RESIDENTS of two supported living homes in Wellington have told the charity which wants to close them that they will not move out.

All 45 residents in Ivy House and The Old Vicarage approved a letter to Abbeyfield Society chief executive Paul Tennant denouncing last week’s closure decision.

Brian Standring, an Ivy House tenant since 2017, put his name to the letter after it had been read by the other residents who agreed it reflected their ‘joint feelings, views, and opinions’.

Mr Standring said the residents noted Mr Tennant had made a promise in a television news interview that the society would not evict any of the residents.

He told Mr Tennant: “Please note, no resident is prepared to sign any documents and certainly not interested in discussing a suitable new home or the closure process.

“As you will not evict and we will not move, the obvious action for the Abbeyfield Society to take is to re-negotiate and agree a sale.

“Otherwise, the situation could deteriorate and drag on for years at your considerable cost and expense.”

Abbeyfield regional operations manager Stewart Comport met residents face to face last week to deliver the outcome of a consultation the charity began almost 12 months ago.

Mr Comport told them the society had been on the verge of selling the two homes to another housing provider when it pulled out of the deal because it said the finances did not work for them.

He said the financial figures for Abbeyfield to keep the homes going into the future also did not add up and therefore the only option left was to put the properties up for sale on the open market.

Mr Standring said in his letter to Mr Tennant the overall communication from the charity to the residents during the past year had been ‘appalling’.

He said: “More accurately, it is best described as non-communicative.

“Perhaps Abbeyfield should consider talking less and listening more.”

Mr Standring said Abbeyfield’s claim to have ‘spoken at length’ with residents since the consultation announcement amounted to three meetings at which Mr Comport read from a script and while questions were invited, ‘none were answered’.

He said residents now wanted to know the identify of the housing provider with which Abbeyfield had been in discussions so they could check the validity of the claim, the figure which had been offered for the purchase, why the final offer was rejected, and whether the charity was prepared to sell the two homes separately.

Mr Standring also asked for written confirmation of that the ‘we will not evict any residents’ television news statement was ‘true and accurate’.

He said there also appeared to be some mystery as to whether a covenant on the properties existed and if it was true that Abbeyfield had paid just £1 to take on ownership from the Rotary Club of Wellington.

The issue was discussed at Wednesday’s meeting of Wellington Town Council, which had promised as a last resort to investigate taking over the homes.