You cannot be serious!

By Stuart Hicks, Managing Director In a vague nod to Wimbledon this week my opening line for today’s piece has got to be “YOU CANNOT BE SERIOUS!” I have just read an article about The... Continue reading

Business Rates Appeals reform – the jury is back

By Stuart Hicks, Managing Director The Government has released a summary of the responses on its consultation “Reforming Business Rates Appeals”  and the system of “Check, Challenge, Appeal”. Coming in at just over 3600 words... Continue reading

SHOPPING CENTRES FACE MORE PRESSURE ON COMMERCIALISATION PROFITS

By Stuart Hicks – Managing Director. UK shopping centres are coming under increasing pressure from Local Authorities and the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) which are now determined to extract revenue from mall activity once seen... Continue reading

British Museum court case has implications for charitable sector

By Stuart Hicks – Managing Director. An interesting case is winding its way through the courts at the moment involving the British Museum and a disputed £720,000 business rates bill. The museum is currently challenging... Continue reading

Appeals system could derail business rates’ devolution if we’re not careful

By Stuart Hicks The appeals system in its current form could derail the whole business rates devolution process, if we’re not careful. According to the Communities and Local Government Committee in an interim report on... Continue reading

Countdown to Government consultation on business rates as deadline looms

  By Stuart Hicks, Managing Director. We are in the final countdown to the deadline for submissions to the Government’s consultation paper “Business rates: delivering more frequent revaluations”. Published jointly by HM Treasury and Department... Continue reading