Haringey Council is set to establish a charitable company limited by guarantee (CCLG) to manage and deliver its London Borough of Culture (LBOC) 2027 programme. The decision, made at a recent Cabinet meeting, follows 18 months of research and engagement with local partners, communities, and experts in cultural programme delivery.
The CCLG, founded solely by the council, will operate with independent systems designed to be more inclusive, agile, and responsive to the programme's immediate needs. This approach aims to leverage external support and funding opportunities that might not be readily available to a council-hosted programme.
The Articles of Association will serve as the constitutional document for the CCLG, outlining its charitable objects and governance structure. Complementing this, the Master Collaboration Agreement will provide a contractual framework to govern the operational partnership between the CCLG and the Council in delivering the programme.
Councillor Emily Arkell, Cabinet Member for Culture & Leisure, presented the proposal, emphasising the opportunity to showcase Haringey's rich creativity and culture. She highlighted the goal of making the creative industry accessible to young people in the borough. The decision to create a charity reflects a commitment to a bespoke, sustainable, and agile delivery mechanism tailored to Haringey's specific ambitions and context.
The Cabinet also approved the Council as the sole and founding member of the Charity and adopted the Articles of Association and the Master Collaboration Agreement. These documents provide the legal and operational framework for the partnership between the Council and the Charity.
The move to create a charitable company is seen as a way to reduce both financial and reputational risks for the Council, while also creating a wider case for inward investment into the borough.
According to the LBOC Charity report, the CCLG will have independent operational systems, which can be more inclusive, agile and responsive to the immediate needs of the programme.
The council also secured support from Tottenham Hotspurs, who have offered dedicated use of office space to the London Borough of Culture delivery team, will be co-producing the grand finale of London Borough of Culture 2027 in March 2028, showcasing the borough's musical talent, and have committed to capacity building resources and future funding, as detailed in Appendix 3 Letter of Support THFC.
The council will retain control of the charity as the sole corporate member, with power to appoint the charity board and may pass company members' resolutions directly as written resolutions. The council will make appointments in the best public benefit interests of the CCLG and the strategically aligned public benefit interests of LBH and these will include at least two trustees who are not directly connected to LBH, to ensure the CCLG has a means of managing the potential for conflict of interest, within the overall collaborative public benefit interests of LBH and the CCLG.
