To apply for any for these reliefs please this link Business rates forms for the appropriate application form if applicable.
Charity and Community Amateur Sports Club Relief
Charities and registered Community Amateur Sports Clubs are entitled to 80% relief for Business Rates.
This is dependent on the property that is occupied by the charity or club being used wholly and mainly for charitable purposes. In addition to this relief, discretionary relief may also be granted for the remaining part of the bill.
For the relevant applications, please see Business rates forms.
Discretionary Relief
In certain circumstances we may be able to offer discretionary relief from business rates provided the organisation meets with the criteria specified in our Discretionary Relief Policy.
(Please see attached the authority’s new Discretionary Relief Policy effective from 1 April 2026)
Small Business Rates Relief
Details of the scheme are as follows:-
Outline
Ratepayers who occupy a property with a rateable value which does not exceed £50,999 (and who are not entitled to other mandatory relief or are liable for unoccupied property rates) will have their bills calculated using the lower small business non-domestic rating multiplier currently set at 38.2 pence or 43.2 pence dependant on the type of business for 2026/2027, rather than the national non-domestic rating multiplier.
In addition, generally, if the sole or main property is shown on the rating list with a rateable value between £12,001 and £15,000, the ratepayer will receive a percentage reduction in their rates bill for this property of up to a maximum of 100%. For a property with a rateable value of not more than £12,000, the ratepayer will receive a 100% reduction in their rates bill.
Eligibility criteria
Generally, this percentage reduction (relief) is only available to ratepayers who occupy either-
(a) one property, or
(b) one main property and other additional properties providing those additional properties each have a rateable value which does not exceed £2,899.
The rateable value of the property mentioned in (a), or the aggregate rateable value of all the properties mentioned in (b), must not exceed £19,999 outside London or £27,999 in London on each day for which relief is being sought. If the rateable value, or aggregate rateable value, increases above those levels, relief will cease from the day of the increase.
The Government has introduced additional support to small businesses. For those businesses that take on an additional property which would normally have meant the loss of small business rate relief, the Government has confirmed that they will be allowed to keep that relief for a period of three years.
An application for Small Business Rate Relief is not required. If a ratepayer meets the eligibility criteria and has not received the relief, please contact us.
Provided the ratepayer continues to satisfy the conditions for relief which apply at the relevant time as regards the property and the ratepayer, they will automatically continue to receive relief in each new valuation period.
Certain changes in circumstances will need to be notified to us by a ratepayer who is in receipt of relief (other changes will be picked up by the local authority). The changes which should be notified are:
(a) the ratepayer taking up occupation of an additional property, although relief can be continued for a further 3 years should this occur.
(b) an increase in the rateable value of a property occupied by the ratepayer in an area other than the area of the local authority which granted the relief.
Interaction with other relief's
- if a ratepayer is eligible for charity relief or rural rate relief then they receive that relief rather than small business rate relief
- transitional relief is applied before the small business rate relief is applied
For the relevant application, please see "Business rates Forms".
Relief for Partly Occupied Property
Premises that are partly occupied for a short time only can receive discretionary relief under Section 44A of the Local Government Finance Act 1988. This is a process where, if the local authority approves an application for relief under s.44A, the Valuation Office will be asked to apportion the rateable value of the property so that the occupier may benefit from any exemption for the unoccupied area and pay the full charge only for the occupied apportionment.
An application will be considered on its own merits and must meet the following criteria:
- the property must be partly occupied. Detailed plans must be provided to indicate the whole property and which part is occupied
- the intended part occupation period will be for a "short time only". A "short time only" is not defined in legislation. However, for the purposes of these guidelines, the Council considers this to mean a period of up to 3 to 6 months. Therefore, the nature of the business activity will be taken into account along with the estimated planned period and future intentions. In all cases an award will cease at the end of the financial year (although the Council can use its discretion to request a further certificate if the circumstances permit). Details should be provided of timescales
- the part occupation must not be as a result of maintenance, renewal, reorganisation, repairs or seasonal shutdowns/holidays. In the main, s.44A relief should be for the phased occupation or vacating of premises. Details of the reason for part occupation must be provided
Please contact the authority directly for the requirements to submit an application.
Relief for local newspapers
A reduction of £1,500 for office space occupied by local newspapers. The scheme will run to 31 March 2025.
Improvement relief
You might get improvement relief if you make certain improvements to your property. If you’re eligible, you’ll get the relief for one year. It starts from when you complete your improvements.
Eligibility
Any improvements you make must:
- increase the ‘rateable value’ of your property
- be completed on or after 1 April 2024
They must also either:
- increase the size of your property
- add new features or equipment to your property, such as heating, air conditioning or CCTV
Any improvements to existing features or equipment do not qualify.
You must have occupied the property during and after the improvement works to get improvement relief. You cannot pass on your improvement relief to anybody else.
What you’ll get
Your local council will decide how much relief you get based on your property’s ‘rateable value’ and the type of improvements you’ve made.
How to get improvement relief
You can report changes to your property using your business rates valuation account.
The VOA will decide if the changes could be considered for improvement relief. They will send a certificate to you and your council showing:
- how the improvement affects the property’s rateable value
- when the relief ends
Once your local council has confirmed you were occupying the property for the duration of the improvements, they will:
- decide how much improvement relief you are entitled to
- send you a reduced rates bill
If you think you qualify for any form of relief that is not shown on your bill, please contact Customer Services.