Wantage And Grove District Arts Guild

Could you use an empty shop?

Last Updated on Sunday, 03 May 2009 15:52 Written by Bob Sunday, 03 May 2009 15:09

Hazel Blears, Local Communities Secretary in the DCMS would like to see local councils helping charitable and arts groups like yours to take over empty shops and premises in town centres so as to restore a feeling of vitality. Here are links to the launch of this £3m scheme on Tuesday 14^th April on BBC and Channel 4.

As usual they have published a glossy brochure about this: see Looking After Town Centres

The document points to about 150 local authorities that have taken steps in this direction (none of ours are included) and promises legislation to make it easier for local authorities to arrange temporary “change of use” orders to enable groups to use retail premises for arts or charitable purposes. There are to be grants to assist in this but the declared total of £3m is not going to go very far in a national scheme.

The general impression is that this scheme has not been particulary well thought through. Here, for example, are some pointers to the problems of enabling empty shops to be used for live music performance.

WAGArts can add a few facts that you may find daunting or perhaps inspiring!

The rental for Woolworth's shop in Wantage Market Place is likely to be £10,000 per month. That is as a retail enterprise, of course, and consists of rent to the owner/leaseholder plus other expenses such as business rates. The current rateable value of the premises is £46,500. At the 2009/2010 national business rate of 48.5p in the pound, this means that rates alone cost £22,552 a year. The good news is that if the premises were being used for charitable, or community amateur sports clubs then only 20% of the rates (i.e. £4,510) need be paid. And the significant thing is that, after 3 months, the owner of empty properties with a rateable value of more than £15,000 (such as this one) becomes liable for the full business rate bill. In other words, the owner of the Woolworths site is liable for a charge of £22,552 this year even if the shop stays empty. If your group can claim charitable status, you could offer to reduce the owner's bill by taking over the premises. You never know, the owner might be prepared to do you a deal in order to get at least some revenue (or reduced costs) from the premises while he/she waits for the economy to recover. Or is that just too far fetched?

For comparison, the old W H Smith's shop (next to Waitrose) has a rateable value (RV) of £53,500 so you could offer there to reduce the rates bill from £25,957 to £5,190.

The RV of The Arbery, on the other side of the Square is £29,100 so the reduction there is from £14,113 to only £2,823.

Food for thought?

Or do we petition the Vale of White Horse District Council to take up Hazel Blears' suggestion and help one or other of our groups to take on an empty shop somewhere in the district?