Agenda item

Report of the Corporate Director of Environment and Resident Experience. To be presented by the Cabinet Member for Climate Action, Environment and Transport

The Cabinet Member for Climate Action, Environment and Transport introduced the report.

The Cabinet Member explained that the array of projects related to the Community Carbon Fund over the first four years was a testament to the remarkable spirit of innovation and collaboration they represented.

The Cabinet Member highlighted the community response, including schools tackling food waste, Haringey Borough Women's Football Club creating recycling solutions for sports equipment, and community centres upgrading to energy-efficient lighting, which suggested a borough-wide commitment to climate action that spanned every sector of the community.

The Cabinet Member explained that the engagement statistics for the Community Carbon Fund showed that 36 projects were delivered across the borough, leveraging an additional £261,000 in match funding and creating lasting partnerships between community organisations that might otherwise never have collaborated.

He explained that, as the programme looked toward the next four years, the aim was to increase the annual funding pot to £100,000. The proposed enhancements directly responded to community feedback, making the fund more accessible and impactful. By shifting application deadlines away from the busy holiday period, more groups were enabled to develop thoughtful proposals. It was stressed that a stronger focus on high-impact carbon reduction projects maximised environmental benefits, while the introduction of mandatory carbon literacy training created a ripple effect of knowledge and advocacy throughout the borough, equipping community leaders to inspire wider climate action beyond their funded projects.

It was explained that the fund exemplified the Haringey Deal in action and that it sought to share power with communities and creating genuine opportunities for residents to shape the climate response.

In response to comments and questions from Cllr Connor, the following information was shared:

• It was explained by officers that the outcomes of grant utilisation by community groups were recorded in the Annual Carbon Report.
  
  
• It was explained by the Cabinet Member that the Borough of Culture was aimed to bring together the whole borough and that it aimed to utilise culture to help tackling climate change and improve engagement.
  
  
• It was explained that the Council issued a short questionnaire to prospective community representatives to understand their background and experience and allocate the best candidate. It was explained that the criteria for selection of community representatives would be further developed to ensure the best candidate.

RESOLVED:

That Cabinet:

1. Noted the Cabinet decision on 11th February 2025 to allocate £0.64m of the Carbon Offset Fund monies collected under s106 obligations for the extension of the Haringey Community Carbon Fund and its administration. The spend over four financial years was agreed at:
   1. £100k per funding year in community grants (total £400k)
   2. £60k per funding year to manage and promote the fund (total £240k).
      
      
2. Noted the current process, and agreed to the changes to the Haringey Community Carbon Fund for Years 5 to 8 following internal and external engagement to improve the management of the fund and delivery of outcomes.
   
   
3. Agreed that the decision to allocate the annual funding to specific carbon reduction bids in this period was delegated to the Assistant Director for Planning, Building Standards & Sustainability, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Climate Action, Environment, and Transport, and drawing on the advice of the Programme Director Wellbeing & Climate and the Haringey Community Carbon Fund Panel. And, where funds were not fully spent at the end of each year, that unspent funds would be rolled over to the next spending year.

Reasons for decision

Allocating the carbon offsetting funds to community schemes continued to deliver Objective Com2 of the Haringey Climate Change Action Plan. This committed to “empower and enable community-owned projects to deliver carbon reduction”, with a specific action under Com2 to set up a community energy fund. Grants to local community organisations encouraged residents, community groups and local businesses to live and operate more sustainably. Residents and community groups were well-placed to identify, set up and run carbon reduction projects, whilst developing their skills. Funding enabled organisations to have a wider reach, with more projects coordinated and delivered across the borough.

The borough’s community groups also used this funding to access and match fund external funding streams for carbon reduction. Examples included the National Lottery, the GLA’s London Community Energy Fund, the NLWA’s North London Community Fund.

This funding strategy delivered on Haringey 2035: the vision, and the action on “Supporting greener choices” by empowering the community to tackle the climate emergency. Funding created opportunities for community-led initiatives to mitigate climate risks and be climate resilient.

Alternative options considered

Do nothing – rejected
This would have run counter to the Cabinet decision in February 2025 allocating £640,000 for the extension of the Haringey Community Carbon Fund Years 5 to 8. It would have failed to meet the objectives and outlined actions of the Haringey Climate Change Action Plan to support and empower community-based carbon reduction and undermined the council’s declaration of a climate emergency.

Do same as the first 4 years – rejected
The first four years were very successful; however, continuing the same would not have enabled community feedback and council learnings to be incorporated into the extension. This would have been a missed opportunity for more beneficial outcomes regarding carbon reduction, community engagement and contribution to equalities. This would also have gone against the recommendations of the community engagement for the extension of the Haringey Community Carbon Fund, and the principles of the Haringey Deal.

Alternative ways of funding community groups: Funding community groups but excluding businesses, schools, and individuals – rejected

This option was ruled out for the following three reasons:

• Schools, individuals and small and medium enterprises were an integral part of Haringey’s community and excluding them would have been against the plan to support and empower community-based carbon reduction.
• The council had limited direct control or influence over borough emissions, and supporting community action and behaviour change was key to delivering the borough-wide net zero carbon target of 2041. This group had a deeper reach within the community. Excluding them would have meant losing the opportunity to tap into this.
• Excluding these groups would have gone against the GLA guidance on Community Funds and use of Carbon Offsetting Funds.

Alternative ways of funding community groups: Funding council projects and reducing the amount allocated to community groups from the Community Carbon Fund – rejected

This option was ruled out as it would have run counter to the Cabinet decision in February 2025 allocating £640,000 for the extension of the Haringey Community Carbon Fund Years 5 to 8 to empower community groups and support community-led carbon reduction projects, as set out in the objectives and outlined actions of the Haringey Climate Change Action Plan.