Court ruling could affect use of empty buildings

A High Court judge has ruled that local authorities are allowed to consider the extent of a charity’s charitable use of a private landlord’s empty building before deciding whether to grant mandatory rate relief.

The recent judgment could have implications for the growing practice of charities renting empty properties from landlords in return for donations.

In recent years it has become quite common for charities to lease empty properties from private landlords for a peppercorn rent and a donation from the landlord, even if the charity doesn’t fully use the property. 

The landlord no longer has to pay empty-property rates, and the charity can claim 80 per cent mandatory charitable relief on the rates it pays to the local authority.

In 2011, the Charity Commission announced it was examining around 700 such cases.

A number of local authorities, feeling that this is not the intended use of charitable rate relief, have begun challenging cases in the law courts. 

For further information on the judgement visit www.bailii.org/cgi-bin/markup.cgi?doc=/ew/cases/EWHC/Admin/2013/54.html&query=kenya+and+aid&method=boolean.