Bath & North East Somerset Council, as a major landlord, is
committed to achieving and maintaining a positive and constructive
relationship with its tenants.
This Code of Practice sets out the Council’s responsibilities
and those of the tenant. It is intended as a guide to the main
terms of your lease, but does not alter any contractual obligations
placed on either the Council (as landlord) or you (as tenant).
The Council aims to provide a courteous and helpful service to
all tenants and their representatives at all times. Staff are
available to discuss any matters relating to your tenancy at any
time during normal office hours.
If you wish to discuss a specific matter with the valuer for
your property, please do not hesitate to make contact.
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Professional Advice
This code is not intended to replace professional advice. You
are strongly recommended to seek independent professional advice on
matters affecting your tenancy.
A lease is a legally binding contract between the parties and
sets out the basis of your occupation of Council property. The
Council expects its tenants to comply with the legal obligations
they have agreed to observe.
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Contact with the Council
Bath & North East Somerset Council's commercial properties
are managed by the Property Management Team within the Council’s
Property Services.
Each property is allocated to a member of the Team. You will be
told the name of the valuer assigned to manage the property. This
valuer is responsible for the management of the building and should
always be your first point of contact for queries about your
tenancy.
We will also try to ensure that your named valuer handles any
rent review or lease renewal for your tenancy, but sometimes this
may not be possible.
If we employ a commercial agent to act on our behalf their
appointment will specify that they comply with this code.
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Rent
Your lease will specify the amount of rent payable and the dates
on which payment is due. Most leases specify that interest will be
charged on late payment. Non payment of rent is a serious breach of
the tenant’s covenants and there are various remedies available to
a landlord which will be pursued.
Generally the lease will require the rent to be paid ‘quarterly,
in advance’.
The quarter days are:
- March 25th (Lady Day)
- June 24th (Midsummer)
- September 29th (Michaelmas)
- December 25th (Christmas Day)
Your rent can be paid by standing order or direct debit.
Please contact the valuer for your property to set up payments by
these methods.
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Rent Reviews
Your lease will set out the procedure and timescale when the
rent is subject to review. The Council will endeavour to serve the
rent review notice indicating the proposed rent on review before
the relevant date.
As a tenant, you may start the rent review procedure yourself
and you should contact the valuer for your property.
Negotiations will be conducted either direct with you or through
your professional advisor. If you wish to represent yourself, the
Council will explain to you fully the basis on which we have
calculated the proposed new rental level.
In most cases the new rent is based on the 'open market rental
value' (i.e. what it is worth on the open market) based on local
comparable evidence.
If negotiations fail to result in an agreement, the lease
usually allows the rent review to be determined by an independent
third party in accordance with the Royal Institution of Chartered
Surveyors (RICS) Arbitration/Expert Procedure. A guide to the RICS
Dispute Resolution Service is available either direct from the RICS
or through the valuer for your property. The procedure allows each
party to present their evidence on which they are relying.
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Lease Renewals
The procedure and time scale for lease renewals are governed by
the relevant ‘landlord and tenant legislation’, found in the
Landlord and Tenant Act 1954, together with recent amendments. The
majority of the Council’s commercial properties are occupied under
business tenancies, which continue until terminated by the service
of the relevant notice by either landlord or tenant.
You are advised to take legal advice if you receive any such
notice. Details are given on the back of the notice on action you
should take after receiving the notice, but we cannot stress
strongly enough the importance of taking legal advice so that you
protect your rights to a new tenancy. The future security of your
business premises depends upon your response to the notice.
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Bath is one of only two cities in the world designated a World
Heritage Site. Many of the Council’s properties are listed
buildings and great importance is attached to their maintenance.
The terms of your lease will determine the extent of the Council’s
and your responsibilities.
At the end of the lease we will inspect the building. If any
repairs are necessary that are your responsibility we will serve
you with a Schedule of Dilapidations, listing the work you will
need to do. You will be required to complete those works
prior to a new lease being granted to you.
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Any breach of the terms and conditions of the lease (the
‘covenants’) may result in enforcement action being taken against
you. Should a dispute arise you will normally be invited to discuss
any breaches of covenant with the valuer for your property. If,
however, a satisfactory resolution of the problem cannot be
reached, then we will have no option but to instruct solicitors in
the matter. The Council will, however, make all attempts to resolve
the matter with you.
Breaches of lease include failure to repair, undertaking works
or erecting signage without permission, failure to pay rent or
other due charges, letting others into possession without
consent.
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Not all leases permit assignment or sub-letting but where this
is permitted it is necessary to make an application to the Council
to sub-let or assign the lease. We will need references and
detailed financial and trading information for the proposed new
occupier. The purpose of this is to establish their suitability as
a tenant and we may wish to interview them as part of this process.
Applications to assign or sub-let are governed by legislation and,
as the landlord, we are required to respond within a reasonable
period.
If you assign your lease you may still be responsible for rent
and repairs if the new tenant defaults.
When taking an assignment, you should be aware that you take
full responsibilty for observing the provisions of the lease and
for breaches of the lease, including repairs and costs incurred,
even if they occurred prior to your occupation. So, for
example, if the previous tenants has not paid his rent or has
failed to repair the property, you will be responsible for making
good. If the Council has repaired the building prior to your
occupation but not invoiced and the lessee is responsible for
paying a part, you will be responsible for payment.
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The lease will specify the type of alterations which may be
carried out to the property and when the Council’s consent as
landlord is required. Follow the link to the Tenants Alterations and
Building Project Checklist for completion of the application
form.
You may also need to apply for planning permission, listed
building consent and any other statutory consent which may be
required. As landlord, we will require three copies of detailed
drawings showing your proposals, a specification of the proposed
works and a copy of the statutory consents.
Applications for statutory consents should be made to the
Council’s Planning and Transport Development Services at Trimbridge
House, Trim Street, Bath. Telephone 01225 477000
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Planned Maintenance and Service Charge
A number of properties consist of several units, with the
Council responsible for external and communal repairs and
maintenance. In managing the Council’s obligations, we will carry
out both planned maintenance works, usually every five years, and
cyclical repairs and services, for example maintenance of fire
alarms, recovered through a service charge.
You may occupy only part of the property, together with other
tenants, and if so you may be asked to contribute towards planned
maintenance works and service charges.
A contribution to the service charge will be requested from you
on an annual basis, and it should be noted that this is different
from planned maintenance works carried out. The contribution
towards planned maintenance will be charged as and when they are
incurred, usually every 5 years. The contribution you pay will be
either specified within your lease or be based on the proportion of
the building you occupy.
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Should you find yourself facing financial or other difficulties
in connection with the building you occupy, it is in the best
interests of both you and the Council that you discuss the matter
as soon as possible with the valuer for your property.
We will do everything we can to help resolve the issue, but we
can only help if we are aware of the problem. Any matter that is
discussed will be treated in confidence.
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Should you have any complaint about the Council as landlord
please let us know. We will do our best to put it right and to make
sure we do not do the same thing again to you or someone else. Any
complaint will be considered in accordance with the Council’s
complaints procedure, details of which can be obtained from any
Council office.
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For further information, contact:
Property Services
Northgate House
Upper Borough Walls
Bath BA1 1RG.
Telephone: 01225 477105
Facsimile 01225 477108/98
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