Council seeks Exceptional Financial Support due to unprecedented national pressures

These pressures have been further intensified by increasing demands to support former asylum seekers, as well as Chagossians arriving via Heathrow Airport, without adequate funding or reimbursement.

Despite these challenges, the council has continued to invest in and provide high quality services while charging as little as possible to residents in comparison to other local authorities. However, it has now reached a point where it needs to explore the possibility of additional financial support from the government. 

Like many local authorities, Hillingdon is under significant financial strain due to rising inflation affecting all service areas, from utilities to operational costs, and these pressures are being further exacerbated by escalating demands in social care and housing.

The council is paying £5 million annually to support former asylum seekers evicted from hotels by the Home Office - a funding deficit now totalling more than £16 million which we continue to pursue, and there is an expected added annual cost to the council of £1.2 million of supporting Chagossians. 

One of the main areas of demand for the council continues to be delivering temporary accommodation and homelessness support to those in need, which is a particular challenge for Hillingdon given the location of Heathrow Airport as a major port of entry into the UK in the council's boundaries. 

These factors, coupled with the additional half a million-pound cost generated by the government's National Insurance increase, has placed a spiralling strain on the council's finances, which it must now address proactively.

The council is also waiting on the outcome of the government's Fair Funding Review, which indicates that Hillingdon Council, in particular, has been severely underfunded for several years. While the intention has been to rectify this, the conclusion of the review was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic and recovery, withholding vital funds at a time when they were needed the most.

The council has already been taking proactive steps to mitigate the unprecedented financial pressures it is experiencing, including the continued delivery of its Finance Modernisation Programme and increasing cost controls via the 2025/26 savings programme, while continuing to prioritise value for money to residents.

Hillingdon's council tax is the second lowest out of the 20 outer London boroughs, while its children's services and adult social care services have been rated as 'outstanding' and 'good' by their respective regulators.

The council is not alone in seeking EFS from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG), and seven other councils in London require this support. 

Cllr Ian Edwards, Leader of the Council, said: "We have a proud record of fighting hard to keep more money in our residents' pockets by keeping council tax low and operating as a low spending authority receiving less core funding than other similar outer London boroughs.

"However, the pressure on our finances has never been greater, and the scale of the financial challenge and demand for our services has continued to mount with no sign of abating. We are glad that our repeated calls for fair funding and recompense for our asylum costs are being heard by the government, and we have entered these discussions to try and ensure that the money owed to us is provided in the fastest, most efficient way possible.

"Our work will continue to champion our residents to ensure they don't pay as much as other boroughs through our ongoing savings drive to cut costs, do things differently and deliver value for money services."