Budget 2022/23: how we’re making Redbridge a cleaner, greener, healthier and safer place

Redbridge Council passed its no-cuts budget proposals for 2022/23 this evening (Thursday, 24 February), including a series of council investments to help make the borough a better place for local people.

Following more than a decade of government austerity during which local government has suffered a staggering 58% cut to its funding, Redbridge continues to be short-changed compared to other boroughs, receiving £128 less government funding per resident than the London average.

If Redbridge received fair government funding, Redbridge Council could provide an additional £39m worth of services for local people.

These are some of the key investments that residents will be getting from their council tax:

• £11m on leisure centres, including a brand new outdoor swimming Lido in Valentines Park, a 25-metre swimming pool in the new Wanstead Leisure Centre, the doubling of green space at Fairlop Waters and restoration of historic Hainault Country Park, with new event space, discovery centre and landscaping
• £125k for local children’s Summer and Easter holiday sports activities
• £15m in town centres and regeneration
• £16m on school improvements and new places
• £175k to help local groups with new community initiatives to improve our area, like community gardens and clubs
• £200k to refurbish popular playgrounds expanding activities for children
• £3.25m toward the Community Hubs project, bringing state-of-the-art libraries with additional services within 20 minutes walk of every resident in Redbridge 
• £588k for more electric charging vehicle points
• £5m on highways repairs, resurfacing roads, improving road safety and low emissions neighbourhoods
• £80m to build new affordable homes to rent for local people
• £2m to refurbish all Redbridge public toilets

Redbridge is also investing £1.2million to make Redbridge safer, including:

• Night-time Uniformed Enforcement Team patrolling the borough round the clock
• A new parks Enforcement Team to keep local parks safe
• Additional CCTV cameras monitored 24/7
• Domestic Violence support service
• A 24-hour Noise service so residents can report issues
• £831,000 invested in flash flood prevention, including rain gardens across the borough 

The Leader of Redbridge Council, Cllr Jas Athwal, said: “Following a decade of Government austerity which has reduced the Council’s budget by 58%, we have streamlined services and become one of the most efficient councils in the country. Despite Government cuts, we are continuing to invest in Redbridge and deliver the services local people rely on. 

“As a council, we are doing everything we can to protect our most vulnerable residents. We recently issued nearly 40,000 school meals vouchers so that local children didn’t go hungry over the half-term holiday, and we’re investing in critical Adult Social Care and Children’s Services. This no-cuts budget has local people at its heart with impactful investment in the vital services valued by so many. Our proposals protect services, deliver key infrastructure, and will help build a better future for our borough.”

The Deputy Leader of Redbridge Council, Cllr Kam Rai, said: “We are a prime example of a low-spending council that has gone from strength to strength, whilst having to tighten our purse strings continually. 

“We’ve responded to the challenge of Government cuts by becoming a more efficient council, making £224m of efficiency savings, transforming the way we work and generating more money to protect the brilliant services local people care about. I’m proud we have once again produced a plan that means no cuts to the services that local people value so much. We will be delivering our services more efficiently; that is where the vast majority of savings will come from. 

“We have listened to local people, and we are expanding and growing services by investing in a cleaner, greener, healthier and safer borough.”

Redbridge is proud to provide some of the best council services in the country, including:

• 96% of schools rated good or outstanding by Ofsted
• Children’s Services rated outstanding
• Adult Social Care services rated Excellent 
• Free garden waste & bulky waste collections
• Nine Green Flag parks benefitting from £1.6m investment in playgrounds and outdoor gyms
• Two new Enforcement Hubs in Ilford and Hainault – and a third on the way in Woodford
• Two new leisure centres in Goodmayes and Loxford, with a third on the way in Wanstead
• Weekly waste collection and wheelie bins rolled out