Issue - meetings

The Mayor and the Chief Executive submitted a report for Executive’s consideration.

The purpose of the report was to provide an overview of activity to mitigate, as far as was reasonably possible within the Council’s limited resources, the impact of the cost-of-living crisis on residents, businesses and council employees.  

This report outlined an overview of the cost-of-living crisis and the impact that this was having on the town, not only those residents living on the lowest incomes but working residents, employees, businesses and business owners.

The report set out the Council’s response from a welfare perspective and provided an update on the work undertaken by the Council and its partners to tackle poverty and improve financial inclusion to date.

The report also highlighted the wider economic forces that were exacerbating this crisis.

It was also recognised that responding to the cost-of-living crisis as a town would require effective partnership working. Groups such as the Financial Inclusion Group would be ideally placed to support the Council, as they have similar objectives in so far as ensuring a targeted and appropriate response was provided to those most at risk of poverty. 

OPTIONS

The Council could choose to continue to meet statutory obligations in relation to this work but not join up that work to ensure access to support was maximised and support routes simplified for the public, businesses and staff.  This option was not recommended as it would miss an opportunity to reduce the impact of the cost-of-living crisis on the town.

AGREED:- That Executive noted the report

REASONS

While the capacity and limited resources of the Council meant it would not be able to fully mitigate the town from the impact of this crisis, it must act decisively if it was to protect as far as possible and ensure the town was as well placed as it could be, within those constraints, to weather those impacts and bounce back.