The council will stop offering residents extra money on top of their minimum income guarantee in 2027, reports Sebastian Mann, Local Democracy Reporter

Waltham Forest Council will look to cut extra help for people receiving home care as it struggles with its finances.

Over the next two years, the council will reduce a discretionary boost it offers to residents receiving the minimum income guarantee (MIG).

The guarantee is offered to all people receiving home care and with savings below £14,250 to ensure they can afford food, utilities and personal costs.

People aged between 18 and 24 receive a weekly £89, while those between 25 and 64 get £112. Pensioners receive £232 per week.

Waltham Forest Council, however, metes out an extra 25% for its residents – a weekly boost between £34 and £58.

Under new proposals, the amount would drop to 10% in the coming year before being cut completely by 2027. The council says a phased removal would help “mitigate the financial impact” on residents.

The changes will not affect the base rate of the MIG, which is a statutory requirement under the Department of Health.

Councillor Louise Mitchell, the cabinet member for adult social care, said it would affect roughly 50% of people receiving care.

The cabinet agreed yesterday (6th May) to consult residents on the planned changes. The consultation will last twelve weeks and focus on the “financial and personal effects” of the cuts.

Cllr Mitchell said, in light of the mounting financial pressures, the council “needed to think carefully about whether we can continue to work with this”.

She added: “We have a good understanding, we think, of the different people affected but we really want to get people’s views.”

Council leader Grace Williams said the town hall’s focus would remain on supporting the “most vulnerable” in the borough.

Waltham Forest is one of just nine boroughs to offer an uplift, and it offers the highest amount next to the City of London and Lambeth.

The town hall is facing increasing budget pressures across a range of services and will need to make at least £25million in cuts over the next three years to maintain a balanced budget, officials say. They project that, between March 2024 and March 2026, the council will have spent 40% of its reserves.

Last year, the council also reduced the amount of financial support it would offer low-income residents struggling with council tax.

Under the previous policy, working-age residents on low incomes would pay as little as 15% of their council tax. From 1st April, they have paid as much as 43%.

No news is bad news

Independent news outlets like ours – reporting for the community without rich backers – are under threat of closure, turning British towns into news deserts.

The audiences they serve know less, understand less, and can do less.

If our coverage has helped you understand our community a little bit better, please consider supporting us with a monthly, yearly or one-off donation.

Choose the news. Don’t lose the news.

Monthly direct debit

Annual direct debit

£5 per month supporters get a digital copy of each month’s paper before anyone else, £10 per month supporters get a digital copy of each month’s paper before anyone else and a print copy posted to them each month. £50 annual supporters get a digital copy of each month's paper before anyone else.