Leader's update - Friday 20 February 2026

Published: 20 February 2026

This week, we published our draft budget proposals, which will go to Cabinet next week and Full Council in early March. For more than a decade, Redbridge has been expected to do more with less, with funding cuts continuing while demand for essential services - particularly social care, housing and support for our most vulnerable residents - has risen sharply.

Despite these challenges, we’ve worked relentlessly to protect the frontline services our communities rely on - from our libraries and leisure centres to our award‑winning parks. And throughout this time, we’ve never stopped campaigning for fairer funding for Redbridge. We have been clear about the historic underinvestment affecting our borough and persistent in making our case to government. Those efforts are finally beginning to pay off.

Over the past 15 years, we’ve weathered some incredibly tough moments - times when the financial pressure brought us close to the brink. But through determined lobbying and a united push for fairness, we are now starting to see the first real signs of change. There is, at last, a glimmer of light at the end of what has been a very long tunnel.

In the last 12 months, ministers have finally acknowledged the scale of the funding gap councils like ours have been forced to manage. As a result, Redbridge has secured £61.5 million in additional grant funding over the next three years. This is a major win for our community, and it reflects the strength and persistence of our case for fairer treatment.

Years of underfunding cannot be undone overnight however, and the additional £61.5 million from 2026/27 is spread evenly over three years. That’s why we’ve asked the Government for additional funding support to bridge the gap over the next three years and ensure we can protect and invest in frontline services.

On that note, I am pleased to confirm that the draft budget includes more investment into the areas where people need and deserve our support, including adults’ and children’s social care, and homelessness.

There is an additional £1m for street cleansing, enabling daily town centre cleaning, weekly residential litter picks and continue with our new Rapid Response team. It also includes ongoing investment into our roads and pavements. Keeping you safe is a priority too with £5.5m for upgrades to our 24/7 CCTV network and increased trading standards capacity. I am also pleased that we will continue to invest in our much-loved leisure and cultural facilities, job creation and protecting libraries and children’s centres.

This budget is good news and gives us something we haven’t had for a long time: stability. It strengthens our ability to deliver our three‑year modernisation plan, safeguard frontline services, and continue investing in a cleaner, safer, healthier Redbridge. It’s a positive step forward and a foundation we can build on as we keep pushing for sustainable long‑term funding.

I will keep you updated as the budget progresses.

Have a good weekend.

 

Cllr Kam Rai,

Leader of the Council