Agenda and decisions

Interim 2026/27 Crisis and Resilience Fund Policy, Cabinet Member Signing - Friday, 10th July, 2026 2.30 pm

Contact: Richard Plummer Committees Manager Email: richard.plummer@haringey.gov.uk

Items

No.

Item

FILMING AT MEETINGS

Please note that this meeting may be filmed or recorded by the Council for live or subsequent broadcast via the Council’s internet site or by anyone attending the meeting using any communication method. Although we ask members of the public recording, filming or reporting on the meeting not to include the public seating areas, members of the public attending the meeting should be aware that we cannot guarantee that they will not be filmed or recorded by others attending the meeting. Members of the public participating in the meeting (e.g. making deputations, asking questions, making oral protests) should be aware that they are likely to be filmed, recorded or reported on. By entering the meeting room and using the public seating area, you are consenting to being filmed and to the possible use of those images and sound recordings.

The Chair of the meeting has the discretion to terminate or suspend filming or recording, if in his or her opinion continuation of the filming, recording or reporting would disrupt or prejudice the proceedings, infringe the rights of any individual or may lead to the breach of a legal obligation by the Council.

Apologies for absence

To receive any apologies for absence.

Declarations of interest

A member with a disclosable pecuniary interest or a prejudicial interest in a matter who attends a meeting of the authority at which the matter is considered:

(i) must disclose the interest at the start of the meeting or when the interest becomes apparent, and

(ii) may not participate in any discussion or vote on the matter and must withdraw from the meeting room.

A member who discloses at a meeting a disclosable pecuniary interest which is not registered in the Register of Members’ Interests or the subject of a pending notification must notify the Monitoring Officer of the interest within 28 days of the disclosure.

Disclosable pecuniary interests, personal interests and prejudicial interests are defined at Paragraphs 5-7 and Appendix A of the Members’ Code of Conduct

URGENT BUSINESS

The Chair will consider any late items of Urgent Business.

DEPUTATIONS / PETITIONS / QUESTIONS

Interim 2026/27 Crisis and Resilience Fund Policy PDF 276 KB

Report of the Delivery Director for Tackling Inequality

Additional documents:

Decision:

DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST MADE FOR THIS ITEM:

None

RESOLVED:

That the Cabinet Member for Tackling Inequality and Resident Services:

1. Noted the annual Crisis and Resilience Fund (CRF) allocation from the Government of £5,932,161 for the three-year period from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2029.

2. Noted the expenditure of £2,470,000 authorised through the decision made on 24 March 2026.

3. Approved the extension of free school meal holiday vouchers until September 2026 at an estimated additional cost of £966,000, followed by a more targeted approach to holiday payments for households experiencing financial hardship, to be determined later in the year in accordance with paragraph 3.12.

4. Approved estimated expenditure of £1,742,338 for the expansion of the Financial Support Team, as detailed in the report.

5. Approved estimated expenditure of £200,432 to increase the number of crisis fund decision-makers by two Benefits Officers for a period of two years.

6. Approved estimated one-off expenditure of £30,000 for the development of a streamlined online application form integrating multiple crisis fund applications and a benefits calculator.

7. Approved estimated expenditure of £220,221 to fund a strategic community coordination role supporting the design, co-production and delivery of the borough's approach to tackling poverty.

8. Approved estimated expenditure of £206,357 for the administration of the scheme, including staff resources for Housing Payments and the year two cost of the Low-Income Family Tracker.

9. Noted that all costs were estimates based on current data and forecasts and could vary according to actual demand and other relevant factors.

10. Approved delegated authority to the Corporate Director for Environment and Resident Experience to manage the budget in accordance with the principles and criteria set out in the Policy and the CRF outcome measures.

11. Agreed that the Policy in Appendix A would be updated to reflect the recommendations approved through the decision.

Area of expenditure	2026/27	2027/28	2028/29
Free school meal holiday vouchers	£1,416,000	£0	£0
Resilience services	£629,966	£842,945	£269,427
Housing support	£1,192,000	£0	£0
Crisis Fund decision-making	£73,500	£100,940	£25,992
Crisis and hardship payments	£550,000	£0	£0
Community coordination	£43,306	£87,150	£89,765
Administration	£422,057	£57,300	£0
Digital improvement	£30,000	£0	£0
Total	£4,356,829	£1,088,335	£385,184

12. Delegated authority for the allocation of the remaining year one CRF funding, estimated at £1,575,332, to the Corporate Director for Environment and Resident Experience, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Tackling Inequality and Resident Services. This also included authority to allocate year two CRF funding to cover the Easter school holiday period, if required.

13. Noted the ongoing development of an Anti-Poverty Strategy to inform future updates to the Policy.

Reasons for the decision

Haringey Council remained committed to supporting residents experiencing financial hardship. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) provided funding to local authorities through the CRF, recognising that councils were well placed to allocate resources in response to local needs.

The CRF guidance allowed local authorities to determine how funding was allocated within the framework of the programme's objectives. The DWP also expected authorities ... view the full decision text for item 6.