Increased Funding to tackle Poverty in Cambridge Put at the Heart of the City’s Finance Review

Plans to invest a further £100,000 in the Labour run City Council’s Sharing Prosperity Fund to help tackle inequality and deprivation across Cambridge have been unveiled yesterday (27 September) in a report to be considered by councillors at the next meeting of the Strategy & Resources Committee on Monday 9 October.

Councillor Richard Robertson, the City’s Executive Councillor for Finance & Resources, described the Anti-Poverty Strategy as ‘vital’ and has highlighted that it sits alongside new ways of delivering services, increasing income generation through property investment, and plans to deliver hundreds of new council homes.

Councillor Robertson said: “The harsh austerity agenda of successive governments since 2010 has threatened public services and cut the real wages of middle and low income households, causing a significant widening of the gap between rich and poor, and this is especially marked in Cambridge.  A recent Centre for Cities report identified Cambridge as having the greatest inequality of any city in the UK in 2017. The poorest in our city need direct help and support to level the playing field and give them a chance to be part of our world renowned City’s growth and success. Our Sharing Prosperity Fund invested over £350,000 last year alone in projects which make a real difference to the lives of low income residents. We are committed to continuing to target the children, families and individuals who face the greatest need in our City through our vital Anti-Poverty Strategy and our annual £900,000 community grant programme.”

Councillor Robertson added: “Since taking control in 2014, we have transformed the City Council’s finances and put previously dormant reserves to work giving us an important additional revenue income of almost £2,000,000 a year through careful investment. We know the importance of the services we deliver for all residents, especially in the face of cuts from other partners causing hardship, and so we have reviewed and reformed the way we work to maintain and even develop our core services. The delivery of more than 500 new council homes in Cambridge over the next four years through the hard-won Devolution Grant Funding is also a top priority and progress is being made with some initial small sites already having been agreed through the Housing Scrutiny Committee this month."​