The Waltham Forest Council Cabinet met to discuss budget updates, approve a new physical activity strategy, and progress with housing and regeneration projects. The cabinet approved the continuation of the current Council Tax Support scheme, allocated resources to the Schools Capital Programme, and adopted the Waltham Forest Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Strategy 2025-2028. Additionally, the cabinet addressed the Avenue Road Estate regeneration and a Deed of Variation to the Fellowship Square Development Agreement.

Local Council Tax Support Scheme 2026-2027

The cabinet recommended to the Full Council the continuation of the existing income-banded Council Tax Support (CTS) scheme for working-age residents into the 2026-2027 financial year, with a maximum award of 85% of council tax. They also recommended that Full Council continue to make £750,000 available for a Discretionary Hardship Fund under section 13A(1)(c) of the Local Government Finance Act 1992, as amended by the Local Government Finance Act 2012, to support households experiencing exceptional hardship.

Councillor Paul Douglas, Portfolio Lead Member for Finance and Resources, explained that by continuing with the current scheme, including the hardship fund, the council balanced compassion with financial responsibility, ensuring support was targeted where it was most needed, while keeping the council on a sustainable footing.

Councillor Grace Williams, Leader of the Council, gave the discretionary hardship fund as an example where the number of those in great hardship required continual assessment to ensure support was targeted to those in need. She confirmed that the priority was to ensure that those in greatest need, particularly those with children and those receiving disability benefits, continued to be able to access that support.

The cabinet noted several provisions of the scheme:

• Earnings and self-employed earnings are treated as income to determine a household's level of income against the proposed income bands. All other income is disregarded.
• There are two charges for non-dependant adults within households: £20 per week for those in work and £8 per week for those out of work.
• Working-age residents would be entitled to support of up to a maximum of 85%, depending on their level of income, household composition and level of capital, and whether they fall within one of the protected groups: households with limited capability to work, households with children aged 5 and under.
• Other eligible working-age residents would receive support up to a maximum of 57%, depending on their level of income, household composition and level of capital.
• The projected cost of the whole scheme is identified as £19.53 million, which is £0.93 million more than the current scheme. This will be reflected in the calculation of the council tax base for 2026/27 and included within the next MTFS¹ as part of the budget-setting process.

The cabinet also noted that before any significant changes to the scheme reducing or removing support could be made, a statutory consultation would need to be carried out.

Budget Review - Fees and Charges

The cabinet agreed to a schedule of fees and charges, with an uplift to be implemented between 1 February 2026 and 1 April 2026, with the exception of academic-related charges, which are uplifted in line with the academic year. Councillor Paul Douglas confirmed that a review of all fees and charges had been undertaken by services earlier in the autumn to ensure that all relevant services covered all costs in full and that no chargeable service was at cost to the council.

Councillor Williams said that it was very important that the council continued to have a good strategy in terms of fees and chargeable services, balancing the need for the council to pay for the services it was providing against the need to make sure that its fees and charges were fair and reasonable.

Schools Capital Programme 2025 - 2029

The cabinet approved the allocation of £49.64 million to the Schools Capital Programme to financial year end 2028/29. Councillor Kizzy Gardiner, Portfolio Lead Member - Children and Young People, said that it was a constant balancing exercise to ensure that enough school places were available in the right locations around the borough and that they were meeting the needs of children and young people. She highlighted the fact that the council had a very high number of families receiving their first choice school preference, which the council should be proud of.

The cabinet noted the total resource of £24.74 million currently committed against projects previously approved by Cabinet and by delegated authority, and the school’s estate rationalisation workstream, repurposing existing surplus provision to meet the needs of children and young people with SEND² in the borough to reduce pressure on the Designated Schools Grant³ and the General Fund, including reduction of home-school transport.

