Carol Crowe, founder of Farm Community Kitchen in Cann Hall Road, says she was subject to ‘intimidation’ and ‘verbal abuse’ before being evicted for rent payment issues by Labour MP Dawn Butler’s family, reports Marco Marcelline

The founder of a community café in Leytonstone that was forced shut has said she was subject to a campaign of “intimidation” and “verbal abuse” by members of her landlord’s family.

Carol Crowe, founder of Farm Community Kitchen CIC in Cann Hall Road, was evicted by bailiffs on 23rd September, seven months after receiving an eviction notice for planned refurbishment works and missed rent totalling at least £9,000. 

The building, which includes upstairs flats, is owned by Labour MP Dawn Butler’s mother Ambrozene, with lettings managed by Butler’s brothers Owen and Donald and formerly her sister Beverly. It had previously been a West Indian specialty bakery run by the Butler family.

The Brent East MP had no involvement in letting out the property nor had any landlord duties, the Echo understands.

In a statement the Butler family said Carol had “denied the arrears she owed”, alleging the actual figure is “higher” than £9,000.

They told the Echo: “No landlord can reasonably be expected to tolerate such sustained non-payment. Payment of rent is an obligation of every tenant occupying commercial premises.”

Carol, who founded the not-for-profit café and foodbank in 2020, first moved into the property during the first lockdown with the express permission of the previous tenant, who had also run a café.

She initially solely used the venue as a base to organise food parcel deliveries in Leytonstone, an activity she continued throughout her tenure, eventually packing over 300,000 free meals to people in need.

The café, which opened to the public in 2021, was staffed by a team of volunteers, many of whom were long-term unemployed, had learning difficulties, or were reliant on the food deliveries themselves.

Carol says she struggled to meet rent obligations because of the nature of her non-profit business, stating she was caught in a “catch-22” as securing long-term grant funding was complicated by her lack of a secure tenancy agreement with the Butler family.

Communication with the Butler family was “frustrating” early on in her tenancy. She said: “I think they saw me as a high maintenance tenant. We were asking for contracts, safety certificates and proper oversight for things like the gas and electricity from the start, but those requests were mostly ignored.

“The real tipping point came after our successful National Lottery bid for £70,000 at the tailend of 2023. That funding gave us the chance to expand, pay salaries for full-time and part-time staff, and move some of our equipment into the kitchen next door and increase food production as we were trying to scale up to meet the growing demand from the community. But instead of collaboration [with moving equipment], we faced obstruction.

“We just wanted to formalise things properly, secure a long-term tenancy, and get on with feeding people, but every time we tried to move forward, it felt like we were being held back.”

Carol says Ambrozene’s adult grandson Tyrone, who moved into an upstairs flat in early 2024, had tried to “destroy” her with a sustained campaign of intimidation that included routine trespassing, verbal abuse, and property damage.

Café volunteer Donna Olford agrees that Tyrone was “very intimidating”.

Donna said: “He was very in your face when he talks, he’d walk past the shop and look in and on one occasion he tried to follow a volunteer into the shop as he was opening up the cafe alone.

“As volunteers we felt unsafe, and the situation got so severe that Carol closed the shop for a while; it was getting too unsafe and unpredictable and a lot of us were scared to come in.”

According to Carol, intimidation and abuse escalated during the summer last year when Tyrone entered the cafe and “screamed directly” in her face.

In a July audio recording shared with the Echo, he appears to shout: “In September you are out [of here].”

The altercation took place following a disagreement between the pair about Carol’s use of security cameras which overlooked the property’s back garden, an area that Tyrone claimed he had full enjoyment of.

She said: “He repeatedly entered our kitchen and staff areas without permission, wandering around as he pleased. This unauthorised access not only violated our privacy but also posed a security risk to our staff and property. He is a tenant and not the landlord or a representative, and therefore, he had no right to enter the shop without proper notice.”

In September 2024, Carol alleges she was subject to “verbal abuse” from Dawn Butler’s brother Tennyson that resulted in the police being called.

The incident took place while Carol was holding a ladder for her friend who was checking a blocked drain on the café’s roof. Carol alleges she had already informed the Butler family of her intention to do so, and had been given the “all clear” by Owen, who co-managed the property on behalf of his mother.

CCTV footage of the altercation appears to show Tennyson standing over Carol while shouting at her, with his nose almost touching hers on several occasions.

A previous tenant of the premises, who lives locally, said she saw the incident as it happened. She told the Echo: “He was really loud and very aggressive. He was repeatedly swearing at her and saying very insulting things.

“I think she’s been treated appallingly; they tormented her.”

Carol says the relationship between herself and the Butlers was at an all time low at this point. “I was petrified after what happened, and the family refused to apologise for Tennyson and Tyrone’s behaviour and they dismissed my concerns. The police also came and told me I should stay away from Tennyson which is ridiculous because I rent his mum’s property.”

On 18th February this year, Carol was served a Section 25 eviction notice, which ordered the premises to be emptied by 24th August.

The reason given was due to planned refurbishment work, and outstanding rent arrears, which Carol says comes to “£9,000”.

A four-week court injunction was successfully sought by Carol’s solicitors just prior to the eviction date, allowing time to organise the emptying of the premises.

Then at 4am on 23rd September, bailiffs arrived, locking off the property, and closing a community café that had supplied free meals to the needy for five years.

In their statement to the Echo explaining their actions towards Carol, the Butler family said: “The lease was forfeited strictly in accordance with legal rights and obligations. The tenant had the benefit of exceptional legal advice protecting their interests at every stage. Any failure leading to forfeiture is a matter for the tenant, not the landlord. 

“Attempts to shift focus onto unrelated issues are regrettable and do not alter the facts.”

Volunteers and local residents told the Echo of the “huge loss” the café’s closure has had on the community.

Single mum of three Farah said she relied on the food parcels for a period of a year while she was staying in temporary accommodation. “Carol helped me massively. I was going through a really hard time, and sometimes foodbanks can be places where you go in and get what you need and go, but Farm was completely different.

“I’m really sad to see it go; it’s a massive help to people in the community. There’s nowhere in the area now where you know you can get free fresh, good quality food if you’re struggling.”

Long-term volunteer Donna said she was “devastated”. “Farm helped me in so many ways. I’m a qualified nurse but I have three disabled kids and I just can’t go back to full-time work so being able to help others, cook food, and help the community kept me going. Without it I feel lost.”

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