Bracknell Forest Council has denied a request to reveal the identity of an investment property it has agreed to sell to make money.
Bracknell Forest Council has refused a Freedom of Information request to reveal which out-of-borough investment property it has agreed to sell to raise a lump sum.
For years the council has owned six assets outside the borough to generate rental income. The Labour-controlled cabinet recently agreed to sell one of those properties.
The Local Democracy Reporting Service asked for the identity of the property, its address, the current tenant, the purchaser and the income generated from the sale. The council denied the FOI, saying the information would be obtained from the purchaser and would represent “a breach of confidence”. The request was refused under Section 41 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 on Wednesday, January 14.
The sale was discussed at a meeting of the council’s overview and scrutiny commission on Thursday, January 8. During questioning, councillor Mike Forster (Liberal Democrats, Sandhurst) said: “We are selling a commercial property, which will therefore mean we have an income loss going forward. “What is our medium-term strategy for managing our out-of-borough property assets? “Bearing in mind that they have provided a good source of income in the past. “What are you going to use the receipts for this particular property sale, and how will the annual income be replaced?”
Cllr Paul Bidwell (Labour, Town Centre & The Parks), cabinet member for economy and regeneration, replied: “The use of the receipts of the proceeds from the sale of the property agreed by cabinet on December 16 last year will be used to supplement the revenue budget using our flexible use of capital reserves approach. “This funding will be focused on funding costs related to transforming our services and working towards cost savings and cost avoidance to enable a balanced budget in the future. “So how will we replace this income? The revenue income from the assets which are sold would not be replaced as the council is no longer able to purchase or invest in out-of-borough investments. “The capital receipts can be used for transformational purposes, supporting the ongoing revenue budget. “Our strategy for some of the assets will be to regularise lease terms with the existing tenants or relet to maintain income streams and improve capital appreciation of the portfolio.”
The out-of-borough assets were bought under the council’s £86.6 million Commercial Property Investment Strategy adopted in 2016. They are: Valentine South Retail Park in Lincoln; the Currys contact centre offices in Sheffield; a warehouse in Stowmarket, Suffolk; an office in Southampton; a warehouse in Redditch; and offices in Northampton.
James Aldridge, Local Democracy Reporter
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