Southwark Council has adopted an ambitious plan to enhance the borough's affordability, safety, and environmental sustainability, following a Council Assembly meeting on Wednesday, September 23, 2026.
The new Joint Administration, formed by the Green and Liberal Democrat groups, has outlined a vision to tackle significant local challenges, including a high rate of child poverty (43.3% after housing costs), the impacts of climate breakdown, a social housing waiting list of 23,000 households, and 41% of residents feeling unsafe at night. Women, older people, and disabled residents have reported particularly low levels of safety.
The administration inherits a challenging financial situation, with a reported £102 million funding gap attributed to the Labour government's fair-funding
review. The council plans to demand more support from the government and Southwark's MPs to address this gap and has worked with other councils through an Anti-Austerity Summit to fight for a fair deal. Officers predict that Labour's austerity measures will result in the single largest round of austerity-forced savings in Southwark's history.
The core principles guiding the Joint Administration's work are:
- Affordable: Addressing the cost of living, increasing access to good jobs and affordable homes, and reducing inequality. The council aims to ensure residents find it easier to afford everyday essentials and that more young people are in good and sustainable jobs and training.
- Safe: Creating communities where residents feel secure by supporting vulnerable individuals, investing in young people, preventing crime, and maintaining welcoming public spaces. This includes tackling crime and anti-social behaviour, prioritising prevention, and taking effective enforcement action. The council will also prioritise preventing violence against women and girls and protecting residents from accelerating climate impacts, such as extreme heat.
- Green: Combating the climate and nature emergencies while improving daily life through warmer homes, lower energy bills, cleaner air, greener neighbourhoods, and climate justice. The transition to clean energy presents an opportunity to improve energy security, reduce household energy bills, create good green jobs, and build a healthier and more resilient economy. The council is calling on the government to significantly increase support for home insulation, energy efficiency, and clean heating.
Progress already made by the new administration in its first 100 days includes launching a uniform programme for families in need, accelerating the heatwave response, and investing £600,000 in Night Time Patrols. The council is committed to developing a comprehensive Borough Action Plan over the next four years to guide these efforts. The plan will focus on:
- Becoming a borough that residents can afford, with more young people in good and sustainable jobs and training.
- Taking serious action on climate by delivering a step change in local adaptation measures with a focus on climate justice, enhancing Southwark's biodiversity and green and blue space, further reducing the borough's emissions, and recycling significantly more of our waste.
- Tackling the housing crisis by building more council homes, ensuring council tenants and leaseholders are satisfied with the service they receive, and reducing the number of void properties and the length of time properties are empty.
- Making Southwark safer by tackling crime and anti-social behaviour, putting prevention first and taking effective enforcement action to build safer neighbourhoods, and prioritising preventing violence against women and girls. The council will also protect residents from accelerating climate impacts, such as extreme heat.
- Delivering clean and green streets with a focus on tackling fly-tipping, and improving air quality by increasing the number of journeys made by walking, cycling and public transport on our roads.
- Defending Southwark's interests, so that residents think the council provides good value for money and stands up for local people. The council will be
loud and bold
in its asks of the Labour government, acknowledging the £102 million funding gap and refusing to accept declining standards as inevitable. - Being a council that listens and that residents can shape. This will involve delivering community councils so residents can genuinely shape their local areas, and making it easier to contact the council and get answers through one-stop shops. The aim is for residents to feel a tangible change, with the council listening and acting on their feedback.
- Ensuring Southwark is a great place to grow up and grow old, with families able to afford to live in the borough and services and amenities provided for them. The council will also ensure residents can age well, with homes and services that work for all.
The council proposes to Be a council that listens, and that residents can shape.
This includes delivering community councils and one-stop shops to make it easier for residents to contact the council and influence local decisions. The goal is for residents to feel that the council listens and acts on their concerns, and that they are empowered to shape their communities.
