The Islington Council meeting on 4 December 2025 included discussion of the council tax support scheme, gambling regulations, and updates to the council's constitution. Councillors were also scheduled to discuss several notices of motion, including championing inclusion for every child, fair funding for local government, supporting people dying in poverty, and standing up for renter's rights.

Council Tax Support Scheme 2026/27

The council was asked to agree to adopt the Council Tax Support Scheme (CTSS) for 2026/27, as detailed in appendix A of the CTSS report 26.27 final v5. The council was also asked to retain the empty property discounts and premium schedules to council tax that were agreed at a full council meeting on 12 December 2024. These include:

• A 0% discount for council tax exemption classes A and C.
• A 0% discount for empty furnished lets.
• A 100% premium charged on council tax for properties empty and unfurnished for over a year, but less than five years.
• A 200% premium for properties empty for 5-10 years.
• A 300% premium for properties empty for over 10 years.
• A 100% premium on council tax for second homes.

The report also included a proposal to increase working age bands earnings levels by CPI to ensure support keeps pace with inflation, at an annual cost of £72,000 to the council. It was noted that a further review of the CTSS, including discretionary discounts, had been completed, with a report due in autumn 2025. The council was also asked to note the work undertaken and continued support to households with more than two children on CTSS.

Gambling Act 2005: Statement of Principles 2026-2028

The council was asked to agree and publish the Statement of Principles 2026-2028, as detailed in appendix 1 of the GA SOP Council Report 4 Dec 2025. The council was also asked to note the written responses to the consultation in appendix 2, the council's response to the consultation feedback in appendix 3, and to resolve not to issue any casino licences between 1 January 2026 and 31 December 2028.

The Statement of Principles sets out how the council intends to discharge its duties under the Gambling Act 2005 as the Licensing Authority, particularly its approach to licensing premises used for gambling activities. The aims of the Statement of Licensing Principles are to:

• Inform applicants how the council will make licensing decisions and how licensed premises are likely to be able to operate within its area.
• Set out how the Authority intends to support responsible operators and take effective actions against irresponsible operators.
• Support the Authority in making licensing decisions.

The council was reminded that it must have regard to the three licensing objectives outlined in the Gambling Act 2005: preventing gambling from being a source of crime or disorder, ensuring that gambling is conducted in a fair and open way, and protecting children and other vulnerable people from being harmed or exploited by gambling.

The report noted that the council identifies the protection of children and other vulnerable people from being harmed by gambling as a priority when making decisions about applications. The Statement of Principles identifies several gambling vulnerability zones in the borough, designed to provide applicants with information about specific risks to be addressed in their operating plans.

The council was also asked to consider a resolution made under s166 (1) of the Gambling Act not to issue casino premises licences.

Review and Update of the Constitution

The council was asked to approve changes to the Constitution as set out in the Review and Update of the Constitution.pdf and its appendices. The report stated that the changes to the Constitution were proposed following a review by the Constitution Working Group, and were in line with the peer review recommendations of February 2025, with additional suggested updates. The changes to the Constitution were to be supported by an organisational training and development programme.

Appendix A Summary of changes to the Constituion summarises the proposed changes, including:

• Removing income from the key decision criteria.
• Seeking Secretary of State consent for land disposals.
• Improving call-in procedures.
• Better management of council meetings focusing on Council Procedure Rules.
• Clarifying and re-stating the roles of members and officers.
• Changing delegation arrangements.
• Reviewing roles and responsibilities.
• Legal compliance.
• General updates and improvements.

Appendix B Misc changes contains a broad outline of the proposed updates. Appendix D Code of conduct for officers contains the proposed new Code of Conduct for officers, which would be effective from 1 April 2026. Appendix E Proposed changes to the terms of reference of committees v2 contains the proposed changes to the terms of reference of committees, to take effect after Annual Council in May 2026.

Resolution to extend 6-month rule – Section 85 Local Government Act 1972

The council was asked to agree that, in accordance with Section 85 of the Local Government Act 1972, it approves Councillor Roulin Khondoker's non-attendance at meetings until the end of the municipal year on the grounds of continued ill health, and that the Council's best wishes be conveyed to them. Section 85 of the Local Government Act 1972 states that if a member of a local authority fails to attend any meeting of the authority for six consecutive months, they shall cease to be a member of the authority, unless the failure was due to some reason approved by the authority before the expiry of that period.

