Two Crookes and Crosspool councillors have called for an emergency spending review, in order to reprioritise funds in light of the Cost of Living crisis.
Labour Councillors Ruth Milsom and Minesh Parekh have proposed an immediate pause and review of spending of the £100k South West Local Area Committee budget.
It is one of seven LACs in Sheffield, which exist to involve residents and businesses in local decision-making.
Cllr Milsom said: “Councillor Parekh and I are making this call on the other members of our Local Area Committee because we felt someone had to act urgently. We are determined that nobody in our communities should be left behind.
“I’m sure the vast majority of local politicians are incredibly worried about how Sheffielders are going to manage this winter, with things already having reached crisis point for many.”
The two Labour councillors called for the spending pause and emergency review in a letter to the Chair of the LAC, Cllr Andrew Sangar, saying: “Whilst tackling dog fouling, or planting wildflowers, for example, are priorities that deserve action, we are calling on our colleagues in the SW LAC wards to act now on an emergency footing.
“We propose urgent meetings with relevant senior officers of the Council who have been working at pace on how we respond practically to the crisis, as well as stakeholders such as Age UK, Voluntary Action Sheffield, local foodbanks, existing Community Hubs, and student representatives”.
Cllr Parekh previously wrote an open letter to UniHomes, a provider of student bills packages, accusing the company of “throwing student renters to the whims of the energy market” when the company increased its monthly rate.
The two councillors recommend starting points in the letter to Cllr Sangar, including providing support more urgently to community groups that can provide social spaces for people who are isolated, struggling to keep warm, or lacking nutritious meals.
