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Home , Gravesham, Thanet District

2 June 2015 Council Assets By Harry Phibbs

Between 2009-10 and 2014-15, local authority spending has been reduced by 23.4 per cent per person in real terms.1

With growing populations, reductions in central government grants in many areas, and a cap on Council Tax increases, many councils are reducing services. However, as this report details, a number of authorities retain significant property assets.

The key findings of this research are that, as of 1st April 2014:

. Local authorities in the owned at least: - 407 golf courses - 580 restaurants or cafes - 11,517 car parks - 984 swimming pools/leisure centres - 2,586 farms - 378 pubs - 7,294 shops - 174 hotels - 191 shopping centres

. Hospitality:

- Barnet Council owns 10 golf courses - Birmingham City Council owns 17 pubs as well as 8 golf courses - Bristol City Council and Borough Council both own 9 hotels - City Council owns a total of 59 restaurants and cafes.

. Other assets:

- Council owns a wet fish stall

1 http://www.ifs.org.uk/uploads/publications/pr/ebn_pr_localper cent20government.pdf

- Bristol City Council and Harlow District Council both own a nightclub - Bromsgrove District Council owns a sawmill - Copeland Borough Council owns pigeon lofts and a betting office - Borough Council owns a model railway - Nottingham City Council owns a Bingo club, a greyhound stadium and a racecourse - Borough Council owns a bookmakers and a supermarket - Aberdeen City Council owns pigeon lofts and business centres - Ashfield District Council owns a windmill and a rifle club - Bradford Metropolitan District Council owns a car showroom - Castlereagh Borough Council, Telford and Wrekin Council, Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, Borough Council and Borough Council all own ice rinks - Cheshire East Council owns a taxi office - Dumfries and Galloway Council owns a cheese factory - Epping Forest District Council owns five dentist studios and an airfield. - Falkirk Council owns an iron works - Gateshead Borough Council owns and aviary - Royal Borough of Greenwich owns a yacht club - Hillingdon Borough Council owns a piggery and a poultry shed - Merton Borough Council owns a pony training centre and a snooker club - Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council owns a car showroom and an aviary - South Ayrshire Council owns an aviary, a castle, a firing range and three stables - Stratford-On-Avon District Council owns a timber yard and a bank

To see the full breakdown for each council click here

To arrange broadcast interviews, please contact:

Andy Silvester Campaign Director, TaxPayers' Alliance [email protected] 07891 059 567

To discuss the research, please contact:

Jennifer Salisbury-Jones Policy Analyst, TaxPayers’ Alliance [email protected] 07717 752 265

Financial support for this research paper was provided by the Politics and Economics Research Trust (charity number 1121849). Any views expressed in this paper are those of the author and not those of the research trust or of its trustees.

Sources and methodology

The information was gathered from each local authority’s online asset register or via freedom of information requests.

Guide to tables

Table 1: Assets held by UK local authorities Table 2: Total assets held by local authorities in each region Table 3: Councils with the most golf courses Table 4: Councils with the most car parks Table 5: Councils with the most swimming pools and leisure centres Table 6: Councils with the most farms Table 7: Councils with most theatres Table 8: Councils with the most pubs Table 9: Councils with the most restaurants and cafes Table 10: Councils with the most shopping centres Table 11: Councils with the most shops Table 12: Councils with the most hotels

Table 1: Assets held by UK local authorities

Asset type Total

Golf courses 407 Car parks 11,517 Swimming pools/leisure centre 984 Farms 2,586 Theatres 259 Pubs 378 Restaurants/cafes 580 Shopping centres 191 Shops 7,294 Hotels 174

Table 2: Total assets held by local authorities in each region

Region Golf Car Swimming pools Farms Theatres Pubs Restaurants Shopping Shops Hotels courses parks /leisure centres /cafes centres East Midlands 27 817 91 257 14 17 25 27 510 11 East of 26 945 81 247 25 44 51 6 446 8 London 39 688 87 67 31 52 67 17 1,472 9 North East 14 515 38 108 11 17 27 6 221 13 North West 52 1,397 80 232 19 53 42 25 490 19 Northern Ireland 10 46 31 7 5 - 4 - 6 - Scotland 80 1,279 125 137 32 11 44 8 1,038 10 South East 55 1,788 145 269 46 62 153 28 1,314 44 South West 26 1,388 73 595 21 30 111 18 594 19 Wales 19 741 91 234 19 25 20 10 268 22 West Midlands 28 1,066 97 263 20 41 18 38 750 12 Yorkshire and Humber 31 847 45 170 16 26 18 8 185 7 Total 407 11,517 984 2,586 259 378 580 191 7,294 174

Tables 3: Councils with the most golf courses

Organisation Total

Barnet Borough Council 10 Birmingham City Council 8 Fife Council 8 Bradford City Council 7 South Ayrshire Council 7 Leicester City Council 7 Scottish Borders Council 7 Sefton Borough Council 6 City of Edinburgh Council 6 Angus Council 6 Aberdeen City Council 6 Glasgow City Council 5 Brighton and Hove City Council 5 Wirral Borough Council 5 South Lanarkshire Council 5 Sheffield City Council 5 Hillingdon Borough Council 5

