UPDATED Are squatters now living behind the Positively Putney branded storefront on the High Street?
Evidence suggests they are – marking the latest chapter in an escalating squatting crisis that has seen organised groups target at least five commercial properties across Putney in recent months.
Update. Monday 4 August. We have since been able to confirm that the people seen entering the closed-up shop are in fact contractors of Bills’ restaurant. Since we wrote this report however, squatters have occupied three additional premises on the High Street.
The property in question, 146-148 Putney High Street, tells the story of Putney’s retail decline in microcosm. Until a year ago, it housed a bustling Bill’s Restaurant that had served the community for nearly a decade. Before that, it was a Slug & Lettuce. Now it stands as one of the High Street’s biggest eyesores.
For months, the boarded-up building was plastered with layers of posters that built up 10-15 deep before being periodically torn off. In spring, the local Business Improvement District (BID), Positively Putney, attempted to improve its appearance by installing a large Instagram-style selfie wall featuring a vibrant butterfly design with peacock-like eye spots and a scenic river backdrop complete with hills and trees. The colorful mural bears the “Your Selfie Wall” invitation alongside the Positively Putney logo and #POSITIVELYPUTNEY hashtag.
The irony is stark: squatters now appear to be living behind a storefront branded by the very organisation trying to revitalise the area. The bright blue mural, stretched across the Victorian shopfront’s boarded windows, presents a cheerful facade that masks a more troubling reality.
The New Squatting Strategy
This week, a young man with a coffee cup and wheeled bag was observed punching in a code and slipping inside the property – the second such sighting. The entire building is boarded up with a built-up entrance way shielding it from street view.
The squatters have adopted new tactics. Previously, they would post Section 144 legal notices in windows asserting their rights. Now they’re staying quiet behind boarded buildings. The telltale sign has become a ventilation hose poking out near the top of windows.
The same pattern is emerging just doors away at the former Lost Society bar, at 160 Putney High Street, another property that has stood empty for years.
Why Putney?
Putney has become attractive to squatting groups precisely because of the number of empty commercial properties. The abundance of vacant buildings provides multiple options when authorities move to clear one location.
This was demonstrated this week when squatters were finally removed from the Boilermaker and Kashmir – reportedly only after police found evidence of drug dealing. Previously, it took a High Court order to clear the White Lion. In both cases, the displaced squatters simply relocated rather than leaving the area entirely.
Legal and enforcement challenges
The legal framework creates complications for property owners and authorities. Unlike residential properties, commercial buildings are treated differently under squatting laws. As long as there’s no evidence of forced entry, occupying empty commercial space isn’t illegal.
However, what constitutes “proof” of forced entry remains ambiguous. It’s entirely possible for individuals to gain access and then repair entry points, removing clear evidence of how they got inside.
Police acknowledge the issue but cite resource constraints. Without public disruption or clear illegal activity, squatting cases take lower priority when forces are stretched thin dealing with other matters.
Political indifference
The council’s response has been notably absent. This week, Wandsworth Council unveiled its 10-year Growth Plan for the borough – a document that failed to mention Putney even once. The focus and funding are being directed toward areas where Labour cabinet members and councillors live and where their voter base is strongest.
This political neglect isn’t helped by Conservative councillors who often resort to barracking the opposition rather than making constructive cases for greater investment in Putney.
No end in sight
With no shortage of empty commercial properties on Putney High Street, the squatting issue appears set to continue. Each clearance operation simply shuffles the problem from one vacant building to another, while the underlying issue – the abundance of empty retail space – remains unaddressed.
The sight of squatters living behind a BID-branded storefront serves as a potent symbol of Putney’s current predicament: a High Street struggling with vacancy, a community trying to regenerate itself, and authorities apparently unable or unwilling to tackle the fundamental problems driving both issues.
