Get involved

Subscribe to our newsletters

Sign up now for our email newsletter so you can read the latest updates and news from Hackney services
Subscribe now

View calendar of meetings

Hackney residents are welcome to attend most council meetings to have their say
View meetings

Find your councillor

Check which councillor covers your area and view their surgery times
Search now

Council news

London’s fastest growing economy: have your say on Hackney’s new economic development plan

7th May 2025
Thousands of new jobs and businesses have been created in Hackney in the last eight years, making it London’s fastest growing local economy.Now, Hackney Council is calling on residents and businesses to have their say on a bold new economic development plan that seeks to ensure that economic growth can continue and the benefits of growth can be better accessed by residents.The plan aims to back businesses to grow, put green skills at the heart of a booming local economy and work with key industries and employers to drive up wages and open up more opportunities to local residents.With 50,000 new jobs and 5,000 new businesses created since 2017, Hackney’s economy has grown at the fastest rate than any other borough in London*. It has welcomed new economic activity in the creative, tech, and professional services sectors, making Hackney home to some of the country’s most exciting and innovative businesses.This growth and investment has brought benefits such as new jobs, new skills and education opportunities, business growth and increased spending in Hackney’s town centres and high streets. However, despite this economic success, the borough continues to experience high levels of income deprivation, which is the third highest in London, and the proportion of children in low-income households after housing costs are taken into account, which is the seventh highest.To ensure more Hackney residents directly benefit from the borough's economic growth while creating a greener, fairer, and more resilient borough, the draft economic development plan outlines how Hackney can capitalise further on its economic success by working with businesses, education institutions, key partners and stakeholders to enable good growth and development, tackle poverty and inequality, and address the climate emergency.It outlines how the Council will support and enable good and sustainable economic growth, collaborate with key partners and stakeholders, invest in sustainable practices and support local skills development to achieve a fairer, more inclusive Hackney. It sets bold ambitions for the borough across four new missions: Residents are able to participate in the economy and societyHackney’s economy is climate resilient and sustainableHackney’s economy is fairer and more inclusiveRegeneration and investment benefits more of Hackney’s places and communities. The plan advocates the Council working with businesses and local organisations to achieve the missions, to enable the delivery of affordable workspace, assist with the delivery of employment and skills development programmes, promote the London Living Wage, support decarbonisation and promote the use of the Council’s procurement power to support local businesses. It builds on the Council’s record of supporting inclusive economic growth. The Council has: Supported nearly 300 people into well-paid work in 2023/24Created an aircraft hangar’s worth of discounted workspace (6,580sqm) for local businesses in three yearsHelped over 200 small businesses get the type of support they need through £1m funding from the Hackney Impact programmeSupported a greener economy by helping businesses to reduce emissions and cut bills, and creating opportunities for residents to develop skills in sustainable constructionSecured funding for the borough’s town centres and high streets, including £19m for Hackney Central, £3m for Hoxton and £1m for Ridley Road Market, to improve town centre facilities for residents and visitors and increase footfall for local businesses.The consultation will run for six weeks and includes a programme of events and outreach across the borough. Residents, businesses and local organisations can take part by visiting bit.ly/hackneyEDP. The deadline for responses is 25 June 2025. *According to records compiled by the Office of National Statistics and the Greater London Authority. 

Mayor announces Cabinet changes

6th May 2025
Mayor of Hackney, Caroline Woodley, has announced changes to her Cabinet to help deliver on her priorities to tackle the housing crisis, combat poverty, and maintain Hackney’s position as a climate leader.The changes will see Deputy Mayor Guy Nicholson become Cabinet Member for Housing Management and Regeneration, taking responsibility for Housing Services in addition to his existing role. Cllr Clayeon McKenzie will step down after nine years as Cabinet Member for Housing Services and Resident Participation.Deputy Mayor Anntoinette Bramble will expand her remit to cover children’s services and young people. She will be supported by Cllr Anya Sizer, who takes up a new role as Deputy Cabinet Member for Families, Early Years and Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND).The changes are set to take effect after the Council's Annual Meeting on 14 May.

