A HOUSING association that took over properties for the homeless in Winchester has sold most of them, sparking criticism of "asset-stripping" and a breach of faith.

Bournemouth Churches Housing Association (BCHA) took over the assets of Keystone, the Winchester Churches Housing Group (WCHG), in 2016.

Since then it has sold four out of five properties, raking in more than £2 million. The money is being reinvested in properties in Bournemouth.

The four properties were in Gordon Avenue, Highcliffe (sold for £330,000 in July 2020); St Cross Road (£685,000 in June 2021) and two in Stockbridge Road, Fulflood (£551,000 in February 2018 and £545,000 in October 2020). They have all be sold on the open market to private buyers.

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BCHA is currently seeking to sell another property in St John's Road once it has evicted the four tenants. Property sources say it could be valued at around £650,000. If it achieves that, the value of the sales will be £2.7m.

Keystone was set up in 1988 with donations from churchgoers and other people to tackle the then-worsening problem of homelessness in the city.

A former board member branded the sell-off as "awful, very upsetting". Former mayor and county councillor Dominic Hiscock, a Liberal Democrat, said: "Keystone became untenable. With only 20 units we were not big enough to provide support for sometimes difficult tenants. So we looked around for another provider that had expertise and a similar ethic who would work for the benefit of tenants. It seemed to suit everyone at the time. But now they have decided they don't need this local operation."

The two organisations joined in around 2013 and Keystone was wound up in 2019.

Cllr Hiscock agreed that there had been a breach of faith: "It is very disappointing to divest from Winchester and leave a great shortage of sustainable social housing for people most in need in this city. There were a lot of generous people who helped set up Keystone. It is tragic it has ended as it did.

"It is asset stripping. If you are not reinvesting in Winchester to support homeless people they are stripping the assets and taking them out of the city."

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Politicians from other parties were also highly critical of the sales.

A former Tory city councillor with an interest in housing, Ian Tait said:  "The sale of these properties seems terribly wrong to me and has tragically deprived Winchester of some very precious and much needed affordable housing.

"People are shocked that BCHA can sell Winchester property which they paid nothing for and take the money to Bournemouth for people with no connection to Winchester at all.

"Many of the former trustees of Keystone were well established Winchester folk who are still around and I sense that they feel that they were duped by BCHA".

Former Labour group leader Patrick Davies said: “I recall around nine years ago the city council gave a grant to Keystone (Winchester Churches Housing Group) of £90,000 to help refurbish the property in St Johns Road. If this property and others originally funded by voluntary effort and local council funds to help homeless people here are sold off by the Bournemouth organisation surely some benefit must come back to help Winchester’s housing needs.”

County councillor Dominic Hiscock

In a statement, Lorraine Mealings, chief executive of BCHA, said: ""Bournemouth Churches Housing Association (BCHA) can confirm that it previously managed and owned a number of properties in the Winchester area. We understand that the properties have been an important part of the community, and we want to reassure the community that these decisions were made thoughtfully and with careful consideration.

"Over time, the services BCHA has provided in Winchester have diminished, and we are now refocusing our resources to align with our new strategy in other geographical areas to ensure we operate in the most cost-effective way. Like other Housing Associations, we have been evaluating and realigning our property portfolio to ensure it meets our operational needs. As a result, some properties that fall outside our future areas of focus have been sold.

"Whenever properties are sold, we always aim to pass them on to another Housing Association or social housing provider, but this is not always feasible. As a charitable Housing Association, any proceeds from these sales are reinvested into new housing or improving existing properties to ensure we continue meeting the needs of the communities we serve. 

"BCHA is committed to maintaining the highest ethical standards in all its operations. All decisions are taken with the long-term well-being of those in housing need as our priority, and we remain dedicated to serving communities through sustainable, high-quality housing solutions."