Re: Holbeck being up and coming- it depends what you mean by “Holbeck”. There is a part which they call Holbeck, which is close to the canal and city centre and has indeed seen investment, with internet start ups, microbreweries and organic cafes that none of us could afford and would not be welcome in. Then there is the really nasty crappy bit, the industrial estate/under the railway arches/bus depot bit, and this is the part the claim is the “managed zone”. Many, even men, will not walk through it even during the day, though I have without incident. However it is deserted, with no lighting, and lots of dark alleys and corners. That is where the women are “supposed” to “work”. I imagine they feel as unsafe there as the rest of us, and so they move into the next part, which is the bit that I mean when I say “Holbeck”, which is where we live, where the park and shops are. That part of Holbeck is NOT up and coming, although I am quite sure they mean that to happen once they have chased us all out. It is close to the city and that’s why they want it. But we need it for the same reason: I had work for a short time as an office cleaner, being so badly paid and the buses so bad I had to walk to and from work at 6 in the morning. How would I have been able to take even that very shit job if I had been living further out of town? We need to be close to the city centre to find work, and we cannot afford to commute. They want to extend the part they are making “trendy” and consume our area as well. The terraces could be pretty if maintained properly (which the council have not done). I have seen them do the same process in London, in Bermondsey and Tooting. Those “workers cottages”, once pretty with nice gardens and window boxes (and no crack and prossies) sell for good money to young professionals who work in the city. But we need them. This is our place. They are deliberately running it down, so they can get it cheap and make it the next “trendy” area.