The Cabinet meeting of Harrow Council on Thursday 24 July 2025 addressed a range of critical local issues, approving measures to enhance adult social care provision, update property licensing schemes, and adopt a new CCTV policy. Key decisions also included noting the revenue and capital budget outturn for the past financial year and approving amendments to the capital programme.

Harrow Adult Social Care Residential and Nursing Bed Block Arrangements

Cabinet approved the direct award of contracts to Maria Mallaband Care Group (Knights Court Care Home) and Acer Healthcare Operations Limited (Appletree Court Care Home) for nursing care beds. These contracts, valued at £1.38 million and funded through the Better Care Fund (BCF), will run for two years from 1 September 2025 to 31 August 2027. The decision aims to ensure continuity of high-quality care for residents, support hospital discharges, and maintain flexibility in responding to local demand through the West London Alliance (WLA) Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS). Councillor Jean Lammiman, Portfolio Holder for Adult Services and Public Health, highlighted the BCF's role in integrating health, social care, and housing services.

Sancroft Care Home - Recommendations for Future Service Options

A change in the service model for Sancroft Care Home was approved, with a focus on meeting the needs of residents with dementia. The capacity will increase from 27 to 45 residents, while retaining capacity for complex and frail elderly placements, including those requiring nursing care. The Council's contract with Sancroft Community Care Limited will be extended to February 2033. Cabinet also approved the commencement of work to develop the feasibility and business case for extending the structure of Sancroft Hall to provide more nursing care at an affordable rate. Councillor Lammiman stated that these decisions would enable the Council to retain access to high-quality residential bed supply and improve SCCL's service model.

Revenue & Capital Budget Outturn Report 2024-25

The Cabinet noted the revenue and capital outturn positions for 2024-25, which showed a net underspend of £1.553 million on the revenue budget. This underspend will be added to the Budget Planning Reserve, increasing it to over £22.8 million. The report also detailed a significant variance on the capital programme, with only 33% of the general fund capital programme and 49% of the HRA capital programme spent against budget. This slippage of £105 million is expected to be carried forward into 2025/26. Councillor David Ashton, Portfolio Holder for Finance and Highways, acknowledged the underspend as a positive financial outcome, while noting the challenges with capital programme delivery.

The Corporate Postal Contract with Royal Mail

Cabinet approved an increase of £550,000 to the Council's postal contract with Royal Mail to cover increased costs and anticipated higher volumes of outbound post. This increase will ensure sufficient funds are available for the remainder of the contract until September 2026. Furthermore, approval was granted for Harrow Council to collaborate with other London Boroughs in re-procuring the Royal Mail postage contract to achieve best value. Councillor Stephen Greek, Portfolio Holder for Performance, Communications and Customer Experience, emphasised the cost-saving benefits of this collaborative approach.

Strategic Performance Report Quarter 4 2024-25 & Target Setting 2025-26 to 2027-28

The Cabinet noted the strategic performance report for Quarter 4 2024-25, highlighting the completion of 25 flagship actions across various council priorities, including website improvements, heritage protection, affordable housing delivery, and reductions in anti-social behaviour. Targets for 2025-26 to 2027-28 were also approved. Councillor Greek praised the progress made towards delivering on residents' priorities. Councillor David Perry raised concerns regarding dropping performance in child protection indicators and customer service, which were addressed by the relevant portfolio holders.

Houses in Multiple Occupation and Selective Licensing

Cabinet approved the commencement of a 10-week public consultation on proposed updates to the property licensing schemes, including Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO) and selective licensing. The proposed changes aim to improve household standards, reduce anti-social behaviour, and ensure better management of privately rented homes. The consultation will cover updated licence conditions and the expansion of selective licensing to three additional wards: Greenhill, Marlborough, and Roxeth, bringing the total number of designated selective licensing wards in Harrow to six. Councillor Pritesh Patel, Portfolio Holder for Cleaner Streets and Public Safety, stated that these measures would improve rental standards and hold landlords accountable.

CCTV Policy

A new CCTV and Video Surveillance System Policy for the London Borough of Harrow was approved. This updated policy strengthens the Council's approach to the use of CCTV and other video surveillance technologies, ensuring legal compliance, aligning with best practice, and enhancing transparency and accountability. The policy includes clearer protocols for camera placement, reinforced requirements for demonstrating pressing need, and plans to expand the CCTV network, particularly in areas experiencing persistent anti-social behaviour and fly-tipping. Councillor Patel highlighted that these improvements directly respond to residents' concerns.

Council Response to the Recent Inspection of Local Authority Children's Services (ILACS) January 2025

Cabinet noted the findings of the Ofsted Inspection of Local Authority Children's Services (ILACS), which took place in January 2025. While services for children under 18 received a 'Good' rating in two key areas (health and protection, and children in care), the experiences and progress of care leavers were judged as 'Inadequate'. Councillor Hitesh Karia, Portfolio Holder for Children's Services, acknowledged the shortfalls in care leaver services and outlined the immediate actions being taken, including the establishment of a separate Leaving Care Service with increased management capacity and investment. He also noted the ongoing work with the Department for Education and Ofsted to implement an improvement plan. Councillor David Perry expressed concern about the service redesigns and their impact on performance, to which Councillor Karia responded by highlighting the context of external intervention and the commitment to improving services.

Treasury Management Annual Outturn Report

Cabinet noted the Treasury Management outturn position for 2024/25, which showed a net underspend of £6 million. This was attributed to additional interest income of £2.5 million due to favourable interest rates and an underspend on borrowing costs of £3.5 million, largely due to slippage on the capital programme. Councillor David Ashton, Portfolio Holder for Finance and Highways, endorsed the positive financial management demonstrated in the report. Cabinet also noted the confidential Appendix 4, which provided an update on investment properties.

The meeting concluded with the closing of the meeting by Councillor Paul Osborn, Leader of the Council.