AN ANTI-GANGS project which is credited with cutting crime in the borough is in jeopardy because of funding shortages, the leader of the council has said.
The authority teamed up with police back in January to launch the scheme, which offers training and rehabilitation to known gang members while also making support available to their families.
Those who refuse to cooperate are then placed under "intense" police scrutiny.
It was launched in the wake of last summer's wave of gang violence which included multiple non-fatal stabbings and shootings.
In June the council told the Waltham Forest Guardian that the £3million initiative was "on budget" and had already targeted 28 people. A spokesman said it also wanted to expand its reach.
But according to BBC News costs have now risen to £4million, prompting the authority to demand the Government helps pay for it.
Leader Cllr Chris Robbins told the BBC: "It needs to be funded. There's no point in the government saying now that they wish to take action against gangs and then not fund strategies".
Other media outlets have reported that the council had wanted Whitehall to fund the project from its inception and there was frustration at a perceived lack of support.
Cllr Robbins's comments come after prime minister David Cameron vowed to wage an “all-out war” on gangs earlier this month following the England riots.
Chingford MP and government minister Iain Duncan Smith has also praised the scheme in the wake of the riots, however police have down played the extent of gang involvement in the disorder locally.
According to the latest Met figures, there were 2,290 reported crimes in the borough last month compared to 2,526 the year before.
Violent offences have also dropped from 531 in July 2010 to 439 in July 2011, and police believe the gangs project is partly responsible along with a series of major raids.
In an interview with the Guardian yesterday, superintendent Adrian Hutchinson of Waltham Forest Police declined to be drawn into the debate over funding, but said the gang project had made a real difference.
He said: “I think the gangs work on the borough is really important. Diversionary tactics and working with suspected gang members' families, offering them employment opportunities and making them better citizens alongside active policing is already leading to a significant reduction in gang violence.
“We are very pleased with how it's gone so far.”
The Home Office spokesman said it is up to local authorities what to do with their pot of funding for community safety projects, and that no decisions had been made on grants for next year.
He added: "Community Safety Partnerships (CSPs) play an important role in helping to cut crime.
"We are freeing up CSPs from unnecessary bureaucracy and increasing their professional discretion so that they can get on with the job of keeping their communities safe.
"We are confident that they will continue to be able to deliver on local priorities within their new budgets.”
The Guardian is awaiting a comment from Cllr Robbins.
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