Dare we ask for Croydon Councils New Year’s Resolution to be sensible tax and spend?

“A judicial review being brought by residents of the London borough will claim the LTNs should be “quashed” because the primary motivation behind them was “financial security … rather than environmental considerations”

In early December it was reported in the Telegraph that the High Court will hear that “Croydon council created six LTNs as a “revenue-raising exercise with no environmental benefits that unhelpfully dispersed traffic to surrounding roads”.  The story is behind a paywall and received relatively little coverage.

They reported that the campaign group Open Our Roads were taking action so that “A judicial review being brought by residents of the London borough will claim the LTNs should be “quashed” because the primary motivation behind them was “financial security … rather than environmental considerations”.

It went on to say:

“The skeleton arguments also rely heavily on a Sunday Telegraph report from earlier this year in which Jason Perry, Croydon’s Conservative mayor, admitted he could not honour an election pledge to scrap the LTNs because “£20m of future income … would have to be replaced”.

“Legal papers, seen by The Telegraph, say that despite “considerable opposition” the council introduced LTNs because of the “anticipated income from enforcement fines” sent to motorists who enter roads closed to through traffic. The council anticipated raising just over £10m in three years”.

“Explaining how local authorities have no legal powers to use traffic measures to “raise revenue” it says that to do so is “tantamount to taxation”.

In response the council has said “we can confirm that the council introduced six Healthy Neighbourhood schemes as part of its priority to make Croydon a cleaner, safer and healthier borough”.

If you are able to access it, you can read the whole article at https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/12/07/london-croydon-council-unlawfully-used-ltn-court-to-hear/.

In his manifesto when running for Mayor, Jason Perry stated: 

“Over the last eight years of Labour running Croydon Council a consistent theme has been that residents feel they are not being listened to. From planning to LTNs and council tax to housing repairs the feedback has been that Labour have simply implemented what they wanted without actually taking any notice of what we were all saying”.

With less than 18 months until new elections Mayor Perry will need to show how he is any different.

“As a reminder Croydon was the London Borough of Culture for 2023, but in the second half of 2024 over £257,000 was paid out from the “BOROUGH OF CULTURE” cost centre”

Spending continues

Whilst Section 114 notices have curbed some spending, Croydon Council has still found unnecessary ways to spend taxpayer money.  We’ve written this year and last about Borough of Culture spending.  As a reminder Croydon was the London Borough of Culture for 2023, but in the second half of 2024 over £257,000 was paid out from the “BOROUGH OF CULTURE” cost centre for amounts above £500. 

We now have data for all of 2024 up to the end of November and this shows for amounts over £500 a total of £813,703.18 has been paid out this year from the “BOROUGH OF CULTURE” cost centre.  No doubt many of the services provided were very good but that does not make them necessary.  It is surprising how exactingly round many of the payments were.  12 payments were made for exactly £3,000.00, 7 for exactly £5,000.00, 6 for £10,000.00, 5 for £2,000.00 and 2 for exactly £40,000.00.  Who were these payments made too?  Well, we’ve listed what we can below but £171,356.72 were made to a “Non Commercial Supplier” and therefore the payee was redacted.  This includes payments of £15,600.00 and £10,600.00 for which some further detail is surely in the public interest. 

Funding for the 2023 borough of culture year came from a range of national, London wide and local sources, but when pensioners have their heating allowances withdrawn, ULEZ imposes costs on the drivers who can least afford them, and Croydon Council tax keeps rising at above inflation rates, how does the Mayor justify these payments? 

“It is surprising how exactingly round many of the payments were.  12 payments were made for exactly £3,000.00, 7 for exactly £5,000.00, 6 for £10,000.00, 5 for £2,000.00 and 2 for exactly £40,000.00”

Borough of Culture Payment totals Jan-Nov 2024:

