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Can you afford not to be part of it?
licensable, if any under-18-year-old took part for more than the three days in a 12-month period.
This guidance has been issued by the Health and Safety Executive
When is a business not a business?
The answer is hardly ever. No, this isn’t a lawyer’s version of a playground riddle, but a very simple summary of an issue that has come before the courts. In a case involving leases of sports grounds held by Hawkesbrook Leisure, a not-for-profit organisation (NFP), solicitors for the organisation had failed to do what was necessary to secure a renewal of the leases and when sued for that failure, claimed in their defence that an NFP was not a “business” and thus did not enjoy the protection afforded by the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954. That Act governs occupation of non-residential properties and
its basic principle is that when a lease of business premises comes to an end, the tenant is entitled to a new lease provided the steps set out in the Act are followed. The court decided that an NFP seeking to generate a surplus for re-investment in its activities is a “business” for the purposes of the Act, and thus protected by it. Often an NFP will have agreed with its landlord to forego the protection of the Act – usually where the lease is for a short period or where the premises form part of a larger building. But if it has not agreed to that, the provisions of the Act apply, even where there is nothing written down. As the solicitors in this case discovered to their cost, the Act must be followed precisely and the prescribed time limits strictly observed. Vital for an NFP which wants to be on top of the issue
is correctly-recorded information and a reliable reminder system which flags well in advance (ideally at least six months) when a lease is due to end. That means the NFP has time to decide what to do next. If the property is no longer required, the landlord can be told and the premises vacated and left in the condition required by the lease. If the NFP wants to stay on, it needs to take legal advice about the next steps. A landlord may have already set the renewal process in motion with a formal notice specifying the date on which the lease will end; at least six months notice has to be given and the landlord can kick off the process no more than a year in advance. That date then becomes crucial: the deadline for completion of a new lease. If that doesn’t happen, the tenant then has to apply to the court for a new lease or agree with the landlord that the deadline should be extended. The vast majority of lease renewals happen without court action being taken.
Gordon Reid is a partner at Barlow Robbins
Castlefield is a boutique investment manager that’s incredibly focused, and very close to each and every client. It’s our aim that every client has a share in our business, our profits and a say in how we are run which sets us apart from our competitors.
Since Castlefield is a people business, we don’t expect you to consider changing the way you do things on the strength of this advertisement, so why not take a look at our Benchmark of Charity Investment Performance Report to see how you are doing compared to other charities.
john.eckersley@castlefield.com
Alternatively, please visit www.castlefield.com
Castlefield is a trading name of Castlefield Investment Partners LLP, who are authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority. Registered in England & Wales No. OC302833. Registered Office 215-219 Chester Road, Manchester, M15 4JE.
Investment management for charities
JSECFAP/150310
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