BATTLING Bromsgrove tenants are fighting on in a bid to stop the district council 'stinging them three times' for service charges at sheltered housing schemes.

Bromsgrove District Tenants' Association wants to stop pensioners being hit in the pocket after the authority decided to impose extra charges to cover the cost of services like wardens and communal areas.

Under Government legislation, Bromsgrove District Council is obliged to separately identify these charges which previously have been covered by other residents' rents.

But tenants, who are looking to call a referendum to move a vote of no confidence in the authority, say this is not true and have asked the council for a breakdown of the costs.

In a letter to the Advertiser/Messenger, the association's vice-chairman, Dennis Wheatley, said: "If it is true that other council tenants have been paying our service charges then the council must have been collecting them twice.

"I was told my service charges were in with my rent, that's twice, and now they want to charge us again."

He told your No.1 newspaper: "We will be stung three times."

The association wants residents to attend meetings organised by the council at the different complexes before the referendum is held. The last one is on April 24.

Council leader Cllr Nick Psirides (Con, Norton) said: "This is not a second or third time.

"It is the first time these charges have been identified separately.

"Previously, they have been paid out of a pool which all tenants have paid into."

l Bromsgrove District Council's opposition leader Cllr Peter McDonald (Uffdown and Waseley) was set to ask the authority to freeze rent increases for its sheltered housing tenants above inflation so they can hold a referendum on the rents.

The leader of the district's Labour group put the item on the agenda of the full council meeting set to take place last night.