Can devolution spark a revolution in community ownership?

The Government’s English Devolution White Paper confirms it intends to introduce a “Community Right to Buy”. We take a look at what this might deliver

A White Paper may only be the initial step of a process, but campaigners have welcomed the Government’s inclusion of a Community Right to Buy as part of their proposals for an English Devolution Bill. 

Under the proposals, community groups would have the right to buy when assets of community value (ACVs) come up for sale. ACVs are defined in the White Paper as “valued community assets such as empty shops, pubs and community spaces”. 

The intention of the proposals is to “support community ownership and end the blight of empty premises on our high streets”. The government also say they will “support community ownership by funding projects through the Community Ownership Fund in 2025, allowing communities across the country to purchase assets that are at a risk of being lost”.

The Community Right to Buy would replace the existing Community Right to Bid legislation, which was introduced in the Localism Act 2011 and gave communities “a right to identify properties that are believed to be of social interest value and bid to buy the property on the open market if the property owner decides to sell”.

Critics of the current Right to Bid legislation point out that in practice:

• A six-month window within which to complete a purchase once a bid was made was too short a time for groups to raise the necessary funding
• Only a limited number of assets qualified as ACVs
• Only a limited range of groups were eligible to bid
• Local Authorities were reluctant to designate ACVs

The inclusion of the Community Right to Buy in the White Paper goes some way to meeting calls from a range of organisations including Locality, Power to Change, Joseph Rowntree Foundation and Esmee Fairburn Foundation, who collaborated on the “We’re Right Here” campaign, which seeks a wider “Community Power Act”. Home - We're Right Here 

It will be interesting to see whether the Bill meets key stakeholder recommendations on the Right to Buy…

Locality’s Building Thriving Neighbourhoods: The Locality Manifesto - Locality calls for a Right to Buy that “gives communities the right of first refusal once buildings and spaces with significant community value come up for sale, meaning that if a community was able to raise funds when an ACV came up for sale, it would be theirs to purchase without competition. Locality also calls for the window to do this to be extended from six to twelve months, to give communities more time to pull together the necessary funding support. This request is mirrored in Power to Change’s Getting a Community Right to Buy right - Power to Change report , published in August 2024, which also calls for the definition of ACVs to be widened to “a building or other land is an ACV if its main use is currently, or has recently been, to further the social, economic or environmental wellbeing and/or interests of the local community and/or it could do so in the future.”

The Power to Change report calls for an independent body to ensure an independent valuation of ACVs takes place when a Community Right to Buy is pursued. It also recommends that a new requirement is placed on local authorities to have a Community Asset Strategy (currently Power to Change estimate that only 45% of Local Authorities have a dedicated Community Asset Transfer strategy) and that government establishes a national framework to protect community assets.

At Wrigleys, we have a long history of helping community groups when acquiring and managing ACVs. We recognise the challenges and due diligence required when taking on the ownership of a community asset, but also the potential benefits of community ownership, giving communities a much greater say over what spaces are used for, and enabling groups to meet local needs, as well as often delivering the long-term preservation of these assets and their economic sustainability.

We will keep a keen eye on how the White Paper progresses and welcome the inclusion of a Community Right to Buy in the Government’s proposals.

If you are part of an organisation that is considering the acquisition of a community asset, we would be very happy to talk to you. Our experienced team can help you to work through the issues that taking on such a responsibility will bring. For more information please visit Charity, Social Enterprise & Employee Ownership solicitors | Wrigleys - Wrigleys Solicitors LLP or sign up to our regular newsletters here co-operatives, community benefit societies and mutuals| Wrigleys Solicitors LLP - Wrigleys Solicitors LLP