Havering Council is facing challenges in delivering £1.673m of agreed budget savings for 2025/26, according to a recent report presented to the Overview & Scrutiny Board.

Of the £10.254m in savings agreed as part of the 2025/26 budget, £4.838m are classified as green, meaning they are either already delivered or fully on track. A further £3.743m are classified as amber, meaning they are not yet fully delivered but it is still possible that the saving will be fully delivered. However, £1.673m are classified as red, meaning they are not on track or are delayed and unlikely to be delivered in 2025/26, according to the Savings Report.

The report breaks down the savings by department:

  • People Services: £1.646m of the £5.412m in savings are classified as red. These include delays to property acquisition for temporary accommodation, transition savings for adults, housing demand savings, the Family Welcome Centre, and in-sourcing family support.
  • Resources: All but £0.070m of the £0.8m in savings are green.
  • Place: £0.027m of the £0.097m in savings are red, relating to voluntary sector rental costs.
  • Corporate: All but £0.500m of the £3.945m in savings are green.

Specific Savings Under Scrutiny

Several specific savings plans are facing significant delays:

  • Property Acquisition: A £300,000 saving associated with property acquisition is now red-rated. Councillor Matthew Stanton questioned the confidence in acquiring 2,000 units in the next five years. The council has approved 332 units and is in the delivery phase, with another 850 to 900 units in negotiations. The five-year target runs until 2029.
  • Family Welcome Centre: A proposed Family Welcome Centre will provide emergency accommodation for vulnerable families in Havering. It will form the first phase of the Harold Hill Town Centre Regeneration Masterplan vision, and includes the redevelopment of the Farnham and Hilldene Estate, Chippenham Road and the current Abercrombie House hostel. The new Family Welcome Centre is due to be completed in March 2026 and occupied from June 2026. The centre is scheduled to open in April 2026, so the saving will be delayed to 2026/27.
  • Library Savings: The report also provided an update on the library saving, following a request for further detailed information at the last scrutiny panel. The total savings target is to reduce the council's library service revenue budget by £0.3m over two financial years. The report states that no permanent staff were made redundant as part of this process, and that staff affected by the closures were successfully redeployed to fill vacancies.