Remove Christmas wreaths or face £120 fines, elderly residents warned

The residents claimed that bosses were acting “acting like the Gestapo”

Elderly residents at a retirement complex in Kent have been threatened with fines by “Scrooge” housing association bosses who are refusing to let them put up Christmas decorations.

Hyde Housing, which runs Joseph Conrad House in Canterbury, ordered its residents to take down wreaths from doors and trees from communal areas or face £120 charges to remove them.

Residents said they wanted to make the complex more festive but Hyde told them the decorations posed a fire hazard and could put people at risk.

David Geoghegan, 69, said he and others were upset by “aggressive” letters Hyde sent out to residents and claimed that bosses were acting “acting like the Gestapo”.

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He told KentOnline: “Residents have been talking about how upsetting the letters were, and lots of us felt it was uncalled for and heavy-handed tactics.

“It’s Christmas and there is no goodwill in it. The threat of sending people to remove Christmas trees and wreaths – we don’t need that, and we are really upset”.

Read more: The Independent