The Council approved the Statement of Accounts 2023/24 and Annual Report 2023/24. The Council also approved a number of amendments to the Council’s Constitution and, as part of its statutory duty, approved changes to the polling scheme for elections and referendums. Finally, the Council adopted a motion declaring Lewisham a “Right to Food Borough”.

Recognition of Stephen Kenny's Community Work

The Mayor presented a special recognition award to Grove Park resident Stephen Kenny for his contribution to the community. Councillor Clarke highlighted Mr Kenny's involvement in a range of projects, notably:

• Saving the listed Baring Hall, a former pub and hotel.
• Work with Grove Park Youth Club.
• The creation of the Grove Park Urban National Park. This “green corridor”¹ has received national recognition, with the Council adopting it into its infrastructure delivery plan.
• Identifying sites for new homes.
• Raising significant funds for community projects.

Councillor Clarke presented Mr Kenny with a book of letters thanking him for his work. Len Duvall², Assembly Member for Greenwich and Lewisham, was also in attendance to celebrate Mr Kenny's achievements.

Pathfinder Funding

The Mayor announced that Lewisham had been awarded Pathfinder funding³ from central government. This funding, totalling £4m, will support the Council’s ongoing work with children and families.

The Mayor referenced that Lewisham was one of only two London boroughs, and one of ten nationwide, to be awarded the funding. This was in recognition of the improvements made to children and family services across the borough.

44th Anniversary of the New Cross Fire

The Mayor noted that 18 January 2025 was the 44th anniversary of the New Cross Fire, in which 14 young people died.

Breast and Cervical Cancer Screening

Councillor Paul Bell, Cabinet Member for Health and Adult Social Care, discussed breast and cervical cancer screening in Lewisham. Councillor Bell noted that since the pandemic, fewer people are participating in these important screening programmes and stressed the importance of regular screening for early detection and treatment of breast and cervical cancer.

New Year Honours List

The Speaker announced that Pat Merry, former Council officer and Chair of the Corbett Community Library⁴, had been awarded a British Empire Medal (BEM) in the King’s New Year Honours List. The BEM recognised her services to the community in Catford.

Urban Synergy Wins First Place at London’s New Year’s Day Parade

The Speaker also announced that the Mayor's chosen charity for 2024/25, Urban Synergy, had won first prize at the London New Year’s Day parade, the first time a Lewisham entry had won since 1998. Urban Synergy received £15,000 as part of winning the parade, which will support their ongoing work in supporting young people in London through mentoring, skills development, and work experience.

Holocaust Memorial Day

The Speaker noted the upcoming Holocaust Memorial Day (27 January) and that it was 30 years since the Bosnian genocide. The Council observed a minute’s silence.

Petitions

Councillor Schmidt presented a petition from residents of Clement and Pendennis Houses in Deptford. The petition called for a “saddle gate”⁵ to be installed on the estate.

Public Questions

A wide range of public questions were asked and answered. Some of the most interesting exchanges were:

Catford Station Links Project

Mark Morris asked:

“What are the estimated final dates of completion of every part of the pedestrian improvements relating to the Catford Station links project?”

Councillor Walsh responded that the project was being undertaken in two phases. Phase one, which involves the “strategic cycle network”, was due to be completed in June 2025. The remaining work was forecast to be completed in June 2026.

Assemblies

Jean Branch asked:

“Wouldn’t it have been better to continue to support Assemblies until the strategic review was completed? And how much would the strategic review cost?”

The Mayor acknowledged the “significant” contribution of Lewisham’s Local Assemblies, but confirmed that the strategic review was needed to ensure that the Council could reach a wider cross-section of the community. She confirmed that a more “strategic” approach was needed to ensure community engagement was “fit for this century”.

Freedom of Information Responses

Mark Bennett asked:

“On time FOI responses are down from 82% to 64%. When will the council hit its target?”

Councillor De Ryk stated that the Council would be introducing new records management arrangements in February 2025 that were expected to improve the timeliness of Freedom of Information (FOI) responses.

Pension Fund Investments

John McGrath asked:

“Are there any companies in the Local Government Pension Scheme that don’t live up to the Pension Investment policy currently that can be identified by name?”

Councillor De Ryk acknowledged the Council's concerns about the Pension Fund investment portfolio. However, she stressed that the Council had a “fiduciary duty”⁶ to those who pay into the fund and those who receive a pension. Councillor De Ryk stated:

“The Pensions Investment Committee (PIC) is undertaking a thorough review of all investments. We have received assurances from fund managers and the PIC continues to speak to each fund manager to make clear our concerns about our investment portfolio. I am unable to name any companies directly - we have passive investments, and it is very difficult to single out individual companies. We are doing our best to invest responsibly, ethically and to keep up to date with the international situation as it evolves.”

Oracle Licenses

Hazel Ho asked:

“Will the council commit to conducting a review of oracle licenses so the council does not appear complicit in violation of international law?”

Councillor De Ryk stated that the Council was not able to commit to reviewing its licenses for Oracle, a multinational technology company that provides the Council's core accounting system. Councillor De Ryk stressed the “central” role of Oracle in the Council’s financial transactions, but committed to taking the question away to be considered by officers.

Member Questions

A range of member questions were asked and answered. Some of the most interesting exchanges were:

London Living Wage

Councillor Moore asked:

“What steps is the council taking to support employers to pay the London Living Wage (LLW)⁷ in Lewisham?”

Councillor Powell confirmed that the Council is a London Living Wage employer and requires employers that provide services to the Council to pay the London Living Wage. Councillor Powell stated that 102 employers in Lewisham are accredited London Living Wage employers, with over 7,600 employees benefiting.

