Waltham Forest Council has approved its Annual Treasury Management Review for the 2025-26 financial year, detailing the council's financial position amidst what has been described as a challenging financial environment. The review, presented at a full council meeting on Thursday, July 16, 2026, confirmed that treasury management activities remained within approved limits and prudential indicators.

Councillor Ben Copsey, who presented the review, highlighted the council's substantial external debt, standing at £545.5 million, with interest costs of £20.3 million against investment income of £1.9 million. He attributed this situation to Nigh on two decades of austerity, three decades of a succession of political parties failing to grasp the nettle of council tax revaluation, and 46 years of turning social housing into speculative property assets.

The report detailed that the council's under-borrowed position for 2025-26 was £202.2 million. This strategy, the report explained, aimed to minimise long-term borrowing at elevated rates by utilising internal cash reserves and temporary borrowing. This approach is considered prudent because long-term borrowing costs were elevated, while short-term investment rates were comparable or higher. Furthermore, the long-term rates were expected to fall back through 2026–27 as inflation pressures eased.

The 2025-26 Annual Treasury Management Review report outlines several prudential indicators, including Capital Expenditure, Capital Financing Requirement, Gross borrowing, and Investments. The council confirmed that treasury management activities stayed within approved limits and prudential indicators. For instance, regarding the Authorised Limit for borrowing, the report states, The authorised limit is the 'affordable borrowing limit' required by s3 of the Local Government Act 2003. Once this has been set, the Council does not have the power to borrow above this level. The table below demonstrates that during 2025/26 the Council has maintained gross borrowing within its authorised limit.

While the meeting information does not directly project the impact of the treasury management strategy on the ability to fund essential public services, it underscores the challenging financial environment and the substantial debt. Councillor Copsey stated, We will do our best, but responsible treasury management can only take us so far. There is an urgent need to reset the relationship between central and local government. That must include a just, stable, and long-term funding settlement that allows councils to plan for an increasingly difficult future, moving beyond coping with the next inevitable crisis.

The council acknowledges the structural issues contributing to its debt burden, but long-term plans beyond advocating for a stable funding settlement are not detailed in the provided information. The full report can be found in the Public reports pack.