Happy New Year!

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas break and managed to keep well.

As I reflect on 2025, it’s been a year of real change and progress for Croydon – and there is a lot more to come in 2026.

We launched Our Croydon residents’ newsletter – a new way to keep all our residents updated. And who could forget that incredible day on 16 May when Palace lifted the FA Cup? The victory parade in Selhurst had the whole borough feeling ‘glad all over’.

We’ve been rolling up our sleeves to make Croydon cleaner and greener. Our Cleaner Croydon campaign and blitz cleans have made a real difference to our high streets and more areas will be visited by our blitz squad in the new year. And with a more robust policy and a strengthened enforcement team cracking down on environmental crimes, we’re seeing more action and results than ever before on fly-tipping and nuisance cars.

Regeneration has been front and centre in 2025 – led by my new Growth Plan and Town Centre Vision. I opened the Wellesley Road pedestrian crossing, better connecting our town centre, and welcomed the new Allders Parade, bringing new vibrancy to North End, as well as Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield’s (URW) masterplan for Centrale & Whitgift.

In 2026 it’s going to be even bigger – with upgrades to Minster Green and Dingwall Road, improvements to our historic Surrey Street, the opening of the pedestrian through route of the East Croydon station bridge and progress on URW’s masterplan. Plus, there will be more vibrant culture and Museum of Croydon events in our town centre celebrating Croydon’s rich heritage.

But it’s not just about the town centre. After investing in five district centres this year, four more areas will benefit from UK Shared Prosperity Funding in 2026. We’ll also set up a board to drive the £20m Pride in Place Programme for New Addington and deliver £1.5m of improvements borough wide.

I remain focused on working with our partners to keep communities safe. In 2025, we stood united to tackle violence against women and girls, with Croydon’s first Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) conference and the creation of a new Expert by Experience panel; a group of survivors who are inspiring change and helping others. In 2026, expect news on how we are working with our partners every day to protect vulnerable residents, including as part of National Child Exploitation Awareness Day in March.

Housing remains a priority and I was delighted Croydon had the regulatory notice lifted by the Regulator of Social Housing – a huge step forward that reflects the improvements we have made. We are creating more homes that are well-designed and affordable, whilst listening to our residents to inform decisions. Zodiac House opened in 2025, providing temporary housing, whilst regeneration is underway in Regina Road, South Norwood, where we will deliver up to 340 new homes.

We’ve opened new spaces for learning and support too – from the digital zone at Central Library, to the Samuel Coleridge-Taylor Family Hub, making sure Croydon’s families can access the services locally that they need. We now have nine full time libraries open across the borough as well as our four new community bases springing into action. In 2026, we will be supporting more people to upskill, secure good jobs or start a business through the Croydon Mayor’s Employability Fund, the Croydon Mayor’s Young Entrepreneurs Academy and the Connect to Work programme.

We celebrated Adult Social Care and Health Services receiving a ‘good’ assessment by the Care Quality Commission’s (CQC) in 2025. We’ll continue to work with our residents, carers, and partner organisations in 2026 and beyond, to build on this success and make sure services for adults keep getting better.

And let’s not forget the major projects in motion to make Croydon Council more efficient and cost-effective, whilst putting residents at the centre of services. Like other local authorities, Croydon is facing unprecedented funding challenges owing to an increased demand for essential services, coupled with a historic debt burden. We are facing this head-on. We are making changes across the Council through our Future Croydon programme and are working closely with the Government-appointed Commissioners to accelerate change.

In 2026, I will keep that momentum going – driving regeneration, improving our services, and creating a borough of which we can all be proud.

I would like to thank all our residents and partners for everything you do to support the borough – by keeping people safe and well, taking pride in local parks and neighbourhoods, supporting local shops and businesses and bringing people together through events. The community spirit of Croydon is alive and well and this is what makes our borough not only a great place to live and work, but the best in London.

Jason Perry

Executive Mayor of Croydon