Issue - meetings

Report of Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Regeneration and Planning

Lead Cabinet member: Councillor David Tutt

(Key decision):

(1) To agree that £250k be allocated from the newly created Cost of Living Support Reserve to establish a cost-of-living crisis fund.

(2) To agree that the Deputy Chief Executive, in consultation with the Grants Task Group and the Council’s Cost of Living Champion, be given delegated authority to allocate the cost-of-living crisis fund.

The Cabinet considered the report of the Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Regeneration and Planning, asking them to agree a range of measures to support local people struggling due to the cost-of-living crisis.

Councillor Holt identified a couple of errors in the published report. Section 1.2 should reflect that Full Council at its meeting in May 2022 agreed broader actions in response to the pandemic and it was the Leader of the Council, rather than Full Council, who established a cost-of-living emergency fund, following that meeting, which had led to the proposals set out in the report. The two figures in Section 5.1 also should read £250,000. Officers agreed to update and republish the report following the meeting.

Visiting member, Councillor Lamb, addressed the Cabinet on this item. The Cabinet agreed that work was needed to target those individuals who weren’t necessarily willing or able to come forward for the available support.

To reflect the Leader’s recent appointment of Councillor Babarinde to the Council’s newly created Cost of Living Champion post, the Cabinet unanimously agreed to amend resolution (2) to include the Champion as part of the consultation and this was reflected below.

Councillor Burton declared a personal and non-pecuniary interest in this item and remained in the room and voted on the item.

Resolved (Key decision):

(1) To agree that £250k be allocated from the newly created Cost of Living Support Reserve to establish a cost-of-living crisis fund.

(2) To agree that the Deputy Chief Executive, in consultation with the Grants Task Group and Council’s Cost of Living Champion, be given delegated authority to allocate the cost-of-living crisis fund.

Reason for decisions:

To help tackle those worst affected by the cost-of-living crisis.