Agenda item

Report from the Strategic Director of Finance and Customer Services.

Recommendations:

To consider the renewal applications for the awards of Discretionary Business Rate Relief for the organisations and premises listed in Appendix 1 of this report.  This is in accordance with the Council’s Discretionary Business Rates Relief Policy (approved by Cabinet on 12th December 2016).

Consideration was given to the report which detailed the renewal applications for the awards of Discretionary Business Rate Relief for the organisations and premises listed in Appendix 1. This was in accordance with the Council’s Discretionary Business Rates Relief Policy which had been approved by Cabinet in December 2016.

Central Government and councils share every £1 of rates due as follows:

Central Government                                         50%

South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Authority       1%

          Rotherham MBC                                               49%

The total costs of granting the relief for the financial year was:

Year                        Total Amount of Relief     Cost to RMBC

2025/26                    £ 940,928.66                       £461,055.04

The recommendation was to approve the award of Discretionary Business Rate Relief for the organisations listed in Appendix 1. However, any award had to comply with the Subsidy Control Act 2022 before it was applied to the Business Rates Relief account. The Council would therefore undertake an assessment of each of the approved applications before 31 March 2025 in order to ensure that they met the requirements of the act.

Resolved:

That Cabinet approve the applications for Discretionary Business Rate Relief for the organisations listed in Appendix 1 of this report and in accordance with the details set out in Section 6 to this report, for the 2025/26 financial year.

Councillor Sheppard declared a nonpecuniary interest in this item as he volunteered at the Arc Church foodbank which received rate relief.