Hammersmith and Fulham Council is facing a projected £2.16 million overspend in its General Fund, primarily due to rising pressures in adult social care, temporary accommodation, and children's services. The £2.16 million overspend represents 1% of the council's net budget.

The forecast was revealed during the cabinet meeting on Monday, December 8th, 2025, where Councillor Rowan Ree, Cabinet Member for Finance and Reform, presented the Month 6 monitoring report for the revenue budget. The report, included in the Public Reports Pack, highlighted the financial performance of the council and outlined mitigation measures to address the overspend. According to the report, mitigations and action plans are being developed to reduce this forecast, with potential service mitigations of £4.7m having been identified.

According to the report, the People Directorate, encompassing adult social care, children's and education, and public health, is forecasting the largest overspend, with a variance of £9.242m. The pressures are due to a combination of increasing complexity and acuity of need for those in care, an ageing population, lack of supply of suitable accommodation and the impact of high interest rates and above target inflation.

Councillor Stephen Cowan, Leader of the Council, acknowledged the challenges posed by temporary accommodation costs, noting that Hastings council was facing serious financial difficulties due to similar pressures. He credited Councillor Ree and Councillor Frances Umeh, Cabinet Member for Housing and Homelessness, for proactively addressing the issue. Councillor Cowan stated that Councillors Ree and Umeh have been way ahead of the curve in tackling the long-term housing problems, and that the council is building 17,000 properties, over 35% of which are affordable.

Councillor Umeh mentioned the council's new housing company, which aims to provide additional accommodation for those in temporary housing and refurbish void properties. Councillor Umeh stated that One of the main roles of the company is going to be to provide additional accommodation for those who are currently in the temporary accommodation system, as well as bringing back some of our more complex void cases.

Specific mitigation measures for Housing Solutions include a review of all households in B&B to establish duty and reduce demand to contain costs. A number of cost containment measures include temporary accommodation voids management plan, more efficient procurement and management of (nightly paid) Temporary Accommodation and improved systems and data processes.

Councillor Adronie Alford, Conservative Spokesperson for Housing, raised concerns about the strain on temporary accommodation and questioned the government's awareness of the issue. Councillor Cowan responded that the government has been receptive and has taken some measures to begin to fix it.

The cabinet approved the recommendations outlined in the Revenue Budget Review 2025-26 - Month 6 September 2025 report, subject to call-in.

The agenda frontsheet states: A draft decision list regarding items on this agenda will be published the day after the meeting. Decision reports may be called in to the relevant Policy and Accountability Committee. The deadline for receipt of call-in requests from councillors is Friday 12 December 2025 at 3.00pm. If no valid call-in requests are received by the deadline, a confirmed decision list will be published and the decisions can be implemented. Agenda frontsheet