Charities

Charities or trustees of a charity are entitled to an 80% reduction in their business rates if the property they occupy is wholly or mainly used for charitable purposes.

To qualify for Mandatory Rate Relief, the organisation will normally have to be registered as a Charity with the Charity Commission. However some organisations that are exempt from registration may also qualify, such as:-

  q       Scout Groups / Girl Guide Groups

q       Voluntary Aided Schools

q       Societies registered under the Friendly Societies Act

Relief can also be granted to charity shops, however the charity will only qualify for relief if:-

q       the shop sells wholly or mainly donated goods; and

q       the proceeds are used for the purpose of the charity

For unoccupied properties owned by Charities or trustees of a charity, mandatory relief can be awarded where it is evident that when next in use, the property concerned will be used wholly or mainly for charitable purposes. 

In order to receive the relief you must complete our Mandatory Rate Relief application form.

We can also consider awarding relief in respect of the remaining 20% of the business rates. For further details please refer to the section Discretionary Relief. 

Community Amateur Sports Clubs (CASC’s) 

Any sports club that is registered with HM Revenues and Customs as a Community Amateur Sports Club (CASC’s), will be entitled to rate relief for the premises they occupy, provided that those premises are used wholly or mainly for the purposes of the club. 

If your club meets the above criteria, then the annual business rates bill for the club will be reduced by 80%.  

In order to receive the relief you must complete our Mandatory Rate Relief application form.

 In order to qualify as a CASC, the sports club must:

      q       be open to the whole community

q       be run as an amateur club

q       be a non-profit-making organisation

q       aim to provide facilities for, and encourage people to take part in, eligible sport.

If your club is not registered and you would like further information on how to become a CASC, you should visit the HM Revenues and Customs website.

We can also consider awarding relief in respect of the remaining 20% of the business rates bill. For further details please refer to the section Discretionary Relief.