The Cabinet of Tower Hamlets Council met on Wednesday 25 January 2023 to discuss and approve the council's budget for 2023-24 and the refreshed Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) for 2023-26. The meeting also addressed school admissions arrangements for 2024-25, parking enforcement on housing estates, the insourcing of the baby feeding and well-being service, and the Q3 procurement forward plan.

Budget and Medium Term Financial Strategy 2023-26

The Cabinet approved the council's budget for 2023-24 and the Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) for 2023-26. This budget includes significant investment in council services, aligning with the Mayor's transformative manifesto. Key areas of investment include youth services, community safety, and education, with funding allocated for free school meals in both primary and secondary schools. The capital program includes expenditure of £238.6 million over 2023-26 for the general fund, including a rebuild at St. George's Ledger Centre. The Housing Revenue Account (HRA) capital program is £389.6 million over the same period, earmarked for new council homes, improvements to existing housing stock, and essential fire and building safety works.

Concerns were raised by the Chief Finance Officer (CFO) and the Overview and Scrutiny Committee regarding the sustainability of the budget, particularly the reliance on drawing down reserves to meet increased expenditure and growth pressures. The committee recommended that the Mayor and Cabinet develop a financial strategy to ensure long-term financial stability without significant reserve funding. They also suggested increasing the threshold for the Educational Maintenance Allowance (EMA) to help young people facing cost of living challenges. While supporting the Resident Support Scheme, the committee noted concerns about using specific funding for this purpose and requested alternative funding streams be identified.

The Mayor, Councillor Lutfur Rahman, acknowledged the concerns about reserves, stating they are for a rainy day and that any funds beyond the legal minimum should be reinvested in the borough. He highlighted the council's history of delivering balanced budgets and investing in public services, referencing savings of £125 million during austerity periods. The Mayor emphasised the commitment to finding savings over the next three years and maintaining financial prudence. He also detailed investments in youth services, community safety, and housing, aiming to improve the quality of life for residents and make the borough safer.

Several councillors spoke in support of the budget, highlighting its alignment with the manifesto pledges and its focus on delivering for residents during the cost of living crisis. They praised investments in youth services, free school meals, and community safety initiatives, including increased police officers and CCTV. Concerns about the sustainability of the budget and the need for careful management of reserves were reiterated by some, drawing on past experiences. The budget was ultimately recommended for approval.

School Admissions Arrangements for 2024-25

The Cabinet was asked to agree the local authority's school admission arrangements for 2024-25. Following a consultation period, key changes proposed include a fairer tie-breaker system for primary school admissions, which will involve drawing lots when two children have an equal claim for a school place. For secondary schools, the proposal is to remove the first born criteria, which was previously in place to address a high proportion of sibling entries. This change is expected to favour siblings being able to attend the same school. Additionally, priority admission areas for South Whopping and West Bethnal Green will be removed, as the new school at London Dock will address the previous shortage of secondary school places in that area. The consultation received broad support for these changes.

Parking Enforcement on Housing Estates

The Cabinet discussed ongoing issues with parking enforcement on housing estates, which have been hampered by legislation since 2018. The previous administration's decision to move to a courtyard system for parking, where residents could park anywhere, had led to chaos and resident dissatisfaction. The current proposal aims to expedite the process of implementing Traffic Management Orders (TMOs) across the borough to enable effective enforcement. A key change is the return to individualised parking bays, where residents who purchase and pay for bays will have priority. Enforcement action will be taken against those illegally parking in these paid-for bays. An additional tier for permit allocations was also proposed, allowing residents within the ward and then within Tower Hamlets to apply for permits if capacity allows after estate residents have been allocated bays. A borough-wide consultation on this new policy is planned.

Baby Feeding and Well-being Service

The Cabinet considered a report recommending the insourcing of the baby feeding and well-being service into the council. The current contract with Barts Health is due to end in March 2023. The introduction of national policy on family hubs has provided funding and strategic focus to better integrate community services for children and families. Bringing this service in-house is seen as an opportunity to provide more integrated support, focusing not only on feeding but also on the overall well-being of parents and children. The service is noted for contributing to high breastfeeding rates in the country, and other councils have sought advice on replicating it. While specialist training will continue to be subcontracted, the long-term vision is to develop in-house trainers and potentially an in-house volunteer network. The service will also continue to offer classes in languages such as Bengali and Somali to cater to the borough's diverse communities.

Q3 Procurement Forward Plan

The Cabinet reviewed the Quarter 3 procurement forward plan, which outlines proposed procurement steps for various health and care contracts, a mechanical and electrical installation contract, and six IT contracts. An extension of three months for the highways and street lighting contract was also noted. A key discussion point was the council's commitment to social value in procurement. While the current arrangement incorporates a 5% social value weighting, the Cabinet expressed a strong desire to increase this to 10% across all contracts. This aims to ensure local communities benefit from contracts through opportunities for local jobs, training, and engagement with local small and medium-sized businesses in the supply chain. The report will be amended to reflect this increased social value target.