The cost of living emergency is continuing to impact people in every corner of our borough, and we are doing all we can to support people in Merton through these challenging times. On Saturday, we are holding an event at Colliers Wood Library with our partners in the community to provide support and advice for residents who are struggling to make ends meet.
Earlier this month, the Council agreed our budget for 2023/24 and we are investing £22million into providing vital cost of living support to residents. And the council is funding a 1% council tax discount for all residents living in Band A-D homes on the 5% increase required by government.
Another £11million will be spent to fund the highest available level of Council Tax Support, lifting nearly 7,000 residents out of having to pay council tax. A further £8million will be invested over four years to ensure that frontline workers across the borough, including home carers, will be paid at least the London Living Wage to put more money in their pockets each month. This is in addition to our £2million Cost of Living Fund. At its meeting on Monday, the Cabinet agreed a cost-of-living action plan for the next two years. You can find out about all the cost of living support available on our website.
As Spring begins, there are lots of free ways to make the most of the lighter days and better weather, as we work to create a Borough of Sport.
Last week, Beat The Street was launched in Merton, a free, interactive game that encourages people of all ages to walk, run, cycle and scoot towards points and prizes between now and 16 April. I was excited to begin my own Beat the Street journey on Mitcham Common and look forward to meeting as many of you as possible as we pick up points on the Beat Boxes which have sprung up across the borough, using the smartphone app or a game card.
During the Easter holidays, we will once again be running our holiday activities and food programme which offer lots of fun things to do as well as nutritious meals for children who are eligible for free school meals during term time. All kids can swim for a quid in one of our three leisure centres, in Morden, Wimbledon or The Canons, Mitcham.
Looking further ahead, planning is well under way for celebrations for the King’s Coronation in May and we are helping residents to hold street parties by closing their roads to traffic over the bank holiday weekend – if you would like to apply, the deadline is 31 March. We’re also offering grants of up to £350 for local registered community groups and residents’ associations to host big lunches in our parks and open spaces. Find out more and apply on our website.
The abundance of green spaces in Merton is one of the best things about living here and we have set ourselves the target of growing the borough’s tree canopy by 10% by 2050. We want to plant more trees in residential streets, so we’ve joined the Trees for Streets scheme, which enables neighbours, community groups and businesses to sponsor a tree being planted in their road. This month, we will be planting the 10,000th new tree in 12 months which will make the last year one of our biggest tree planting years ever.