UPDATED INFORMATION FOR CHAPTER 56:
VOLUNTARY SECTOR LEGAL HANDBOOK
This page contains information that has appeared on Sandy Adirondack's legal update website for voluntary organisations at www.sandy-a.co.uk/legal.htm. For current updates, including potential changes that are in the pipeline, see the legal update website.
These websites for each chapter update
the 2nd edition of The Voluntary Sector Legal Handbook by Sandy Adirondack and James Sinclair Taylor (Directory of Social Change, 2001). The websites are not intended as a comprehensive update and should not be treated as such.
To order a copy of The Voluntary Sector Legal Handbook, print out the order form at www.sandy-a.co.uk/bookserv.htm or send an email order by clicking
. It costs £50 for voluntary organisations or £80 for others, plus 10% p&p. We expect the third edition to be published in 2007.
The information here covers the law applicable to England and Wales. It may not apply in Northern Ireland and/or Scotland. These news items are not a full or definitive statement of the law and are not intended as a substitute for professional legal advice. No responsibility for loss occasioned as a result of any person acting or refraining from acting can be taken by the author.
Chapter 56
LAND OWNERSHIP AND TENUE
NEW PROPERTY ADVICE SERVICES
Added 19/7/06. This information adds to chapters 56-59 in The Voluntary Sector Legal Handbook 2nd edition.
Two new services are offering advice on property issues to charities and other voluntary organisations. The website of the Ethical Property Foundation, charitable arm of the Ethical Property Company, provides information about finding an office, negotiating a lease, moving in, managing and "greening" the office, and moving out. It also runs a network of solicitors, surveyors and space planners who provide free or affordable advice to London-based organisations. Their website is at www.ethicalproperty.org.uk/advice.php.
Property Advice for London, run by CIC London (the Construction Industry Council) and RICS (the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors) matches surveyors, architects, engineers and other property-related consultants with charities. Topics covered include refurbishments, leasing, relocation, service charges and much more. Further information is at www.cic.org.uk/london/RegistrationForm.pdf.
NEW RULES ON SECURITY
OF BUSINESS LEASES
Added 29/12/03. This information updates ss.56.4.8.2 and 58.6 in The Voluntary Sector Legal Handbook 2nd edition.
Under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 tenants with business leases for more than one year generally have security of tenure when the lease expires--but the landlord and tenant can get a court order, before the lease is granted, to waive this security. From 1 June 2004 it is no longer necessary to get a court order. Instead, the landlord will serve a "health warning" on the tenant, explaining the loss of rights and the importance of getting professional advice. The tenant will have to sign a declaration that they have read the health warning and accepted its consequences. The Regulatory Reform (Business Tenancies) (England and Wales) Order 2003 also makes changes in the rules on interim rent (rent payable pending renewal of a tenancy), and clarifies how a tenant may bring a business tenancy to an end. The Order and a useful explanatory note are at www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2003/20033096.htm and further details are in the urban policy section at www.odpm.gov.uk.
IS IT A LEASE OR A LICENCE?
Added 2002. This information updates s.56.5.1 in The Voluntary Sector Legal Handbook 2nd edition.
A case in the House of Lords has confirmed that even if an agreement is called a licence, it might legally be a lease giving the leaseholder security as a tenant. An agreement--whether for residential or commercial premises--could be a lease where the property is rented with exclusive possession (sole use). Where an organisation is renting property from a landlord under a so-called licence this could give the organisation security as a tenant under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954. Similarly, where an organisation is renting out property, it could find that its "licensees" are actually secure tenants.
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