The Camden Council meeting on 17 November 2025 will include a themed debate on child poverty, a discussion of the Euston Area Plan, and consideration of several motions. There will also be a deputation from UNISON regarding school support staff.

Child Poverty

The meeting will feature a themed debate on child poverty, introduced by Councillor Camron Aref-Adib, Cabinet Member for Finance and Cost of Living. The debate will include contributions from experts and community representatives, followed by questions and discussion. Councillor Marcus Boyland, Cabinet Member for Best Start for Children and Families, will sum up the discussion.

A motion concerning the two-child limit on benefit payments is also scheduled to be discussed. The council will note research from the End Child Poverty Coalition, which found that 1.5 million children in the UK live in households affected by the two-child limit, costing families up to £3,235 per child each year. The motion states that in Camden, 4,190 children in 1,140 households are affected by this limit, which is 10% of all children in the area, while 16,066 local children are living in poverty, which is 39.6% of all children in the borough.

The motion recognises that the root causes of rising relative child poverty in the UK was the adoption of severe austerity policies, instituted under the Liberal Democrat/Conservative Government of 2010, where Government reforms between 2010 and 2015 including freezes or caps on working-age benefits and tax credits, directly reduced the income of low-income families with children and further stigmatising parents who were not working while completely ignoring low pay for those already in work.

The council will consider that the two-child limit is a cruel and harmful policy that should be scrapped, and that the interaction between the two-child limit and the benefit cap¹, introduced by the Conservative Liberal Democrat coalition, is critical when assessing the impact of welfare changes.

The council will consider resolving to:

• Support the work of the Labour Government's Child Poverty Taskforce.
• Ask the Leader of the Council to write to the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Prime Minister to indicate Camden Council's strong belief that the Government should look to scrap the two child limit to benefit payments at the earliest opportunity, and look at other welfare reforms, including the Coalition's benefit cap and unfreezing local housing allowance.
• Continue the Council's work in considering the number of children a family has when a hardship grant is given out by the Council.

Euston Area Plan

The council will discuss the Euston Area Plan (EAP). The Euston Area Plan report was considered by the Cabinet on 12 November 2025, which agreed to put forward the recommendations contained in the report.

The council will consider approving the Euston Area Plan Proposed Submission Draft and Policies Map for submission to the government for examination, subject to certain delegations.

Specifically, authority may be delegated to the Executive Director Investment, Place and Opportunity, following consultation with Councillor Adam Harrison, Cabinet Member for Planning and a Sustainable Camden, to make minor changes to the Euston Area Plan Proposed Submission Draft and Policies Map prior to publication for Regulation 19 Consultation² as required, including factual updates, corrections and non-material wording changes and changes to the reflect updated technical professionally assessed viability information.

Authority may also be delegated to the Executive Director Investment, Place and Opportunity, to publish the Euston Area Plan Proposed Submission Draft and Policies Map for Regulation 19 Consultation and, following consultation with Councillor Adam Harrison, to submit any proposed modifications to the Euston Area Plan Proposed Submission Draft and Policies Map as required in response to the Regulation 19 consultation to the Planning Inspector for consideration in examination.

Hampstead Heath

The council will discuss a motion concerning development around Hampstead Heath. The motion recognises Camden Council's responsibility as the largest freeholder of land south of Hampstead Heath, with the duty to control development that could negatively impact the Heath and views from it.

The motion acknowledges the pressure to provide more housing, but asserts that this must be balanced with the need to protect irreplaceable heritage. It notes the existing policy framework, including:

• The Mayor of London's London Views Management Framework, which forms part of the London Plan (2021).
• The designation of the Heath as Metropolitan Open Land in the London Plan, offering the same level of protection as greenbelt in planning terms.
• The draft Local Plan, which sets out an approach to tall buildings and identifies appropriate height ranges.

The motion also notes that schemes over 30m in height must be referred to the GLA ³.

The motion highlights sites in or approaching redevelopment around Hampstead Heath, including Camden-owned land like the Wendling Estate, West Kentish Town Estate and Bacton Estate, as well as sites where Camden is a co-developer, such as the Yoo Capital Regis Road site and Murphy's Yard.

The council will consider resolving to continue to take seriously the importance of preserving the heritage of the Heath by complying with the relevant policies and frameworks outlined above, and by continuing to bring forwards the draft Local Plan, including its specific wording to preserve and enhance Hampstead Heath through….taking into account the impact on the Heath when considering relevant planning applications, including any impacts on views to and from the Heath .

UNISON Deputation

A deputation from UNISON, led by Liz Wheatley, is scheduled to address the council regarding the role of school support staff and industrial action at Richard Cobden School. The deputation will focus on school funding and its impact on support staff and children, particularly at Richard Cobden school, where staff are in dispute and about to embark on a second round of strike action primarily about low pay and the level of work they are expected to do for that pay.

The deputation will highlight the importance of schools and the role they play in combatting child poverty, noting that many of the actions are carried out by support staff. They will argue that if the council wants to make changes, they need to also make changes to how the staff involved are treated and paid.

The deputation will also raise the issue of low pay for staff at Richard Cobden School, noting that people doing the same job in some other Camden schools like Hawley Infant School and Gospel Oak Primary School are paid more.

Other Business

The agenda also includes:

• Approval of the minutes of the meeting held on 25th September 2025.
• Special announcements from Councillor Eddie Hanson, Mayor of Camden, the Chief Executive, or other relevant officers.
• A statement by the Leader of the Council, followed by questions to the Leader and Cabinet Members.
• Business from the ordinary council meeting of 25th September 2025.
• Appointments to formal council bodies.
• A waiver of the six-month councillor attendance rule for a member on maternity leave.
• An update on the themed debate on becoming a circular economy borough.
• Motions.
• An open session where any member may make a contribution of up to two minutes on any matter which affects their ward.