BAILIFFS swooped on an empty building used to house 20 students and low-paid workers in Kentish Town this morning (Wednesday) and threw them on to the street, writes Dan Carrier.

The former Co-Op supermarket in Kentish Town Road, owned by discount supermarket chain Lidl, had provided a roof for the young people for nearly six weeks.

But their stay came to an abrupt end in a dramatic dawn raid that saw bailiffs and security guards use crowbars to force open doors – and then remove the people living there. A collection of bedding, mattresses, clothes, kitchen equipment, instruments, art work, bicycles and pets were soon assembled on the corner of Anglers Lane and Alma Street. 

Margaret Christoph, a 22-year-old student, told the New Journal that the empty store had provided her with somewhere to live. 

She said: “I study five days a week at the London College of Fashion. On Saturday and Sunday, I work at a luxury retailer in the West End. It is absolutely impossible to find anywhere affordable to live. I have been squatting for two and a half years, and even squatting has become much harder recently. 

“We respect the buildings we stay in – when we first moved in, it was absolutely trashed. We have cleaned up the store, painted walls, and made it homely. We also have a rule we stick to that when the landlord asks us to move on and gives us notice, we do so immediately. There is no need for heavy-handed behaviour.”

The squatters claim a warrant was issued on August 26 – yet the owners did not bother telling them in advance so they could make arrangements.

Steve Rogers, a student, said: “We would have moved if they’d asked. Instead we are now homeless, with nowhere to stay tonight, and nowhere to take our belongings. This is typical of how people are treating young people with nowhere to live today.”

Neighbours told the New Journal the squatters had kept the building secure, were quiet and respectful, and had become a valued part of the neighbourhood. 

A Lidl spokesman said: “I can confirm that the site in Kentish Town had been illegally broken into and occupied by squatters.

“Our property team immediately began legal proceedings to have the group evicted from our site, which was approved this morning. We are now looking to commence work on site from Monday, September 8.”