Havering Town Hall (Credit: LDRS)
(Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Sebastian Mann)
David Taylor, representing St Edwards ward, said Havering Council should keep funding its volunteer sector to save money in the long run.
He said the Havering Volunteering Centre and Havering Citizens Advice Bureau were “believed to be under threat” as the council prepares for the 2025/26 budget.
In a statement issued on 2nd October, after the Conservative Party conference, he said: “One of the clearest messages I heard from organisations on the front-line of tackling poverty was that support for our voluntary sector was key.
“If Havering cuts funding to the likes of the volunteer centre, or drives up their costs, then many more families will be left needing help. This will drive up the cost of Havering’s social care budget.
“Our voluntary sector saves the council millions every year and they provide vital support, such as the training of hundreds of volunteers for the new St George’s Medical Hub.”
Though the town has not proposed any cuts to these services, they receive “little amounts of funding” from the council, Cllr Taylor says.
The volunteer centre says its “main grant” comes from Havering Council, on top of smaller donations from Ford, Tesco and the Big Lottery Fund. Citizens advice bureaus are kept afloat through a combination of government grants, private donations, and fundraising drives.
Ray Morgon, leader of the council since 2022, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) last week the authority’s “hand had been forced” over controversial cuts.
The town hall has proposed closing four of the borough’s ten libraries and is looking to sell car parks for housing developments, after entering the financial year with a £32.5million hole in the budget.
The Havering Residents Association councillor added that the government will want to see savings being made after offering the council a £53.7m loan in February.
Cllr Taylor however said: “We are in a tough financial situation, but no one’s hand is being forced. That is an excuse for poor decision making, which will cost our borough dearly. Havering does not need the managed decline that we are witnessing; it needs bold leadership and the right decisions to be made.
“Havering cannot, literally, afford to cut funding to the voluntary sector.”
The council has also come under fire after refusing to publish a dossier of “disturbing” allegations. It was ordered to in August, after losing a legal bid against the Romford Recorder to keep it confidential.
After the council announced it would appeal the First Tier Tribunal’s decision, Cllr Taylor wrote to its leadership demanding to know how much it was spending on barristers.
Councillor Ray Morgon, leader of Havering Council, said: “The council recognises the enormous value in our local voluntary and community sector. The vital service that these organisations deliver not only provides valuable support to some of our most vulnerable residents but also helps the council with community outreach, engagement and additional social care support.
“We will continue to do all we can to find funding for these organisations to carry on this work, but we have been clear – we are facing an unprecedented financial crisis where there is still much uncertainty.
“If Cllr Taylor is looking to place blame, I suggest that he first looks at his own Conservative Party for the years of austerity and damaging cuts which has brought us to the place where there isn’t enough money to provide even our statutory services – let alone those which are discretionary.
“Cllr Taylor speculates what may or may not happen in next year’s budget, but in any event, he and his party will have the opportunity to put their alternative budget forward, remembering that maintaining or increasing funding in one area will reduce funding in another.”
