A budget to protect frontline services and those most in need of help

In its proposals, the council has again prioritised the creation of a more equal borough. The council has also outlined plans to directly support its five key missions by: 

• Taking steps to ensure people across our borough can have a safe place to call home, including investing £200m in boosting homelessness support and prevention over the next two years.  
• Supporting an inclusive, fair local economy by enabling the delivery of 1,000 apprenticeships and putting 5,000 people into work.  
• Creating a greener, healthier borough for all by continuing to invest in improving recycling, and by planting 600 trees a year. 
• Making Islington a child-friendly place where young people can fulfil their potential, by providing a seamless offer of support for all school-aged children.  
• Empowering people across the borough and providing the right support by ensuring that a quicker, more effective response to resident enquiries, including by improving the council’s online services. 

The news comes amid growing financial pressures, caused by the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, inflation, and the long-term impact of more than a decade of austerity.  

While effective financial management has left the council’s budget in a stable place and has limited the need for deep cuts, the council has still had to take tough decisions in this budget to ensure that it can continue to deliver on its missions and prioritise the services that matter most to local people.

This includes making savings of £14.2m to set a balanced budget in 2025/26. That’s why the council is urging central Government to deliver on their promise to review local authority funding formulas – to help ensure that local authorities like Islington can provide residents with the support they need in these challenging times.  

Cllr Diarmaid Ward, Islington Council’s Executive Member for Finance and Performance, said: “Our budget proposals for 2025/26 reflect our unwavering commitment to protecting the valuable services that our residents rely on and to supporting those most in need, even in the face of growing financial pressures.  

“This year, we’re continuing to take bold steps to create a borough where all can thrive – from ensuring that every resident has a safe place to call home to supporting a fair, inclusive local economy, tackling the climate crisis, creating a child-friendly borough, and providing the support that local people need.  

“While we’re in a stable position financially, there is no escaping the fact that years of austerity, the cost-of-living crisis, and growing demand for council services has again stretched our budget. That’s why it’s so important that central Government delivers on its promise to review funding formulas, so local authorities like ours can provide the support that local people need. 

“These challenging times demand tough decisions, and we’re not shying away from that in our budget proposals. However, we’re pleased to be able to continue to protect our frontline services and provide invaluable support to those that need it most.” 

Over the past year, there has been a significant increase in council costs. Tragically, across the capital rates of homelessness are rising. Homelessness in London is at a record high and this has created a significant increase in need for temporary accommodation – with London Councils anticipating boroughs being left with a £500m funding shortfall. 

Meanwhile, demand for adults' and children’s social services, as well as support with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), has increased at a rate that is not matched by the funding provided to the council.

Difficult decisions have had to be made in the council’s budget, including increasing council tax by 4.99 per cent - which includes applying the Government’s two per cent adult social care precept to help pay for the rising cost of providing adult social care. For the average Band D property, this equates to an increase of around £1.39 per week for full council taxpayers.  

The council is continuing to provide support for those that need it most by maintaining its Council Tax Support Scheme, which ensures that lowest-earning households pay no council tax at all. Further details on the financial support available to those in need is available via the council’s website.  

To ensure that the council can continue to provide frontline services to those that need them most, the budget proposes a 10 per cent reduction in the council’s staff count over the next three years – starting with a 2.5 per cent reduction this year through vacancy management and reducing agency spend – alongside changes to ensure the organisation runs as efficiently as possible.  

Notes to editors 

The draft budget proposals are set out in the papers for the upcoming Executive meeting on Thursday, 16 January. They are then set to be voted on at the Full Council meeting on Thursday, 27 February.  

A statutory consultation on the proposals is also open until Tuesday, 28 January, so residents can have their say.