Haringey Council has been praised for its “tremendous ambition” after unveiling a range of pledges on housing, crime and the economy in its borough plan.

However, it was warned by the Local Government Association (LGA) about its “very challenging” financial position.

The council’s borough plan – which promises to provide 1,000 council-owned homes by 2022 – was praised in a report by LGA officials.

As well as the housing target, the borough plan outlines measures to tackle knife crime and boost the local economy by spending more money on local businesses.

The LGA team, which visited Haringey in February, welcomed the “positive start” made by the council’s new administration after it took charge in May last year.

Their report adds the council has made “significant progress” over the past five years, making improvements to children’s services and health and social care integration.

A team from the LGA spent four days on site and spoke to more than 120 people during a visit to the council in February.

They found council leader Cllr Joseph Ejiofor and chief executive Zina Etheridge were “recognised by many as leading the place well at a time of significant change”.

But they say the council should be clearer with residents about its plans for economic and social renewal and community wealth-building.

According to the report, the need for greater clarity on regeneration is underlined by the fact that some people view the regeneration agenda as “toxic” due to the previous administration’s flagship scheme, the Haringey Development Vehicle (HDV).

The HDV – which opponents feared could lead to poorer residents being pushed out of the borough – was scrapped soon after the new administration took charge.

The LGA report adds the council needs to do more to celebrate its successes, such as an increase in support for people who struggle to pay their council tax.

But the officials sound a key warning on finance, stating the council “needs to immediately address the requirement for significant savings in 2020-21”.

The report adds: “Officers will need to further strengthen regular financial monitoring arrangements and report on the financial and operational risks related to the delivery of the borough plan.

“This needs to be a continual process and a clear decision-making pathway through to autumn 2019 is required.

“Failure to take this action would result in the further depletion of reserves and a precarious future for the council and its services.”

The report comes after the council leader

hailed a “good start” for the borough

after a year in charge of the local authority.

Cllr Ejiofor said the council already had 227 homes “in the pipeline” towards its 1,000-home target and was making progress on insourcing and its community wealth-building agenda.