New homes, making the borough healthier and economic prosperity have been listed as some of the new priorities for Greenwich Council. Council leader Dan Thorpe will ask his cabinet this week to sign off on a corporate plan for the next four years. The plan, setting out eight priorities for the council, features a foreword by the new leader. Cllr Thorpe wrote: “Nationally, the government continues to enforce damaging policies of austerity and we, as a council, must respond. “We continue to protest against the cuts and although we have had to raise council tax, Royal Greenwich has, through prudent financial stewardship, so far been able to weather the storm and continue to deliver a full range of excellent services to our residents. “However, local authority budgets are not the only front this battle is being fought on. “Now, more than ever, cooperation and coordination between all our public services, including the wider voluntary and community sector, is vital to ensure we deliver the best possible living conditions for all our residents. “Lifting people out of poverty is of course a priority, but we will work tirelessly to ensure that all our residents have the chance to prosper.” Eight priorities are featured in the corporate plan, including making Greenwich a great place to grow up, cleaner and greener, and a vibrant borough. New homes “through economic growth”, economic prosperity and safety have also been listed. Community safety and tackling knife-crime have been major concerns for the council in recent months, having set up an anti-knife crime charter and a youth violence task force. According to council documents, there has been a reduction in staffing of 178 police officers and 117 community support officers in Greenwich since 2010. The plan explains: “Over the next four years, we will continue to work closely with partners in the Metropolitan Police and community sectors to work towards a reduction in the rates of crime in the borough, specifically in relation to knife and gang violence and anti-social behaviour. “In addition, we will continue to lobby central government to deliver extra funding for our police forces to ensure they are adequately resourced to keep our Borough safe.”