A little like a pooh bear

Property boooom!

We all know house prices are spiralling out of control in the South of England, but now it seems that even a home that can only be sold to a small, rich, subterranean-dwelling fisherman is hot property.

Either that or else someone has been taking the government’s warnings about “terror attacks” a little too much to heart – because a World War II pillbox off the coast of South Devon has recently been snapped up for £70,000, no less. Just 12 ft by 7 ft, the tiny underground bunker is located on a small promontory that gets completely cut off from the mainland at high tide.

The place also comes with a covenant specifying it must only be sold to a “fisherman or boatman”.

A hole new view of things

Regulation is just like colonic irrigation according to chief executive of Irwell Valley Housing Association Tom Manion. “It’s painful at the time but afterwards you feel much better,” he explains. Manion should know – he swears by the technique. “I’ve been three times and it’s marvellous. It really is the way forward,” he revealed to Social Animal, proudly adding that he has even bought a DIY home kit.

Let’s hope his zeal for the treatment causes no concern among Irwell’s Manchester team, where Manion is well known for an unorthodox approach to staffing issues.

The prospect of 65 litres of water coursing through your body for over an hour of treatment may not be everybody’s cup of tea, after all.

Green trash

Residents in hilly parts of Brighton and Hove have been kicking up a stink about their new council wheelie bins. And this time they’re not just Nimbys who don’t like the look of the giant plastic containers.

The 140-litre green bins, nicknamed the Daleks, may glide with ease across level surfaces, but for people who live in basement flats at the bottom of steps they are a nightmare.

Not allowed to be left out on the street, the trash cans must be hoiked up steps when full by struggling residents every time the binmen come. Thankfully, the council are now reviewing alternatives.

That’s a bit rich

The question of how to regenerate some of Britain’s most run-down estates may have been foxing intelligent minds for years. But leading American academic and visiting professor at the London School of Economics Bruce Katz thinks he has the answer – get rich people to move in.

Persuading them so to do may be the hard bit, he admits. But it shouldn’t be entirely impossible, especially if the estate boasts some kind of historical claim to fame or proximity to an attractive natural feature. So perhaps prof Katz would like to lead the way?

Smalls minded

Female staff members at a Yorkshire housing association have come up with a novel idea for ridding their drawers of underwear they find unsightly: they have joined a “knicker exchange”. The concept is not unlike that of a chain letter – with lists of knicker recipients being circulated among members. They must then send out knickers to people on the list as well as passing the lists onto friends. Naturally the garments must be unworn with shop tag still attached.

Once they’re no longer in a twist about their knickers, they’ll all be in a better state to deal with more pressing issues, I’m sure.

Source

Housing Today