Healthy Start Initiative

Councillor Muldoon asked:

“How has [the] council encouraged uptake of [the] healthy start initiative⁸?”

Councillor Bell stated that the Council has used a range of measures to improve awareness and uptake of the Healthy Start scheme. This includes targeted advertising using billboards; working with charities such as the Lewisham Borough of Sanctuary and Feed the Hill to support eligible families; and extending the community food justice grants programme using Household Support funding.

Council Tax Base

The Council approved the following recommendations relating to council tax:

• Note the Council Tax Base calculation for 2025/26.
• Set the Council Tax Base at 92,585.3 “Band D equivalent properties”.⁹
• Agree a council tax collection rate of 96%.
• Make no changes to the Council Tax Reduction Scheme (CTRS) for 2025/26. Under the scheme, eligible claimants pay 25% of their council tax bill.
• Continue the discretionary council tax discount of 100% for care leavers under the age of 25.
• Continue the existing policy of a 0% discount for second homes, with a 100% premium to be applied to second homes after one year.
• Continue the existing policy of a 0% discount for empty properties that are undergoing major repairs, or being modified to make them habitable (“Class A”).
• Continue the existing policy of a 0% discount for substantially empty and unfurnished properties (“Class C”).
• Continue the policy of charging additional council tax premiums on long-term empty properties. A 100% premium is charged on properties that have been empty between one and five years; 200% for properties empty for more than 5 years; and 300% for properties empty for more than ten years.
• Continue the “sanctuary” discount. This discount provides a 25% reduction in council tax to residents who are hosting refugees. The discount only applies to those residents who were already eligible for the single-person discount before hosting a refugee and who are hosting through a recognised organisation such as Refugees at Home.
• Continue the discretionary War Disablement Pensions and War Widow Pensions scheme discount.

Non-Domestic Rates

The Council noted that the provisional net yield from non-domestic rates (NDR) in 2025/26 was estimated to be £60m.

The Council agreed to delegate approval of the final NNDR1 form to the Executive Director for Corporate Resources. This form is a statutory requirement setting out the estimated yield from business rates for the year. The deadline for submitting the form is 31 January 2025.

Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG)

Councillor Tam asked the Mayor:

“There have been ample allegations of abuse made towards UCKG where a current cabinet member is a senior staffer. Will the council follow suit with the Diocese of Southwark by issuing an apology for including UKCG on its interfaith walk and retracting awards it has given to UCKG?”

The Mayor responded that all Councillors are required to disclose any employment on the Council’s Register of Interests, which is publicly available on the Council website.

The Mayor stated that the Council did not have a “relationship” with the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God, but condemned “any form of abuse or trauma caused to anyone by any organisation or institution”. She stated:

“Anyone who has suffered abuse can talk to our safeguarding team for help and assistance. The welfare of survivors of abuse in this borough is our priority, not using this as a political football.”

Statement of Accounts and Annual Report

The Council approved the agreed audit adjustments to the draft Statement of Accounts and Pension Fund Accounts 2023/24.

The Council agreed to delegate authority to the Section 151 Officer to approve the final version of the Statement of Accounts for publication, in consultation with the Chair of the Audit & Risk Committee.

The Council noted the Auditor’s Annual Report for 2023/24.

Constitution Update

The Council approved the following amendments to its constitution:

• A structural chart detailing the Council's management arrangements was added as Appendix 8. The Monitoring Officer is responsible for keeping the chart up to date.
• A Scrutiny-Executive Protocol was added as Appendix 9.
• References to “deputations” were removed.
• The section on scrutiny of health matters was updated to reflect that the Healthier Communities Select Committee can no longer make referrals to the Secretary of State and can instead write to the Secretary of State, requesting that they “call-in” a reconfiguration proposal.
• The Council and Mayoral Schemes of Delegation were updated to reflect the current senior management structure of the Council.
• A temporary amendment was made to allow substitutes at a number of Council committees.
• The Council Procedure rules were amended to reflect that in the case of a Council meeting being required during an election period, the meeting would only consider business that had to be decided prior to the election, with other business such as public questions and motions being excluded from the agenda.
• An amendment was made to reflect that the Monitoring Officer is able to make amendments to the constitution without the normal process of committee consideration and Council approval where these amendments are required to comply with legislation and protect the interests of the Council.

The Council also approved a holistic review of the Constitution to be completed in time for adoption at the Council’s Annual General Meeting in May 2025.

Polling District Review

The Council approved the Returning Officer's revised proposals for changes to Lewisham’s polling scheme. The changes will be implemented on 31 January 2025, in time for any elections in 2026 and any unscheduled polls.

The proposals were revised following the Governance Committee meeting held on 18 December 2024.

Motions

Councillor Ingleby proposed a motion declaring Lewisham a “Right to Food Borough”. Councillor Schmidt seconded the motion.

Councillor Ingleby's speech referenced the Sustainable Food Places (SFP) scheme. Councillor Ingleby noted that in September 2024, Lewisham Local, Good Food Lewisham and the Borough’s Food Justice Network were awarded a Silver Award by SFP, and referenced that Cambridge and Cardiff had both been awarded a Gold Award.

The motion called for the Council to:

• Declare Lewisham a “Right to Food Borough” and work with partners to establish “Good Food Neighbourhoods”. These neighbourhoods aim to improve access to healthy and sustainable food by working with local communities to develop food-growing schemes and other projects. The motion also called for the Council to encourage “anchor institutions” such as schools and universities to develop their own food policies.
• Encourage developers to include food growing schemes in new developments.

The motion was carried.