The national cost of living crisis is likely to be ‘huge and catastrophic’ for people in Newham, says Mayor Rokhsana Fiaz who has launched an action plan to help local residents cope with the emergency.

Details of a ‘Warm Havens’/ Hot Meals programme were being finalised as Newham Voices went to press. “These are places where people can go if they are not able to keep their own homes warm or if they need a hot meal,” said Mayor Fiaz.

Exact locations and timings will be announced shortly, along with interactive maps to help people find venues.

Building on lessons learned from the Covid pandemic, there will also be a series of cost of living emergency sessions to train voluntary and community groups’ staff on the full support package on offer so that they can help people access benefits they are entitled to.

Individual residents will be invited to become Cost of Living Emergency Response Champions. They will get regular updates to help them support others in their communities through the crisis.

The action plan was announced by the Mayor at an emergency summit in September where 150 representatives from the voluntary, faith and community sectors were presented with new research showing that the Borough will be one of the worst hit areas of the country as a result of rises in the prices of food and energy, alongside poor quality housing and housing tenure (see fact box below). These figures show that people in Newham are already disadvantaged compared with others.

There are plans for a ‘town hall’ style meeting for residents on the crisis, as well as a business event to make small businesses aware of what support they can get, and where big companies will be asked what support they can offer the people of Newham

The Mayor’s Cost of Living Task Force will meet monthly to oversee and drive delivery of the plan.

Speaking after the government’s recent ‘mini budget’, Ms Fiaz said it would “do nothing to help the majority of Newham residents facing the major and harsh realities of the dire economic and financial crisis facing the UK.”

Fact file

Energy: Newham has the second highest fuel poverty rate in London and the 21^st highest fuel poverty rate nationally.
Housing conditions: approximately one-in-seven households live in the least energy efficient accommodation (below Band E) and are most impacted by hikes in the energy price cap.
Housing tenure: Newham has the highest proportion of people renting privately of any borough in London (35 per cent).
Private renters are significantly more likely to be in fuel poverty. The number of private rented homes in Newham has increased by 27 per cent since 2012.
Rent levels: the mean monthly rent for a 3-bed property is £1,824.
Average income per household: Just £19,465 compared to the London average of £29,362.
Structural inequalities: young people and people of colour are disproportionately affected by the cost of living crisis due to structural inequalities that have a greater impact on their lives.

Source: Newham Cost of Living Crisis Response

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