The figures are set out in the council’s draft budget 2025/26 to be considered at the Cabinet meeting on Tuesday 12th November 2024.
There was additional funding from the recent national budget, however, the money Haringey receives from core government grants has reduced in real terms by £143m since 2011. This is despite a growing population and rising demand for adult and children’s social care and temporary accommodation for homeless households.
The housing crisis is having a devastating effect on families and council budgets across London. In Haringey, the number of families in temporary accommodation has reached almost 3,000 at the same time as costs across London have increased by 68% and supply is falling.
Haringey has amongst the highest levels of deprivation in the capital but is considered an ‘outer London’ borough’, receiving even less funding than its ‘inner London’ neighbours.
This combination of factors beyond the control of local authorities means the council is calling, along with others, for a much-needed fairer funding settlement.
Cllr Peray Ahmet, Leader of Haringey Council, said:
Councils across the country are facing ever-growing demands, rising costs and following 14 years of austerity by the previous government this is putting a huge strain on their finances and services.
We remain resolute in our commitment to set a fair budget, supporting the most vulnerable and safeguarding the services we know our residents need and value.
It will inevitably lead to some tough choices in other areas as we continue to work hard towards a balanced budget, but we will always ensure Haringey’s values of fairness guide these difficult decisions.
Alongside other councils, we will continue to make a strong case to the new government for the resources we urgently need in the face of the ongoing cost rises that we face to fix the 14 years of underfunding local services have faced.
We welcome the additional funding from the national Budget and look forward to a Fair Funding Settlement but in the meantime tough choices need to be made.
The draft budget aims to deliver towards Haringey’s vision for a fairer and greener borough where everyone feels they can belong and thrive by delivering local priorities – building council housing, supporting residents into jobs, helping with the cost of living, providing discounts on council tax, investing in social care, regenerating the local economy, greening local neighbourhoods, among other key areas.
A draft set of proposals to close this gap will go out to public engagement after the Cabinet meeting on Tuesday 12th November, with measures to significantly reduce costs and increase revenue.
A final decision will then be made at the Full Council meeting in March 2025.