The cabinet delegated authority to finalise this programme, within identified financial resources, to the Strategic Director of Children Services, in consultation with the Portfolio Lead Member for Housing and Regeneration, the Portfolio Lead Member for Children and Young People, the Strategic Director of Place and the Strategic Director of Resources. They also delegated authority to the Strategic Director of Place, in consultation with the Portfolio Lead Member for Housing and Regeneration, Portfolio Lead Member for Children and Young People and Strategic Director of Resources, to proceed with the procurement of projects and maintenance and improvement works included in the programme, subject to Strategic Commissioning Board Approval and to award contracts provided they are within the resources available in the Schools Capital Programme to meet such commitments.

Avenue Road Regeneration Delivery Route

The cabinet approved that the council progress due diligence with the intention of entering into the proposed model with the institutional investment partner to deliver Phase 1 of Avenue Road estate regeneration. They delegated authority to enter into Heads of Terms with the institutional investment partner to the Strategic Director, Place and the Strategic Director, Resources, and approved, as part of the Heads of Terms, entering into of the Cost Underwrite Agreement with the institutional funder. The cabinet also approved a demolition notice is served on Avenue Road estate in July 2026 when the previous demolition notice expires.

Councillor Ahsan Khan, Deputy Leader (Housing and Regeneration), said that in attempting to tackle the housing crisis head-on, the regeneration of Avenue Road had become a key priority for both himself and the Leader. He praised the work of officers in securing £200 million from the Greater London Authority (GLA) for five sites across Waltham Forest, two of which he described as paused sites: Avenue Road and Patchworks.

The cabinet noted the proposals for a comprehensive resident engagement exercise to inform residents of revisions to the regeneration proposals, and that the finalised institutional investment and financial models will return to Cabinet in late Summer 2026 for final approval, as well as the proposals to deliver Phase 2 of the regeneration.

Deed of Variation to Fellowship Square Development Agreement

The cabinet agreed to the renegotiated Heads of Terms (HoTs) for a Deed of Variation to the Development Agreement for Fellowship Square. They noted the splitting of the land payment apportioned to the Fellowship Square (FSQ) site and Willow House and the associated risk of the likely reduction in the Willow House land receipt. The cabinet also noted the change in tenure for Willow House to be delivered as a 100% Build To Rent (BTR) scheme with previously assumed affordable housing at Willow House to be swapped to Block H at FSQ utilising already secured GLA grant resulting in 46% Affordable Housing (AH) across the scheme.

Councillor Khan explained that the report built on the previous Avenue Road agenda item, as the acquired GLA funding he had alluded to earlier, had also contributed to Willow House. He said that the report highlighted the pragmatic approach the council had taken in order to continue to bring forward affordable housing and employment to the borough, in addition to ensuring that long-standing projects moved forward.

The cabinet delegated authority to the Strategic Director of Place in consultation with the Deputy Leader (Housing and Regeneration), the Strategic Director of Resources and the Corporate Director of Governance and Law to enter into the Deed of Variation to the Development Agreement.

Waltham Forest Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Strategy 2025 - 2028

The cabinet approved the final version of the Waltham Forest SEND Strategy 2025–2028. Councillor Kizzy Gardiner said that it was important to note that the strategy would be applied across the council's full partnership, including the local authority, public health, early years, and schools, encompassing the full system applicable to young people in that space. She highlighted the fact that the strategy had been co-produced with input from young people, their parents, and carers.

Housing Asset Management Strategy 2026-2031

The cabinet approved the proposed Housing Asset Management Strategy 2026-31. Councillor Ahsan Khan said that the strategy was built on the work of the Housing Transformation Programme and regulator feedback, aligned with the council's Housing Strategy and had the ambition to provide safe and comfortable homes.

The cabinet delegated authority to the Strategic Director of Place, in consultation with the Portfolio Lead Member for Housing & Regeneration and Corporate Director of Governance and Law, to enable rapid amendment to the strategy for the inclusion of any new regulatory requirements as they arise.