PayeeTotalNumber of Payments
Redacted £ 171,356.7269
Talawa Theatre Company £   65,000.004
THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH LIMITED T/A The Circus £   60,628.003
Scanners Inc £   51,616.405
Double Take Projections LTD £   40,000.001
White Label Publishing Ltd £   35,788.6012
Stanley Arts £   29,995.0010
STRANGE CARGO ARTS COMPANY LIMITED £   28,410.002
Jen Kavanagh Ltd £   23,441.758
Sound Intervention Limited £   21,779.842
London Mozart Players £   19,922.003
Four Communications Ltd £   18,764.467
4 Wise Monkeys Ltd T/A Light Up Trails £   11,422.002
YeahPod Music £   11,250.002
Jonathan Samuels T/A Samprojects £   10,701.404
Contemporary Dance Trust LTD £   10,676.241
Profile Security Services Ltd £   10,395.527
The Brit School £   10,000.001
Sysco Productions Ltd £     9,793.001
Norwood JunKAction £     8,500.002
The Young Urban Arts Foundation Limited £     7,790.001
Continental Drifts £     7,200.003
Fool’s Paradise Ltd £     6,903.004
HURLYBURLY THEATRE £     6,750.003
Worldbeaters LTD £     6,690.002
HH Producties £     6,025.001
Bureau Of Silly Ideas Limited £     6,000.001
Croydon with Talent Ltd £     5,685.002
Good Wolf People Ltd £     5,000.001
Croydon Town Centre Bid £     5,000.001
ATELIER ARZU LIMITED £     4,930.0013
Tiny Productions £     4,760.001
LYNNEBEC COLLECTIVE CIC £     4,700.002
New Addington Pathfinders Group_ £     4,500.001
Drum the Bass £     3,800.001
Croydonites/CROYDONITES FESTIVAL OF NEW THEATRE CIC £     3,600.002
Bishops Printers Limited T/A The Graphic Design House £     3,364.003
QWERKY ENTERTAINMENT LTD £     3,320.004
Finesse Foreva Ltd £     3,300.001
Pif-Paf Theatre Ltd £     3,290.002
Churchill Support Services Limited £     3,264.001
Llama Digital Ltd £     3,240.001
The Poetry Takeaway Ltd £     3,100.001
Beeja £     3,000.001
Bold Mellon Collective C.I.C. £     3,000.001
Hoggs Hospitality Ltd £     3,000.001
Premm Design Limited £     2,681.502
Levantes Dance Theatre Ltd £     2,400.001
Digital Drama Productions Ltd £     2,250.001
Clocktower Cafe Ltd £     2,171.502
Savvy Theatre £     2,000.001
The Enriched Kids CIC £     2,000.001
SDNA LTD £     2,000.001
Fashion Meets Music Collective C.I.C. £     2,000.001
Zip Design Ltd £     1,950.001
Rap Therapy £     1,950.001
Bainbridge Conservation Ltd. £     1,616.001
Desireé Kongerød McDougall T/A An Act Above £     1,590.001
Amanda Smethurst Consultancy £     1,500.001
Cat and Hutch £     1,300.001
Autistic Community Hub CIC £     1,200.001
Herbe Walmsley £     1,200.001
Reaching Higher £     1,100.001
Glorious Gazebos Ltd £     1,084.081
Croydon Voluntary Action £        985.001
Slide Dance £        900.001
Universal Artists Agency LTD £        750.001
Dhol Academy LTD £        750.001
A Due Bus Ltd £        750.001
The Andy Copps Company Limited £        700.001
Glenn Foster Photography £        675.001
Atalian Servest £        667.971
Oyinkansola Gabriel £        625.001
Zoo Co Theatre Ltd £        600.001
Kerala Cultural and Welfare Association £        600.001
LadyLaird £        550.201
Croydon Natural History & £        505.001
Croydon Minster Church_ £        500.001
Purley BID £        500.001
Age Uk Croydon £        500.001
Cutting Edge Design Ltd £        500.001
TOTAL £ 813,703.18238

“With the spending taps seemingly flowing at the borough HQ once again, surely those in charge at the council won’t be able to justify another bumper Council Tax rise”

As if this wasn’t enough after a resting period, we have seen an unwelcome return to payments from the Culture Growth Fund.  This was used by the previous Labour administration for many of their wasteful projects.  The 65 payments over £500 made to the end of November 2024 totalled £318,696.03 and the totals by payee are listed below.

PayeeTotalNumber of Payments
Redacted£55,625.9821
Croydonites/CROYDONITES FESTIVAL OF NEW THEATRE CIC£38,000.001
FESTIVALS AND EVENTS INTERNATIONAL LTD (FEI)£35,715.003
ARTANGEL TRUST (THE)£23,051.001
Think Events (London) Ltd£18,200.001
Fashion Meets Music Collective C.I.C.£15,199.001
Door 22 Limited£14,630.003
Beeja£14,050.001
Giant Cheese Limited£13,200.001
Learn to Dream Ltd£13,009.952
WIGGLE WONDERLAND COMMUNITY INTEREST COMPANY£12,750.002
Sound Diplomacy Limited£10,000.001
Emergency Exit Arts£7,550.001
K4 Medics Ltd T/A K4 Medical Services£7,395.003
London Calling Arts Ltd£6,562.502
Stuco Design Limited£5,950.002
Premm Design Limited£4,720.002
Continental Drifts£3,460.001
Browne Jacobson LLP_£3,275.803
Zip Design Ltd£2,975.002
Vauxhall City Farm Limited£2,792.001
Stanley Arts£2,500.001
HandMade Theatre£1,300.001
TGTM Ltd£1,195.001
Four Communications Ltd£1,000.001
Caroline Vallance t/a Caroline Coates£960.001
Profile Security Services Ltd£904.801
Clocktower Cafe Ltd£797.501
Jen Kavanagh Ltd£700.001
LadyLaird£627.501
Norwood JunKAction£600.001
Total£318,696.0365

We can only hope that Croydon Councils New Year’s Resolution will be to move to sensible tax and spend.  With the spending taps seemingly flowing at the borough HQ once again, surely those in charge at the council won’t be able to justify another bumper Council Tax rise.