Tables 4: Councils with the most car parks

Organisation Total

Cornwall Council 232 Swindon Borough Council 211 Wigan Borough Council 195 Durham County Council 179 Sandwell Borough Council 148 West Lothian Council 141 Bradford City Council 140 Fife Council 139 Stoke-on-Trent City Council 138 Stockport Borough Council 117 Dumfries and Galloway Council 112 Powys Council 110 Birmingham City Council 107 Torbay Borough Council 105 Cheshire East Council 105 Torfaen Council 104 City Council 104 Kettering Borough Council 101 Scottish Borders Council 101 Lambeth Borough Council 100

Tables 5: Councils with the most swimming pools and leisure centres

Organisation Total

Glasgow City Council 23 Birmingham City Council 18 Cornwall Council 14 Fife Council 14 Powys Council 13 Durham County Council 12 East Riding of Yorkshire Council 12 Brighton and Hove City Council 11 Scottish Borders Council 10 Wiltshire Council 9 Dumfries and Galloway Council 9

Tables 6: Councils with the most farms

Organisation Total

Gloucestershire County Council 130 Devon County Council 115 Cornwall Council 108 Lincolnshire County Council 105 Central Bedfordshire Council 103 Leicestershire County Council 79 Dorset County Council 78 County Council 75 Hertfordshire County Council 74 Herefordshire Council 68 Staffordshire County Council 66 Pembrokeshire Council 54 Durham County Council 52 North Yorkshire County Council 47 Bolton Borough Council 46 Warwickshire County Council 45 Wiltshire Council 44 Sheffield City Council 38 County Council 33 Powys Council 33 Flintshire Council 30

Tables 7: Councils with most theatres

Organisation Total

City of Edinburgh Council 8 Carmarthenshire Council 7 Fife Council 5 Hillingdon Borough Council 4 Eastbourne Borough Council 4 Bradford City Council 4 Northampton Borough Council 4 Durham County Council 4 Walsall Borough Council 3 Stoke-on-Trent City Council 3 Nottingham City Council 3 North Norfolk District Council 3 Newtownabbey Borough Council 3 Leeds City Council 3 Kirklees Borough Council 3 Cardiff Council 3 Brent Borough Council 3 Birmingham City Council 3

Tables 8: Councils with the most pubs

Organisation Total

Birmingham City Council 17 Plymouth City Council 13 Cardiff Council 12 Harlow District Council 12 Southwark Borough Council 11 Brighton and Hove City Council 10 Knowsley Borough Council 10 City Council 9 Durham County Council 9 Coventry City Council 9 Wirral Borough Council 7 Swindon Borough Council 7 Stevenage Borough Council 7 Salford City Council 7 Calderdale Borough Council 7 Council 7 Thurrock Borough Council 6 Swansea Council 6 Pembrokeshire Council 6 City Council 6 Northampton Borough Council 6

Tables 9: Councils with the most restaurants and cafes

Organisation Total

Brighton and Hove City Council 59 Exeter City Council 32 Bournemouth Borough Council 27 Bristol City Council 25 City of Edinburgh Council 13 Southwark Borough Council 11 Oxford City Council 11 Council 11 Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea 9 Swindon Borough Council 9 Leeds City Council 8 St Albans City Council 8 Council 7 Northampton Borough Council 7 Tendring District Council 6 Middlesbrough Council 6 Lambeth Borough Council 6 Hartlepool Borough Council 6 Hackney Borough Council 6 Chorley Borough Council 6 City Council 6

Tables 10: Councils with the most shopping centres

Organisation Total

Walsall Borough Council 13 Derby City Council 12 Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead 9 Mansfield District Council 7 Wiltshire Council 6 Birmingham City Council 6 Solihull Borough Council 5 East Dorset District Council 4 Sefton Borough Council 4 Telford and Wrekin Council 3 Tameside Borough Council 3 Redditch Borough Council 3 Exeter City Council 3 Cardiff Council 3 Bromley Borough Council 3 Barking and Dagenham Borough Council 3 Allerdale Borough Council 3

Tables 11: Councils with the most shops

Organisation Total

Wolverhampton City Council 251 Barking and Dagenham Borough Council 209 Enfield Borough Council 206 Bristol City Council 198 Brighton and Hove City Council 185 Southampton City Council 173 Stevenage Borough Council 166 Stoke-on-Trent City Council 163 Hackney Borough Council 157 Wigan Borough Council 154 Borough Council 140 Milton Keynes Council 123 Oxford City Council 123 Birmingham City Council 119 Cardiff Council 119 North Ayrshire Council 117 Bath and North East Somerset Council 114 South Ayrshire Council 113 Exeter City Council 111 West Lothian Council 111

Tables 12: Councils with the most hotels

Organisation Total

Bristol City Council 9 Eastbourne Borough Council 9 Swansea Council 8 Cardiff Council 7 Brighton and Hove City Council 6 Southampton City Council 6 Nottingham City Council 5 Durham County Council 4 Coventry City Council 4 Birmingham City Council 4 Salford City Council 3 Portsmouth City Council 3 Hampshire County Council 3 City of Edinburgh Council 3