The Sustainable Development Select Committee was scheduled to meet to discuss budget saving proposals, the Sustainable Streets programme, and the committee's work programme for the coming year.

Budget Savings Proposals

The committee was scheduled to review draft proposals for budget reductions for 2025/26 and 2026/27, designed to address a £30 million budget shortfall. The report pack included a draft of the budget reductions report that was due to be presented to the Mayor and Cabinet on 9 July 2025.

The report pack noted that the council had used £21.895 million from its reserves to set the 2025/26 budget, with the expectation that £30 million in savings would be identified and implemented to avoid reliance on reserves in the future.

The report pack stated that officers had identified £29.250 million in general fund savings and £4.784 million in Housing Revenue Account (HRA) savings. These included £6.670 million in general fund savings and £3.609 million in HRA savings for 2025/26, and a further £22.580 million in general fund savings and £1.175 million in HRA savings for 2026/27.

The report pack highlighted that the £30 million savings target was based on assumptions outlined in the Council's Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS), and did not account for potential changes in government funding.

The report pack included a number of specific savings proposals:

• A proposed saving of £500,000 in both 2025/26 and 2026/27, through a review of care home placements where 1:1 care is provided. The report pack stated that the review would aim to reduce the level of care needed, and ensure that joint funding applications and Continuing Healthcare processes are used to fund health needs.
• A proposed saving of £815,000 in 2026/27, through managing a 5% vacancy factor across Adult Social Care.
• A proposed saving of £250,000 in 2026/27, through increasing charges for the Linkline service. The report pack stated that the Linkline service provides 24/7 call handling and response for vulnerable individuals, enabling them to remain at home.
• A proposed saving of £800,000 in 2025/26, from prevention work funded by the Public Health Grant.
• A proposed saving of £2,000,000 in 2026/27, through cost reductions achieved through prevention and technology.
• A proposed saving of £700,000 in 2025/26, through negotiating fee uplifts for care providers.
• A proposed saving of £756,000, phased in over 2025/26 and 2026/27, through management proposals in the Chief Executive's Directorate.
• A proposed saving of £1,600,000 in 2026/27, through a review of the Council's operating model.
• A proposed saving of £40,000 in 2026/27, through increasing income at the Register Office.
• A proposed saving of £1,200,000 in 2026/27, through a reduction in employer's pension contributions to the general fund.
• A proposed saving of £125,000 in 2026/27, through a reduction in employer's pension contributions to the HRA.
• A proposed saving of £1,000,000 in 26/27, through a review of the council tax reduction scheme.
• A proposed saving of £800,000 in 2026/27, through changes to health care packages and short breaks.
• A proposed saving of £6,290,000 in 2026/27, through placement sufficiency cost savings.
• A proposed saving of £2,494,000 in 26/27, through temporary accommodation cost reductions.
• A proposed saving of £1,000,000, phased in over 2025/26 and 2026/27, through improved enforcement of existing road safety restrictions.
• A proposed saving of £238,888 in 26/27, through annual increases to bereavement service fees and charges.
• A proposed saving of £100,000 in 26/27, through increasing charges for adult learning courses and room hire.
• A proposed saving of £118,000 in 25/26 and £239,000 in 26/27, through enablement efficiencies.
• A proposed saving of £400,000 in 26/27, through progression and next steps (PANS) for adults with learning disabilities.
• A proposed saving of £400,000 in 25/26, through maximising wellbeing at home.
• A proposed saving of £500,000 in 26/27, through a reduction in provisions.
• A proposed saving of £140,000 in 26/27, through cessation of old BT lines.
• A proposed saving of £55,000 in 26/27, through a reduction in the internal audit budget.
• A proposed saving of £53,000 in 26/27, through a reduction in assurance budgets.
• A proposed saving of £43,203 in 25/26 and £28,167 in 26/27, through efficiencies in the passenger services team.
• A proposed saving of £26,461 in 25/26 and £14,539 in 26/27, through a review of the staffing budget in the Anti-Fraud & Corruption Team.
• A proposed saving of £23,220 in 26/27, through cancelling the Corporate Contact Centre Chatbot.
• A proposed saving of £42,000 in 25/26, through insourcing Health & Safety Risk Assessments.
• A proposed saving of £140,000 in 25/26, through insurance provisions & reserves.
• A proposed saving of £15,045 in 25/26 and £48,392 in 26/27, through the removal of IT subscriptions.
• A proposed saving of £1,000,000 in 25/26, through treasury management adjustments.
• A proposed saving of £100,000 in 25/26, through a recharge of the pension investment and administration costs.
• A proposed saving of £100,000 in both 25/26 and 26/27, through ensuring cost recovery under tenancy agreements.
• A proposed saving of £205,000 in 25/26, through IT Shared Service Savings.
• A proposed saving of £55,000 in 25/26 and £53,000 in 26/27, through reducing Laurence House opening times.
• A proposed saving of £175,000 in 26/27, through central services DSG reduction mitigation.

Sustainable Streets Programme

The Sustainable Development Select Committee was scheduled to receive an update on the Sustainable Streets Programme¹. The report pack noted that the programme is designed to encourage sustainable travel options, address parking concerns and accessibility issues, and align with the council's policies to reduce carbon emissions and promote sustainable urban living.

The report pack stated that the programme began as a borough wide controlled parking zone (CPZ) programme in 2020, and evolved into the Sustainable Streets programme where wider issues other than just parking were addressed at a local level.

The report pack stated that the council's approach is to consult on any proposed measures, and that Sustainable Street measures are a unique combination of parking controls with added value measures including cycle hangars, electric vehicle charging, safer crossings and trees.

The report pack stated that the programme has been broken down into phases following parking stress surveys carried out across the borough in 2021, and that the council has been evolving its consultation approach across the three phases of the programme.

The report pack included a table showing the number of consultation responses received across the programme so far:

Select Committee Work Programme

The Committee was scheduled to discuss its priorities for the 2025-26 municipal year and agree on an annual work programme.

The report pack included the committee's terms of reference, the council's corporate priorities, effective scrutiny guidelines, a draft work programme for 2025-26, and a forward plan of key decisions.

The report pack set out a number of suggestions for topics to be included in the work programme:

• Air quality
• Active travel
• Catford Regeneration Programme
• Lewisham Town Centre Regeneration
• Retrofit
• Dockless bike hire
• Waste services review
• Climate emergency action plan
• Flood risk management
• Air quality action plan