Responding to the cost of living crisis

Camden’s communities know their local areas best. That’s why the Council created the Cost of Living Crisis Community Response Fund – to help community services support residents across the borough with the rising cost of living through a localised approach.

We’ve been working closely with all Ward Councillors in Camden to discuss the impact the cost of living crisis is having on residents and what more we can do to help. We know that people are relying on community organisations and groups in their local areas more than ever before.

To understand how we support those organisations and groups best, Ward Councillors led community conversation events from November 2022 to February 2023. These conversations involved council services, community organisations and groups, schools, health partners and active citizens.

We talked about:

• Support that the Council is making available
• What local services are already available
• Opportunities to collaborate
• Gaps in local services and how to tackle these gaps
• Using the fund to help community organisations and groups meet the needs of residents in their local area.

Councillors agreed to set up the £300,000 fund through contributions from the Camden Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL), which is a charge collected from new developments in Camden.

This was a short-term emergency fund to provide organisations and partners with some additional funding to support residents through the winter months.

The £300,000 was divided equally into 20 ward funds of £15,000.

During the ward conversation events, organisations and partners shared the work they are doing to support residents and talked about what additional support is needed and how the funding could help.

We invited local organisations and community groups to submit applications to their local ward fund. Each Ward Councillor selected the successful projects for their area, which were then endorsed by the Cabinet Member for Voluntary Sector, Equalities and Cohesion.

Funding was given to projects that provide services such as access to food, warm spaces, clothing, and activities for children, young people and older residents. There are also some great examples of organisations working in partnership to deliver services to residents.