More early support for children and young people in Hackney

Hackney Council is setting out its plan for a new Alternative Learning Service, designed to drive inclusion, prioritise a sense of belonging and improve support for children and young people in Hackney, particularly those at risk of disengagement or exclusion from education. The new service will work closely together with local schools to provide the right support at the right time for children, their families, peers and school staff, based on the specific needs of each child or young person. The Alternative Learning Service will apply a three-tiered approach to inclusion:Tier 1: School-based support and community services that will focus on helping children and young people stay in mainstream education.Tier 2: Short-term, flexible placements, either in schools or in alternative education settings. This tier will support pupils needing extra help to manage their behaviour or to meet special educational needs, allowing them to re-engage in learning and return to their school as soon as possible.Tier 3: Longer-term transitional placements for pupils who require more intensive support and cannot currently return to their previous school. These placements will support children and young people with the highest level of need as they prepare to transition to a different school when they are ready, or to another post-16 destination. The pupils will be supported to recover as much academic and personal developmental progress as possible, to have the ability, relationship skills and confidence to thrive throughout their lives.The aim of the plan is to ensure all children and young people are supported in more flexible ways that are adapted to their needs, with a range of alternative provision options to allow for short and long term interventions. This will help prevent suspensions and permanent exclusions for children and young people at risk, in particular those with significant needs. The refreshed approach will look at ways to work with schools to identify needs earlier and help reduce suspensions or permanent exclusions for children and young people at risk.  This is in response to data that shows the number of exclusions in secondary schools in Hackney, though stable, continues to be higher than in other nearby local authorities. According to the latest full year data set available, in 2022-2023 Hackney had 33 exclusions, all of them at secondary level. The Alternative Learning Service  will bring together different education services and providers to work more effectively for children and young people in Hackney. It will include a specialist assessment and triage hub to ensure children get the help they need quickly. The Hackney Pupil Referral Unit at New Regents College will play a central role in this service.Hackney’s new approach to alternative education will be presented at the next meeting of the Children and Young People Scrutiny Commission, which will take place later today. More information about the statutory duties and powers of schools and local authorities regarding alternative provision can be found in the latest guidance from the Department for Education (February 2025), available here.
30th April 2025

Four Hackney primary schools will permanently close in September

Four primary schools in Hackney will permanently close at the end of this school year due to the ongoing decrease in pupil numbers across the borough.The changes, approved by Hackney Cabinet last night, will take effect starting with September 2025, and include the closure of:St Dominic’s Catholic Primary SchoolSt Mary’s Church of England Primary SchoolOldhill Community School, and the merger of its pupils with Harrington Hill Primary School, with Harrington Hill expanding to two forms of entry. This will include adding additional resourced provision (ARP) for autistic children to Harrington Hill.Sir Thomas Abney Primary School, and the merger of its pupils with Holmleigh Primary School, with Holmleigh expanding to two forms of entry and moving to the site of Sir Thomas Abney. The language resource provision (LRP) from Sir Thomas Abney will remain on site, to be run by Holmleigh.The changes, first proposed in September 2024, are in response to an ongoing, significant decline in the number of school-aged children that is seen across London. There are simply not enough children seeking places at Hackney primary schools, and this is forecast to remain a problem in future years. The number of children in Hackney mainstream primary schools decreased between 2017 and 2024 by 2,399, and is projected to fall by another 2,637 within the next ten years. This will bring the total number of children in mainstream primary schools down to 13,648 by 2035.This ongoing trend means that local schools struggle to fill their empty places, with 23 percent of the reception places in Hackney unfilled in October 2024. Schools receive money from the central government based on their number of pupils. The plummeting rolls have had a severe  impact on schools budgets needed to pay staff, maintain and repair their buildings, buy all the equipment and resources they need, or organise activities for children. Financial reserves across Hackney’s maintained primary schools, or the federations they form part of, have been reducing at an alarming and unsustainable rate, which puts additional pressure on the Council’s already stretched budget.Support offered to children, families and staff to help them during the transitionFollowing consultation with the schools, the Council has prepared a support package to help all those directly affected by the changes through the transition. This includes:Parent and carer handbooks;A programme of workshops for pupils and parents, including mental health and wellbeing support;Coffee mornings and admissions support for parents;Staff support, including access to an online library of digital resources, a wide range of workshops, pensions advice, employment and skills training.All parents from closing schools will have access to a school uniform grant, to help with the cost of buying new uniforms, by filling in an online form. Families with children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) will receive additional help to ensure their child’s successful transition, including personalised support depending on the child’s needs. Each child’s SEND coordinator will meet with the “team around the school” professionals, to identify the best ways to help the transition, and identify vulnerable children that may require more personalised support. Each school impacted will receive £30,000 to ensure they can maintain their education offer throughout the transition period. Further information about the support, advice and guidance for all staff at the schools impacted by the proposals can be found in the Cabinet papers. 
23rd April 2025