A new year message from Barnet Council leader Barry Rawlings

Barry Rawlings pictured outside Hendon Town Hall (credit Barnet Council)

As I look back on the year that has passed, I am thankful to all the people who make our borough work.

Those who make the big and small differences to our lives.

The public servants who keep our streets safe and our neighbourhoods tidy. Those who care for our young people, or older residents and the more vulnerable members of our community.

Those who volunteer whether on a regular basis or in a one-off – from residents who run voluntary groups to someone who decided to get involved in making their local area a little bit greener.

I also particularly want to thank everyone who made their voices heard at the council this year.

When I became leader of the council, I was determined to enable residents to make their voice heard.

That has included new opportunities to challenge us at council meetings to Barnet Question Time and ‘Leader Listens’ events. Our ‘My Say Matters’ agenda has supported young people to shape their services in particular.

We have heard about everything from supporting our high streets to delivering care, and I want to thank everyone who has added their voice.

It has been a difficult year for many in our borough. In fact, it has been a difficult few years. This has been the era of the cost-of-living crisis.

However, we can see signs that the building blocks of a new, more prosperous era being built.

Interest rates are down to 3.75 per cent from a high of 5.25 per cent last year, making mortgages more affordable. New renters’ rights are coming that will limit annual increases.

Locally we are on the way to securing 1,000 new homes for social rent by 2026 and will work for another 1,000 by 2030.

There are 230,000 fewer people on NHS waiting lists than there were last year.

We have put a record £97 million into fixing our roads and pavements but are looking to cut utilities roadworks times by up to 20 per cent by charging for overruns.

We have revamped our CCTV that used to be broken more than half the time and, by supporting our police, are seeing falls in crimes like burglary and violent offences.

New powers are on the way to help us tackle too many gambling shops and vaping shops on our high street. We brought back community skips to tackle fly-tipping and are on our way to bringing separate food waste collection.

And, after years of eroding support from central government, ministers have announced meaningful increases in how much money they will send to Barnet.

It is still not enough to bridge the gap between the demands on the council and our resources. We will still have to make difficult decisions and ask for extra government support. But it is the beginning of the turning of the corner.

We can turn to the new year in well-founded hope. Not that all our challenges will be overcome overnight but that we can see a clear path through to building an even better Barnet.

I wish you and your family a happy new year.

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