Watford: Members of a black community group were left bitter and frustrated after their county court battle with Watford Council, and Hertfordshire County Council Youth and Community Service, came to a disappointing end.

The Carey Place Get Set Project community group, say they have been locked in a feud with the two councils because the councils both say they have claims on 206 Lower High Street, Watford, where the Get Set African-Caribbean community centre was based and were, therefore, justified in evicting members from the centre.

The Get Set Project members also claim they are victims of institutional racism and have been unfairly treated by the local governments.

On Monday, November 19, Mr Vallin Bromfield, chairman of the Get Set Project, and his secretary, Mrs Merial Ngugi, took the two councils to court, following claims the organisations were in breach of The Trusts of Land and Appointments of Trustees Act 1996.

Mrs Ngugi, from Watford, said: "I am sad to say our case has been adjourned for 14 days or more. It will be a preliminary hearing for direction only. The councils will request to dismiss the case, and there will be no opportunity for us to present our evidence, of which we have plenty."

She said: "We have spent years battling this out with Watford Council, and Hertfordshire County Council, even requested the case be taken to the high court.

"But what chance do we have when the councils have their solicitors and we cannot afford legal representation?

The mother of three added: "We went to The Society of Black Lawyers, who told us we had a good case. They said our paperwork would take up a lot of time which made solicitors reluctant to take the case because there was a lot of money to lose if the councils won.

"If this was London, where the black community is bigger and has a stronger voice, the councils would never get away with this. But here, in the sticks, it is a very different matter. This is an example of institutional racism."

Mr Bromfield explained the centre started in 1976, to give black people a sense of community spirit. It was situated in Carey Place, but was forced to move to Lower High Street when Sun Alliance and Capital built The Harlequin shopping centre in its place.

Mr Bromfield said it was after a successful sit-in protest from members of the black community that Sun Alliance and Capital both agreed to relocate the centre to Lower High Street, Watford, and provided temporary facilities while the centre was being built.

He said the council was given the cash to build the centre, but it kept most of the building for its own use. In June 1999, it closed the African-Caribbean Community Centre to make way for a shopping complex.

He said: "The council was determined to kick us out, even though it was built for our use.

"They said there were complaints we were noisy, but the truth was there were hardly any residents around the area.

Watford Council claims it owns the land, but we have been to the Land Registry Office, and we can prove when the building was built, the land was not the council's.

A Watford Council spokesman said: "This case is primarily between Herts County Council and Mr Bromfield. Watford Council has no interest in the building, which is managed and run by the county council.

As far as Watford is concerned, no evidence has been produced that shows the group has legal entitlement to occupy the Get Set Building. If Mr Bromfield persuades the court of a legal entitlement, then we will abide."

November 26, 2001 10:30