closing its doors to the city’s homeless is a dreadful loss to the city.

"If there’s nowhere for the council to send vulnerable adults to then there will be hundreds more on the streets.”

READ MORE: 'War zone' on streets as drugs fuel violence among homeless

What the council says...

DESPITE Baron Homes boss Nazila Blencowe telling The Argus she will take no more council tenants at Windsor Court in Brighton the city council was last night saying nothing will change.

A Brighton and Hove City Council spokesman said: “We have a good working relationship with Ms Blencowe.

“She has made it clear to us that she does not intend to pull out of providing temporary accommodation for the council at Windsor Court.

“Her contractual obligations with us remain unchanged.

“Whenever issues relating to the quality of the accommodation at Windsor Court are raised with us, we raise them with its management company in order to get them resolved quickly.”

Caroline Lucas: "depressing and potentially dangerous conditions"

The Brighton Pavilion MP has been a vocal critic for years

Caroline Lucas has previously said:  “I’ve long argued that the council should use alternative emergency and temporary accommodation rather than relying on Windsor Court. 

“Residents have written to me about carpets and sofas stained with blood and vomit when they’ve arrived. When my constituents have raised these types of problems with the council they have felt ignored, so I’ve repeatedly made representations on their behalf to prompt action.

“The council says it doesn’t have the capacity to check on vulnerable residents who may be struggling without it. 

“The council cannot keep housing people in these depressing and potentially dangerous conditions.

'The chief executive and the chair of the housing and new homes committee must urgently explore options to invest in building and buying new emergency accommodation, instead of wasting public money on Windsor Court.”

A spokesman for Brighton and Hove Council responded: “We have two welfare officers who support residents, liaise with the service provider and deal with any issues.

"Stained carpets would normally be dealt with by the service provider and we have not been informed of any ongoing problems.

“We are in the process of exploring several options to provide more of our own temporary accommodation in the city.”