The very first issue of Camden Tenant was produced in
June 1972, the year of the proposed Housing Finance Act which
aimed to cut Government subsidies to local authority housing.
The first copy was a one page wall sheet printed both sides,
for distributing at meetings, displaying on notice boards and
pasting on walls in public places. The first two came out at the
same time steps were being taken to organise tenant associations
across the borough and set-up the Camden Federation of Tenants &
Residents Associations.
Originally it was to be called The Camden Tenant but John
and Judy Lafferty and Dave Miller, who were given responsibility
for layout and typesetting, left off the The. In those
early years the paper was published eight times a year. It was
the voice of the Federation and its member associations,
campaigning on issues of concern to tenants.
Monday evenings were given over to meetings of the CFTRA
Committee one week and the Camden Tenant editorial group
the next. They gathered in articles, writing some, did the
layout, printed the paper themselves, until eventually finding a
friendly printer, Noli’s Anyway Litho (TU) in Brixton, who
rolled off 2,000 copies each issue, occasionally 5,000 for
special campaigns, and Bread ‘n Roses (TU) to typeset, and so it
was for two decades.
The Federation staff co-ordinate the articles and design
currently and the Federation Management Committee is the
editorial group
