30-year tenant ordered to go

A TEACHER who has lived for almost 30 years in a bedsit within a detached house was today ordered to move out so the owner convert it into a home for his family.

John Wilson and his wife Michelle can now oblige Paul Coleman to move out of the Edwardian property in Wimbledon, south west London, which they bought for £1.75m in 2000.

Mr Coleman, a 58-year-old photography and science teacher, has lived at the run-down house near the All England Club for 29 years, pays rent of £76 a week and is a protected tenant under the Rent Act 1977.

This means that Mr Wilson, a director of investment bank Lehman Brothers, and his wife, have to provide suitable alternative accommodation for him if they want him to move out.

The couple, who have four children, are offering Mr Coleman a choice of flats in the area.

During a three-day hearing at Kingston County Court, Mr Coleman, defending himself, said he should not be forced to move, claiming that the alternatives were not suitable.

But Judge Adele Williams made a possession order giving him 35 days to leave the property. She said either of the flats being offered was 'reasonably suitable'.