Newham Council’s draft budget proposals for the years 2020/21to 2022/23 will be discussed at a meeting of Cabinet on Tuesday (17 December) which is open to residents.
The draft budget details the overall financial position and proposals which, if adopted, will meet the transformative policy proposals presented by Mayor Rokhsana Fiaz and the Council. It would also achieve a balanced budget which for the first time will be set for the next three years.
At the centre of the proposals is the Council’s new strategy for Community Wealth Building, which seeks to transform Newham so that it becomes a more prosperous and fairer place where the wellbeing, financial resilience, and skills and opportunities for residents, reflects a more inclusive economy approach.
The draft proposals show that because of reduced funding from the Government, the Council has had to make £200m of savings since 2010. The report outlines how the Council still needs to save 17% of its net annual budget of £260m over the next three years – that’s £45m by March 2023.
Mayor Rokhsana Fiaz said: “We face some difficult challenges given a decade of Government cuts. We are determined to transform the borough so that our residents, businesses and communities flourish. The involvement of residents in this process is of course absolutely crucial.”
Total savings of £45.8m, including a proposed increase of Council Tax by four per cent in each of the three years, have been identified. Part of the budget-setting process involves consideration of how each of the savings options will impact on residents.
As well as the spending in priority areas upon which the Council’s draft budget is based, additional growth spending of £10m each year has been included in the budget estimates for investment in new services or enhancing existing ones based on the administration’s priorities.
The largest proposed new investment totals almost £4.5m each year in services directly for young people. This includes £1.2m to double the number of youth zones from four to eight; £750,000 to implement recommendations from the Council’s Youth Safety Board; and £1m to fund the safeguarding adolescents’ service. A final proposed tranche of £1m per year includes support for mental health services for young people, supporting care leavers, and improving terms and conditions for foster carers.
Housing is another priority and £1.4m per annum is proposed to improve the services supporting rough sleepers and creating better preventative services to reduce the risk of others becoming homeless. A budget of £400,000 each year is also proposed to create a team to bring empty properties back into use to improve the range of offers for families in need.
Also included is proposed investment of £1m per year in services to tackle the climate and health emergency. This includes £500,000 for weekly recycling collections and enhanced recycling facilities for flats, as well as other measures to strengthen sustainable transport and air quality improvements and more charging points for electric vehicles.
An allocation of £500,000 each year is proposed to enhance street cleaning services. A further £1m is earmarked to preserve funding that purchases the services of a number of Metropolitan Police officers to support the Council’s work on dealing with anti-social behaviour and environmental crime.
The London Living Wage, a key part of the Mayor’s Community Wealth Building approach, is also set to be funded with a total of £6.5m over the three years.
The budget proposes an increase in the Newham element of Council Tax of four per cent in each of the next three financial years. In 2020/21 this would mean a weekly increase of 78p per week for properties in the average Band D bracket. This does not include the element set by the Greater London Authority and half of the proposed increase will be ring-fenced to spend on adult social care. There are no changes planned to the Council Tax support scheme, which means those defined as financially vulnerable would continue to receive a rebate of up to 90%.
The Mayor added: “There are some exciting proposals in the draft budget, including increased spending in relation to our young people to enhance their potential fully and to keep them safe, so that Newham is the best borough for a young person to grow up. We also propose directing resources to deal with the homelessness crisis and invest significantly in tackling rough sleeping. It will also make sure our commitment to tackling the climate emergency is taken forward.
“We do face some difficult decisions, such as raising Council Tax. However, if approved, Newham would remain a borough with one of the lowest Council Tax levels in London and this will help provide for our transformative vision to tackle inequality and improve lives.”
The involvement of residents in the budget process is crucial and people are invited to attend Budget Forums on 22 January at the Old Town Hall in Stratford, on 29 January at Canning Town Library, and on 30 January at East Ham Town Hall, all between 6.30pm and 9pm.
The Cabinet meeting on 17 December takes place in the Old Town Hall at Stratford at 5pm. Final decisions on the draft budget proposals will be made at a meeting of the Council on 2 March. You can view the proposals online at www.newham.gov.uk/budget