The Cabinet meeting scheduled for 11 March 2025 contains a varied agenda. There are two reports on the agenda that relate to the Markhouse Centre, a day opportunities service for adults with learning disabilities and autistic people. The report pack also contains the Council’s proposed Annual Procurement Plan 2025/26 and a strategy for procuring Extra Care services, plus reports on the future of the Lea Bridge Station sites and a report on the Council’s approach to town centres.

Because we only have access to the meeting agenda and the reports pack, we cannot know for certain what was actually discussed or decided at the meeting.

Markhouse Centre - Day Opportunities Review

This report asks the Cabinet to decide on the future of the Markhouse Centre, a day opportunities centre for adults with learning disabilities and autistic people.

On 4 June 2024 Cabinet agreed to consult on the closure of the Markhouse Centre, a Council owned day opportunities service for people with learning disabilities.

The report pack contains a summary of the responses to the consultation. It also contains three separate building condition surveys that set out the cost of maintaining the building, prepared by Norse Evolve, Hollis and Spectrum Property Services.¹

The report pack also includes feedback and recommendations from the Council’s Health and Adult Social Care Scrutiny Committee. The committee met to consider the findings of the consultation, and then met again after the Cabinet previously made a decision to close the Centre on 3 December 2024, to consider a call-in of that decision.

As a result, the Council’s Health and Adults Social Care Scrutiny Committee met on 10 December to consider the call-in. The Scrutiny Committee recommended that the building condition survey that partly underpinned the decision to close the Centre be reviewed by a suitably qualified external organisation and that Cabinet reconsider the decision taken to close the Markhouse Centre after taking that review’s findings into account.

The report pack contains a summary of the steps the Council would take if it decides to close the centre.

Should Cabinet make the decision to close the Centre, adult social care will look to support residents to access opportunities that will be person- centred, based on their assessed needs within the wider day opportunities market.

Waltham Forest's Town Centre Framework

The report pack contains the Council’s proposed Town Centre Framework, which seeks to coordinate its approach to town centres across the borough.

Waltham Forest’s town centres are integral to residents’ everyday lives, meeting essential needs and contributing to economic growth, community cohesion, vitality, local identity and livelihoods.

The report pack contains details of the consultation and engagement that has taken place to inform the Framework. In particular, it highlights the contributions of the Growth Scrutiny Committee and a cross-party, cross-borough Councillor advisory group.

Feeding from the committee’s review, with continued oversight from the Deputy Leader for Housing & Regeneration, a cross-party, cross-borough councillor advisory group was established to contribute to and guide the development of the Town Centre Framework.

The report pack contains five individual delivery plans for the town centres of Walthamstow, Leytonstone, Leyton, Chingford Mount and North Chingford.²

Lea Bridge Station Sites - Update

This report concerns the redevelopment of the Lea Bridge Station Sites, which comprise three sites in Lea Bridge ward. ³

Lea Bridge Station Sites is one of the Council’s key strategic sites in unlocking much needed housing, including a significant provision of affordable housing.

The Council granted planning permission in 2023 for a development that included 345 homes, of which 50% were to be designated as ‘affordable’, as well as a new station entrance and other public realm improvements.

Planning permission to develop the scheme in accordance with planning application 212685 was granted by the Local Planning Authority on 10 February 2023, and the Council and London Square entered into a Section 106 agreement.

The report pack contains a summary of the reasons why the Council is now recommending a revised approach, which will see 387 homes, all of which will be designated as ‘affordable’.

This report provides an update since Planning was approved; the details of the current Section 73 (s73) planning application; and the variations sought to the Development Agreement to progress a start on site.

The report pack contains a site plan and exempt appendices on the financial implications, procurement and legal matters.

Annual Procurement Plan 2025/26

The report pack contains the Council’s proposed Annual Procurement Plan for 2025/26. The plan lists all of the proposed contracts that the Council intends to procure, and estimates their financial value.

This report provides details of proposed procurement projects in the coming year with a financial value of greater than £179,000 for supplies and services contracts, or £1,000,000 for works contracts.

The Procurement Plan is structured by directorate.

Extra Care Procurement

The final report on the agenda concerns the Council’s approach to Extra Care Housing.

Extra Care provides arrangements for people aged usually 55 and over, with care and support needs to continue living independently within the privacy of a self-contained flat or bungalow.

The report pack includes the contract specification and a summary of the Council's current extra care provision.

The current provision has a 24-hour on-site presence with a core level of personal care (10 hours) and additional flexible support as and when it is required.

This report asks the Cabinet to decide on a proposed approach to procuring a new contract.

Approve to proceed with a tender for a new contract for Extra Care Housing services to begin in October 2025 for contract term of 3 years with the option to extend for a further 2 years.

The report pack contains an exempt appendix on the financial implications of the new approach.

Waltham Forest Local Development Scheme (LDS) Update

The report pack contains a proposed update to the Council’s Local Development Scheme (LDS). An LDS is a statutory requirement and sets out the programme for preparing the strategic planning policies that make up the Local Plan.

The LDS is the programme for the production of the strategic planning policy documents (known as Development Plan Documents) that make up the Local Plan.

Once updated, the LDS must be made publicly available, and a copy sent to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG).

The updated LDS has been produced in response to a change in government policy.

Following publication of the revised National Planning Policy Framework (“NPPF”) in December 2024, all Local Planning Authorities have been asked by the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) to produce an updated LDS.

The report pack contains details of the changes made to the LDS. In particular, it highlights the new programme for a full review of Local Plan Part 1: Shaping the Borough to take place between 2026 and 2029.

An additional new programme for the adoption of an updated Waltham Forest Local Plan within 5 years of the adoption date of Local Plan Part 1 (as required by the NPPF).

Schools and Early Years Budgets 2025/26

This report asks the Cabinet to decide on the budgets for schools and early years providers for the 2025/26 financial year.

This report informs Cabinet of the indicative 2025/26 allocations of the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) to schools and other education providers.

The report pack contains detailed breakdowns of the total funding for schools and early years providers. It also includes an appendix on the High Needs Block, which provides funding for children with special educational needs and disabilities.

The High Needs budget is indicative as expenditure will change in-year depending on actual occupancy of commissioned places and the numbers of pupils with EHCPs.

The report acknowledges the potential impact of the government's decision to extend the provision of free childcare to children under two years old.

The majority of the 2025/26 budget increase is a result of the Government expanding the free early education entitlement (FEEE) offer to working families in phases from April 2024 and offering 30 hours funding to working families for under 2’s and 2-year-olds from September 2025.

The report is based on consultation with the Schools Forum.