An English mum is selling her dream home in a tiny Scottish village after being hounded out by locals – who spray-painted ”Go Home” on her property.
June Broadhurst, 65, has been abused and threatened in the street and had rocks thrown at her white-washed house.
The mum-of-two moved to the pretty community of Findochty on the Moray coast to fulfil a lifelong dream after the death of her husband.
But she claims some locals have waged a hate campaign against her because they don’t want English people taking their jobs and homes.
She finally decided to move back to England after the words ”Go Home” were written in red spray paint on the side of her house during the night.
Mum-of-two June said: ”It is shocking but it’s been made obvious that I am no longer welcome here. The only option left to me is to leave.
”I had no idea problems like this existed here. I didn’t think I would be treated any differently to anyone else.
”I came here looking for some peace and quiet, but I never found it.”
Retired office worker June was married to a Scottish businessman, Alex, and they lived most of their lives in Manchester.
They often talked about starting a new life together in Scotland but he died in 1996 before they got the chance.
However, June decided a move north would be ideal and the sea air in Findochty, which sits on the Moray coast north of Aberdeen, might help her osteo-arthritis.
She bought a picturesque terraced house just a few yards from the beach on the same street as a friend, but he passed away before she moved in.
And after she arrived 2005 she didn’t experience the warm welcome she was expecting.
June said: ”There is definitely an element that doesn’t want me here because I am English.
”They feel that English people come up here and are draining resources and taking away jobs.
”It’s ridiculous because I don’t work anymore and I live here permanently. I’m contributing to the local economy.”
The only point of friction June can pinpoint is a disagreement with Aberdeenshire Council over a right of way issue and an extension that bordered her property
But she believes the heart of the problem is the that fact that she is not Scottish.
June says she has been subjected to constant comments in the street and a local man recently warned her ”You’d better better leave here” while pointing at her house.
She claims the abuse became so bad that she no longer felt safe taking a walk down to the beach, and was forced to buy a personal alarm.
The tipping point came last week when vandals struck late at night and daubed the offensive slogan all over her home.
June said: ”They have spelt home wrongly on one of the walls, but I think that’s a deliberate mistake to make it look like it was done by children.
”The writing is far too high for to it to have been done by kids. The police think the same thing.”
Investigations are ongoing into the incident, but June has decided she would be better off quitting Findochty.
She fears that if she lives there any longer there may be other attacks. So she has spoken to an estate agent and is now in the process of selling up.
June added: ”As long as there are Government and council cutbacks resources are going to be drained.
”Local people are going to keep getting angry and they are going to look to blame me.
”I thought when I came here I would be treated the same way English people treat the Scots. We just leave them to get on with their lives. That has not been the case.
”It’s a shame because it’s such a beautiful place. But I can’t stay here any longer.”
Marie Flett, who runs Findochty Post Office, told how everyone in the village was stunned by the incident.
She said: ”A lot of customers are just disgusted by this. I can’t believe that it’s happened here. Everybody is speaking about it. It’s not very nice.”
A recent report found that racially motivated crimes in Grampian have almost doubled over a three year period.
In 2006/2007 they stood at 449 while in 2009/2010, the latest date available, they stood at 879.
But Sergeant Heather Nicol, who’s looking into the incident in Findochty, believes the attack was highly unusual.
She said: ”I’ve worked as a sergeant in this area for two years and there is not and has never been any type of racial incidents similar to this one.
”It seems to be a very rare occurrence in this area.”
the value of having a national guard.
🙂
she is home, in britain.
🙂