Quarterly Monitoring Report

The council was asked to note the decision detailed in the quarterly monitoring report December 2025 v2 and the attached appendix. Under paragraph 68, Part 4 of the Councils Constitution, the Proper Officer shall submit quarterly returns to Council detailing all those occasions on which either the call-in provisions were waived, or a key decision was taken which had not appeared in the Forward Plan or five clear working days' notice had not been given. The Corporate Director Health and Social Care made a decision using the urgency procedures on the community equipment service contract award on 18 September 2025. The five clear working days' notice was not achieved, and the decision was not available for call-in, nor was it possible to publish the 28-day statutory notice of the Council's intention to take the decision. The Corporate Director took a decision to approve the award of a contract to Provide Care Solutions Limited for the provision of a community equipment service for a period of up to a maximum of 36 months, including an optional extension. The service will continue to be funded via pooled budget arrangements between Islington, Whittington Health and North Central London Integrated Care Board¹.

Annual Report of the Employment and Appointments Committee 2024/25

The council was asked to note the work of the Employment and Appointments Committee over the past year, as detailed in the EA Annual Report. The Employment and Appointments Committee is responsible for the recruitment and appointment of Corporate Directors and Service Directors in accordance with Part 4 of the Council's Constitution. The Committee recruited to six permanent senior officer posts over the past year:

• Corporate Director of Environment and Climate Change
• Corporate Director of Homes and Neighbourhoods
• Corporate Director of Health and Social Care
• Director of Family Help and Safeguarding
• Director of Planning and Development
• Director of Education and Achievement

Appointments Report

The council was asked to approve the recommendations in the Appointments Report - December 2025:

• To appoint Selina Douglas, Chief Executive of Whittington Health², as a non-voting member of the Health and Wellbeing Board, for the remainder of the municipal year.
• To agree that a political assistant be assigned to the Labour Group for the remainder of the municipal year.

• To agree that a political assistant be assigned to the Independent and Green Group for the remainder of the municipal year.

  Notices of Motion

  Councillors were scheduled to discuss the following motions:

• Championing Inclusion for every child: This motion recognised Islington's leadership in inclusive education and its commitment to ensuring every child, regardless of need or background, feels they belong, achieve and thrive in their local school.

• A truly fair funding review for local government: This motion noted that the government is undertaking a Fair Funding Review 2.0 to update how local authority funding is allocated across the country, and that London Councils' analysis shows the proposed reforms risk underestimating London's level of need, with boroughs in the capital projected to receive £700 million less than under current funding arrangements.

• Supporting people dying in poverty: This motion noted that research by Marie Curie has found that a significant number of people are spending their final months, weeks, or days of life in poverty, and resolved to explore how Islington Council can better support and protect low-income households where someone is living with a terminal illness.

• Standing up for Renter's Rights: This motion noted that the landmark Renters Rights Act will change the lives of thousands of families across Islington, who will now benefit from stronger rights, greater security and fairer treatment in their homes, and reaffirmed Islington Council's commitment to creating a fairer, safer, and more secure rental market.

Questions

From Members of the Youth Council

The agenda for the meeting included questions from members of the Youth Council to various Executive Members:

• A question to Councillor Michelline Safi-Ngongo, Executive Member for Children, Young People & Families, about Islington Council being selected to be part of the Department of Culture Media and Sports Local Youth Transformation Pathfinder, and what commitment can be expected from Council Leaders that Youth Voice will continue to go from strength to strength.
• A question to Councillor Rowena Champion, Executive Member for Environment, Air Quality & Transport, about what the Council is doing to encourage all residents in the borough to recycle and is the Council leading the way by its own recycling record.
• A question to Councillor Angelo Weekes, Executive Member for Community Safety, about what the Council is doing to encourage boys and men to speak out against violence aimed at girls and women and to change harmful attitudes particularly from online influencers on social media, in light of White Ribbon Day³.

• A question to Councillor Sheila Chapman, Executive Member for Equalities, Communities & Inclusion, about what Islington Council can do to promote British values and diversity and increase a sense of pride among Islington's young residents, following a Youth Debate in November titled Can patriotism and diversity coexist? .

  From Members of the Public

  The agenda for the meeting included questions from members of the public to various Executive Members:

• A question from Alastair Harper to Councillor Rowena Champion, Executive Member for Environment, Air Quality & Transport, about what more can be done to make sure all of the community benefit from Islington's leadership on tackling the climate emergency and recovering nature, given that only 13% of Islington is green space.