Infrastructure Funding Statement 2024/2025 and Infrastructure Planning Update

The cabinet approved the Infrastructure Funding Statement (IFS) (2024/25) and the incorporated Infrastructure List. Councillor Ahsan Khan said that there was clear alignment across key priorities as set out in Mission Waltham Forest report earlier on the agenda.

The cabinet delegated authority to make any minor amendments necessary to the IFS (2024/25) before it is published, to the Corporate Director – Regeneration, Planning & Delivery, in consultation with the Portfolio Lead Member for Housing and Regeneration, and noted the changes to the Neighbourhood CIL⁴ funded programme and additions to the Carbon Offset Fund programme listed in the report.

Councillor Clyde Loakes, Deputy Leader (Climate and Air Quality), highlighted the carbon offset fund referred to in the report and said that the council had now spent 100% of their carbon offset fund, which he described as incredible work which was the envy of many London boroughs. He confirmed that the funding had allowed the council to plant trees, put in electrical vehicle charging points, and helped residents, community groups, and schools reduce their emissions and energy bills.

Mission Waltham Forest Delivery Update

The cabinet noted the content of the report which provides an update on the early successes of Mission Waltham Forest delivery over the past 18 months. Councillor Grace Williams said that, since the launch of Mission Waltham Forest in spring 2024, the council had taken action across a range of services to deliver its borough missions. She referred to the importance of collaborative working in terms of how the council came together across its services with partners and communities to keep driving outcomes for residents.

Councillor Clyde Loakes reflected on the climate emergency section of the report, stating that while the content had been correct at the point of being drafted, it had moved on significantly since then. Councillor Khevyn Limbajee, Portfolio Lead Member - Community Safety, stated that bringing people together was important, particularly in current times.

The cabinet reaffirmed the commitment to the missions set out in Mission Waltham Forest and the core values that underpin Mission Waltham Forest to relentlessly focus on tackling inequality, deliver together and prioritise where they can have greatest impact for residents.

Budget Monitoring - Month 6

The cabinet noted the forecast outturn position for Revenue, HRA⁵ and DSG as at month 6. Councillor Paul Douglas said that the variance to the month three position predominantly related to Adult Social Care and Place directorates. He said that the adverse movement in adult social care was partly due to a change in assumption around savings delivery and a steady increase in placement demands and costs. Councillor Douglas also stated that for the Place directorate, the adverse movement was in relation to commercial rental recovery, however, the service was taking actions to ensure that this was mitigated for 2026- 27.

The cabinet noted the revised capital programme forecast for 2025/26 of £161.4 million, made up of £100 million, General Fund forecast and £61 million, HRA forecast as well as the 2025/26 forecast funding use, and the revised capital programme forecast to 2034/35, and 2025-26 slippages, accelerations, addition, deletions and virements into future years.

The cabinet approved the Capital Strategy and Management Group (CSAMG) agreed budget additions and virement changes to the Capital programme since February 2025, and approved £0.331 million from contingency to fund the Financial Sustainability team, which is required to support the development of key business cases to enable the delivery of savings required as part of the MTFS and to offset demand led pressures incorporated within the monitor.

Physical Activity Mission - 'Getting Waltham Forest Active: A million more days to do the things we love'

The cabinet approved the proposed five-year Physical Activity strategy and Council mission: 'Getting Waltham Forest Active: A million more days'. Councillor Rosalind Doré, Portfolio Lead Member - Libraries, Culture and Sports & Leisure, said that the mission aimed to support 1,000 residents who were inactive to start doing 30 to 150 minutes of weekly activity, and that research indicated that doing just 30 minutes of weekly exercise could increase life expectancy considerably.

The cabinet endorsed the ongoing commitment to addressing inactivity as a driver of health inequalities, and noted the upcoming borough wide communications campaign 'Never in a Million Years' which sits under the portfolio of Libraries, Culture, Sports & Leisure.