Camden Council faces significant financial challenges, reporting a £22.8m overspend in its General Fund and a £3.2m overspend in the Housing Revenue Account. This financial strain will require the Council to use reserves to fund expenditure, potentially limiting new investments in services and reducing the Council's ability to provide additional support to residents and businesses across the borough.
The overspend was highlighted in the Insight, Learning and Impact Report – Quarter 4/End of Year 2024-25, which was presented to the Health and Adult Social Care Scrutiny Committee on Tuesday, 8 July 2025.
The report identifies several challenges contributing to the financial strain, including inflationary pressures, ongoing costs related to the Chalcots estate, and increased demand for children's social care and homelessness services. These pressures are compounded by uncertain long-term funding and demographic shifts within the borough.
The Corporate Services response summary within the Insight, Learning and Impact Report detailed the challenges:
- Overspend of £22.8m General Fund and £3.2m Housing Revenue Account
- Inflationary pressures
- Ongoing Chalcots costs
- Pressures across children's social care and homelessness services due to demographic and complex case demand
- Uncertain long-term funding/pressures
The 'ongoing Chalcots costs' are a continuing financial burden because, while the council has received some funding, it does not fully cover all costs associated with the Chalcots evacuation and subsequent capital expenditure.
Despite these challenges, the report also points to opportunities for financial recovery and improved service delivery. The establishment of Resource and Oversight Panels is aimed at addressing key financial pressures1, and quarterly forecast reviews with Executive Directors are in place to tackle the financial challenge. The council is also hopeful for a multi-year settlement from the government starting in 2026, which would provide greater financial stability.
The Corporate Services response summary identifies the following opportunities:
- Resource and Oversight Panels established to discuss key financial pressures
- Quarterly forecast review with Executive Directors to address financial challenge.
- Government indication of agreement for multi-year settlement from 2026.
In response to these financial pressures, Camden Council is focusing on cross-London collaboration for financial challenges and forecasting of future funding. The council is also investing in internal capability building to reduce supplier dependency and promoting cross-team collaboration for more sustainable transformation.
1 The Resource and Oversight Panels have been established to discuss key financial pressures, according to the Insight, Learning and Impact Report.
