London Coalition Against Poverty

Two years of LCAP - Come to the BBQ!

Posted on | April 11, 2009 | No Comments

The London Coalition Against Poverty BBQ & Social will take place on Sunday the 19th April 2 -5 pm at Shakespeare Walk Adventure Playground

There will be food, music and play activities for children.

Bring some food to share and BBQ, music, family and friends.

The London Coalition Against Poverty is roughly two years old this spring!

We want to celebrate and bring people involved or interested in LCAP’s campaigns together to relax and have fun.

Shakespeare Walk Adventure Playground is on the corner of Shakespeare walk N16 and Allen rd N16. It is a five minute walk from Stoke Newington rd / Kingsland rd or Stoke Newington Church st, the nearest station is Dalston Kingsland overground station.

See a map here:

http://www.map.hackney.gov.uk/HackneyWhere/Map.aspx?inCOMIS=3103

Shakespeare Walk Adventure Playground has a wheelchair accessible building and toilet. There are off road parking spaces for around three cars.

Children are welcome and playing on the adventure playground will be supervised

In Solidarity With Enfield & Basildon Factory Occupations

Posted on | April 2, 2009 | 1 Comment

Support Visteon Factory Occupation in London, Enfield
Short Report, 2nd of April 2009

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After car parts manufacturer Visteon announced job cuts workers occupied plants in Belfast, Basildon and Enfield. In Enfield about 70 workers -
men and women from all kinds of backgrounds - are still inside the plant and on the roof. Last Tuesday the management called for a general assembly and told people that they would have to leave their workplace immediately. They were told to fetch their personal belongings the next day at 10am. When people turned up the factory was already closed.
Workers entered through an unlocked side entrance and occupied the plant.

The security guards won’t let people go inside, they also blocked the fire exits with padlocks - which is clearly illegal. Last night,
Thursday 1st of April, two bailiffs entered the plant. They issued an eviction order, supported by five cops. The eviction order was flawed, e.g. it was not signed and it had the wrong address on it. Workers expect a proper eviction order for tomorrow, Friday the 3rd of April. In case of eviction workers plan to picket the plant. They also plan to go to Ford Dagenham for a solidarity picket.

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An LCAP Member @ Speakers’ Corner

Posted on | March 30, 2009 | No Comments

A member of LCAP giving a speech during a rally at Speakers’ Corner, Hyde Park, at the end of the Put People First march.

Department for Work & Pensions Blockaded!

Posted on | March 11, 2009 | No Comments

On the morning of March 9th, a group of determined LCAP (London Coalition Against Poverty) campaigners raided Adelphi House in Central London, in response to the recently proposed ‘Welfare Reform Act ‘. The building, which houses the DWP (Department for Work and Pensions) was blockaded at both the front and side entrances between the hours of 11am and 2pm.
After a failed attempt to locate the DWP office where the bill was written, the building found itself in lockdown, seriously disrupting the functionality of the tenant companies, and escalating the pressure on the government to repeal the proposed legislation.
After jumping the security barriers, the campaigners were met with a small amount of force from security personnel, but no great deal of physical aggression was exerted from either side. Protesters then distributed information about the new bill throughout various offices in the building before re-joining the blockade at the front - and later the side - entrance to the building.
In the lobby of Adelphi House, protesters - divided into two groups, those dressed as bankers, and those who remained normally clothed - staged a mock altercation, with one side’s tongues lodged firmly in their cheeks.
The demonstration ended at around 2pm, when the police - who had been surprisingly vacant until that point - began exerting pressure on the demonstrators after a third team left to block the side entrance and fully prevent easy access. After the campaigners moved to let a blind woman through their line, the police moved in to re-open the barrier and the resulting scuffle ended with the activists deciding to leave in high spirits and defiance.

Week of Action on the Welfare Abolition Bill March 7 - 15

Posted on | February 24, 2009 | 2 Comments

London Coalition Against Poverty, Disabled People’s Direct Action Network and Feminist Fightback are calling on all groups concerned with the eroding of our welfare rights to take part in a week of action against the Welfare Reform Bill, renamed by us as the Welfare Abolition Bill.

As the government has bailed out the banks and rewarded the bosses with big bonuses they have been stealthily pushing through a bill that will virtually abolish welfare for single parents and disabled people. Poor people are being made to pay for the financial crisis caused by the rich.

The bill proposes a number of Draconian changes including:

  • Introducing a compulsory work for benefits system in a US-style workfare scheme
  • Privatising more of the JobCentre Plus to companies which will be paid more the less benefits they award.
  • Increased punishments for claimants
  • Cuts on carers’ allowance
  • Forced 2-parent registration on birth certificates, including for survivors on violence

The third reading is expected near the end of March. We need to stand with those targeted to oppose the passing of this bill by taking dissent to the streets, to the government offices, to the bankers and the bosses.

A toolkit will be available early this week with more information on the bill and suggestions for action.

Download campaign materials:

Ideas for Action
Briefing on the ‘Welfare Abolition Bill’
Welfare Abolition leaflet

Sample Press Release
Legal Information and Bustcard 
Jobcentre leaflet

Get involved and join the planning list here:

http://groups.google.com/group/no-to-welfare-abolition

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  • Welcome to the London Coalition Against Poverty Website

    In London many ordinary people are finding it hard to get by. Hard to find a decent, affordable home in a familiar area. Hard to get a good job. Hard not to run into debt. Easy to get treated badly by the council, your boss, or benefits agencies.

    London is run for the rich. They own the houses and the companies, and the councils follow their lead. They're doing just fine. We're getting by, if that. We shouldn't have to just get by. So we formed an organisation to challenge the councils and the landlords and the bosses as best we can. That challenge has to be direct, disruptive and well organised.

    That is why we are the London Coalition Against Poverty (LCAP). LCAP is an active, open-membership organisation for all those who want to fight for their rights, and the rights of other people in London. We are a relatively new organisation, but growing quickly.

    >>> Contact Us

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