Agenda item

To consider the following Motions in accordance with Council Rules of Procedure No. 13

Motion E

 

Winter Fuel Allowance

 

Proposer: Cllr Scott Emery

Seconder: Cllr Nick da Costa

 

Council notes:

  • The Labour Government has restricted eligibility for Winter Fuel Payments to those on means-tested benefits (primarily Pension Credit); reducing the number of people eligible for Winter Fuel Payments from around 12 million to 1.2 million;
  • The government is set to receive a windfall of £1.5 billion from Octopus Energy, which would be enough to reinstate Winter Fuel Payments for this year;
  • The most recent statistics showed 27,145 households in Haringey were in receipt of the winter fuel allowance, an estimated 74% of whom will lose out under the government’s rule changes;
  • To receive Pension Credit a single pensioner must have an income of less than £11,343.80 per year, compared with a full-time living wage salary of £20,820.8 per year;
  • 37% of those eligible do not claim pension credit, and 780,000 pensioners earning below £11,400 per year will no longer receive the Winter Fuel Payment under Labour’s plans, according to the government’s own equalities analysis;
  • Data from Policy in Practice shows that almost £17 million of pension credit goes unclaimed in Haringey each year, affecting over 4000 households;
  • Haringey’s analysis shows that there are 815 eligible residents not claiming pension credit in the borough;
  • 4 out 5 pensioners due to lose the Winter Fuel Payment are on or below the poverty line according to Age UK;
  • The Energy Price Cap has risen by 10% in October, which, combined with restricted eligibility for Winter Fuel Payments, will push thousands of local pensioners into fuel poverty;
  • Many councils are planning to use the Household Support Fund to provide payments to pensioners who are missing out on the winter fuel payment, and Haringey has confirmed its plans to provide a payment from the council to 2,804 pension aged households claiming council tax reduction scheme.

 

Council believes:

  • Balancing the government’s budget on the back of vulnerable pensioners is morally wrong;
  • The government’s decision to use claiming pension credit as its criterion for receiving the winter fuel payment, whilst knowing that more than a third of those eligible do not claim, was an unethical choice;
  • It is wrong for councils to have to compensate for central government cutting support for some of the least affluent in society, particularly at a time of stretched budgets;
  • Elderly people with an income as low as £218.15 per week are not affluent, and many are vulnerable and at risk of health problems from cold weather;
  • It has responsibilities to the most vulnerable to protect them from avoidable public health risks;
  • That a review of the eligibility criteria for the Winter Fuel Allowance should take place immediately, in consultation with pensioner representative groups, ensuring that pensioners on low and middle incomes are protected this winter.

 

Council resolves:

  • To use the Household Support Fund to provide a payment from the council to pension aged households claiming council tax reduction scheme; 
  • To examine what support can be provided to these same households in future years, once the Household Support Fund has been removed by government;
  • To redouble public information campaigns to encourage greater uptake of Pension Credits by those who are entitled to them;
  • To instruct the Leader of the Council and the Chief Executive to write to the Chancellor of the Exchequer and Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, copied to Haringey’s Members of Parliament, to set out Haringey Council’s concerns on this matter, to request that a review along the lines described above takes place, and to request that they reverse the policy of linking Winter Fuel Allowance payments to receipt of Pension Credit.

 

 

 

Motion F

 

Title: SEND provision in Haringey

Proposer: Cllr Zena Brabazon

Seconder: Cllr Makbule Gunes

This Council notes:

In England, 1.6 million young people have special educational needs, a rise of 6.3% since 2023;

In Haringey, there are approximately 8,000 children and young people who require SEN support and 2,974 who have an education, health and care plan (EHCP). Compared with the previous year, there has been a 22% increase in the number of requests for an assessment for an EHCP and an overall increase of 6% for children with EHCP’s;

In the Autumn budget, the new government announced a package of investment measures to support young people and families across the UK. These included tripling breakfast club funding, £6.1bn in capital investment for rebuilding and maintaining schools and £2.3bn for revenue investment which includes £1bn in additional SEND funding;

The Mayor of London has announced the extension of universal free school meals to primary aged children which has allowed schools to access additional essential pupil premium funding;

This administration is committed to strengthen Children’s Services in Haringey and officers have worked collaboratively with partners and community groups such as SEND Power to enhance our support to young people and families in;

Children’s Services were awarded a Good by Ofsted for the first time in its history and was awarded the highest rating in its SEND service provision by a joint Ofsted and CQC inspection;

The Safety Valve Programme, implemented by this administration, has enabled the council to create an additional 170 places for young people with SEND in partnership with mainstream and special schools across the borough;

The Safety Value Programme has supported us in extending capacity in mainstream and special schools in-borough, which enables a local and integrated education, care, and support to be close to families and support networks, especially those with the most complex needs.

This Council believes:

That 14 years of underinvestment in SEND has put local authorities and their ability to deliver their statutory obligations and provide the best support under strain;

That future investment, resources and research in how local authorities meet the most complex needs in the SEND high needs block is vital;

Ensuring that funding is available and sufficient for all young people who require additional support to be able to access it.

This Council resolves:

To call on the UK government to enhance routes to accessing support for all that need it such as providing better diagnosis of special needs;

To call on the UK government for further funding for local authorities to improve outcomes for children and young people;

To write to the Secretary of State for Education to highlight our implementation of the Safety Valve programme, invite her to visit and see firsthand the success it and other measures have had on SEND provision in Haringey.

 

Supporting documents: