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An amendment to the motion in
the names of Councillor J Moss and Councillor L Mitchell was
AGREED..
 
The amended motion in the names
of Councillor J Moss and Councillor T James was AGREED
 

This Council
RESOLVES to support the vulnerable elderly in our borough
and make sure that Waltham Forest is truly a place to grow old with
dignity. 

 
This Council
notes the decision by the Government to end
universal Winter Fuel Payments for people of pension
age.In our commitment
to supporting older Waltham Forest residents, we recognise that
many of pension age who are eligible for Pension Credits or other
benefits do not apply for
them. The lack of
awareness some residents may have concerning the
process for obtaining pension credits will be
improved through our dedicated communications campaign. We welcome
the Government’s confirmation of the Household Support Fund
to allow us to support vulnerable residents and the
Government’s commitment to maintain the triple lock for pensioners,
leading to an increase of £900 this year and
over a thousand pounds over this Parliament.  

 
This Council
understands the decision of
the Secretary of State for Health and Social
Careto review
the previous Government’s New Hospital Programme which did not allocate funds to deliver Whipps Cross Hospital. Whilst we welcome
the enabling phase of the construction, which
is now underway, we recognise that many of
our elderly residents who rely on our local hospital will be
anxious to receive a firm commitment from the Labour Government on
their plans. The Council has previously been
outspoken on the need to accelerate the pace of the Whipps rebuild and recognises the importance of
continuing to do so now, engaging at every
level of Government and working across
political parties to deliver our shared priority. 

 
This Council
recognises that adult social care plays a crucial role in
preventing, reducing and delaying the need for
more formal care and support, as well as helping older people lead
more independent lives. Adult social care is the largest area of
spend in our borough, leading to an overspend
of £7m. 

 
This Council
also notes that
extended parking hours and days are being proposed for high streets and
other locations, which are necessary to reduce unnecessary short
car journeys across the borough and bring us into line with
the majority of
other boroughs in London. Weappreciate this may impact vulnerable elderly residents who rely on vehicles for
mobility and the current free hours to pick up prescriptions and
essentials which is why we fund the Freedom
Pass (estimated 24/25 cost to Waltham Forest of £9.3m),
support our 10,700 Blue Badge Holders including with free CPZ
permits where relevant (at an annual subsidy of nearly
£190k) and
provide our over 60’s households in CPZ’s with 90 one
hour free visitor permits at an
annual subsidy of £400k. 
This Council recognises that by
encouraging those who can use other modes of transport to access
these locations, we free up more parking spaces for those who
can’t - notably our Blue
Badge holders. 
We therefore
request that: 

 
·        
The Leader of the
Council write to Government
ministers, urging a review of
welfare measures across central and local government
to better target support to those in need. We will coordinate
a campaign to show residents how to check
their eligibility and register for Pension Credit and
disability benefits. This will include writing directly to
those who may be eligible, putting a pamphlet through every
residents’
door and providing £40,000 additional funding for the community
voluntary sector to run drop ins and outreach
sessions.The Council will write again to
the Secretary of State for Health and Social
Care reaffirming our support for the full
rebuild of Whipps
Cross Hospital and urging him to commit to
cross-party agreement on a roadmap for social care reform, pressing
for the implementation of the independent Hewitt Review of
Integrated Care Systems recommendation that the share of total NHS
budgets at ICS level going towards prevention should be increased
by at least 1% over the next five
years. 
 

·        
This Council fully
listens to the voices of our older
residents and assesses the impact the proposed
changes to parking would have on them
andall residents with protected
characteristics.  The Council will continue to provide
and support the substantial Freedom Pass subsidy, as a means for so
many of our most vulnerable residents to get about our borough
and maintain their
independence for free.
 The Council will continue to provide 90
one-hour-free visitors
permits to households with a resident aged over 60
in a CPZ, a scheme unrivalled
in London.  The
Council will continue to support our Blue Badge holders with
progressive policies like the free CPZ Permit and use of permit
bays that other boroughs don’t
allow.