• A question from Jessica Thistle to Councillor Flora Williamson, Executive Member for Finance and Performance, about whether the pension committee has a plan for investments cited by independent organizations for unethical practices and activities.

• A question from Maia Hamilton to Councillor John Woolf, Executive Member for Homes and Neighbourhoods, asking for comment on the progress of expanding the landlord licensing scheme.

• A question from Jonathan Ward to Councillor Rowena Champion, Executive Member for Environment, Air Quality & Transport, about why the Council is partnering with TotalEnergies to provide on-street electric vehicle charging.

• A question from Tahreen Dewan to Councillor Angelo Weekes, Executive Member for Community Safety, about what powers the council has to enhance enforcement and sanction those who fail to clean up after their dogs, given that dog fouling is increasingly prevalent in Highbury and Mildmay wards.

From Members of the Council

The agenda for the meeting included questions from members of the council to various Executive Members:

• A question from Councillor Diarmaid Ward to Councillor Dr Sara Hyde, Executive Member for Health and Social Care, about how many Islington families have used the Sobell Centre's new Active Play and Active Multi Zone since these facilities opened.
• A question from Councillor Janet Burgess MBE to Councillor Dr Sara Hyde, Executive Member for Health and Social Care, asking for reassurance that safeguarding services as robust systems and safeguards in place to ensure that critical messages are never overlooked.
• A question from Councillor Gary Heather to Councillor Angelo Weekes, Executive Member for Community Safety, about what further action the council is taking to ensure visible enforcement, support local traders and tackle repeat offenders using tools like the ASB reporting system and respect orders, given that residents and businesses in the Nag's Head area remain concerned about persistent anti-social behaviour, crime and illegal street trading.
• A question from Councillor Benali Hamdache to Councillor Rowena Champion, Executive Member for Environment, Air Quality & Transport, about how far behind Islington is in introducing a levy on SUVs, given that Cardiff Council have introduced a surcharge on SUV parking.
• A question from Councillor Ben Mackmurdie to Councillor Angelo Weekes, Executive Member for Community Safety, asking how the Council will work with the Metropolitan Police to ensure that communities benefit from increased officer visibility, improved crime prevention, and stronger local engagement, especially in areas most affected by anti-social behaviour, hate crime and serious violence involving injury, given the Government's announcement of a £200 million increase in funding to expand neighbourhood policing.
• A question from Councillor Heather Staff to Councillor Angelo Weekes, Executive Member for Community Safety, asking how the new gambling policy pushes the limit of what is legally possible, with the introduction of new safeguards and risk zone assessments, while still fulfilling the Council's duty to permit gambling premises where appropriate.
• A question from Councillor Valerie Bossman-Quarshie to Councillor Santiago Bell-Bradford, Deputy Leader and Executive Member for Inclusive Economy, Culture & Jobs, about what further steps the council will take to embed co-operative values in service planning, strengthen engagement with local cooperatives, and explore opportunities for democratic ownership of community assets, given that this year marks the UN International Year of Co-Operatives.
• A question from Councillor Gulcin Ozdemir to Councillor Santiago Bell-Bradford, Deputy Leader and Executive Member for Inclusive Economy and Jobs, about whether Islington Council will continue to uphold its commitment to delivering 50% affordable housing on new developments, despite recent government announcements proposing to reduce the national target to 20%.
• A question from Councillor Tricia Clarke to Councillor Sheila Chapman, Executive Member for Equalities, Communities & Inclusion, asking for an update on how the project to provide more public toilets in Islington is progressing.
• A question from Councillor Gulcin Ozdemir to Councillor Angelo Weekes, Executive Member for Community Safety, asking how he is engaging with the Met to prevent future use of Live Facial Recognition in the borough.
• A question from Councillor Phil Graham to Councillor Sheila Chapman, Executive Member for Equalities, Communities & Inclusion, asking how Islington Council are going to protect residents when they are attacked by the new 'hostile environment ' being imposed by the current Labour government, in light of the home secretary's proposed attack on asylum seekers.
• A question from Councillor Ernestas Jegorovas-Armstrong to Councillor Michelline Safi-Ngongo, Executive Member for Children, Young People & Families, about how many penalty charge notices were given to parents last academic year for unauthorised absence.