Expert advisors to charities on their property and land portfolios

Blake Morgan is an expert charity property and land law firm with nationwide offices.

Our nationally recognised charity lawyers guide charities through the requirements of the Charity Act 2011 in relation to property transactions, providing a complete service to charities in respect of their property holdings.

We act for a wide range of charities and voluntary sector charitable companies, charitable incorporated organisations, community interest companies, Royal Charter bodies, social enterprises, industrial and provident societies, associations and charitable trusts and their trustees, schools, universities and colleges, housing providers and faith groups.

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Main Areas Of Practice

We provide a fully comprehensive property service to our charity clients, providing a one-stop shop for all charity property requirements.

Our property services for charities include:

Retail shops

We advise on the acquisition and management of charity shops and cafes and pop-up stores.

Property acquisitions and disposals

Our team is experienced in managing the acquisition and disposal of both freehold and leasehold properties for charity clients.

Development advice

Our expert team advises on the development of charity land for commercial or residential use either by the charity themselves or in preparation for a disposal including conditional contracts, options, overage, planning advice, construction procurement and construction documentation.

Auction sales

Whether you are looking to purchase or sell at auction our expert lawyers can help you get the best outcome at auction.

Asset Management

Our Charity Property team advises on leases and licences of commercial and residential premises.

Academy Conversions

We act on all property aspects of academy conversions, including acting on primary, secondary, faith and special school conversions for multi-academy trusts, self-convertors and academy conversion sponsors, together with advising clients on obtaining consents from the Department for Education for property dealings after conversion; sixth form college conversions.

Regulatory compliance

We provide advice and assistance on Charities Act 2011 compliance and Charity Commission best practice in relation to property transactions.

Tax efficiency

Our experts provide first-class Business Rates and Stamp Duty Land Tax advice for charities.

Related Expertise

Our Clients

We act for the full spectrum of charities, from local and niche charities to faith based clients and household name charities with national and international influence, to locally focused or special purpose charities. Our current household name charities include The British Red Cross Society and Winchester Diocesan Board of Finance.

"Vast experience of dealing with charity retail clients. Is able to draw upon this experience to advise on any special consideration we should be considering on unusual matters."
- Legal 500, 2022


"Having taken the role as Head of Property for RNIB, I decided to continue to use Blake Morgan solicitors – they had provided legal support to the organisation in all property matters for a number of years before that. The support given to me by James and his team as I established my role, was exemplary. They fully understood how RNIB worked, provided clear, pragmatic and timely advice consistently, and were always available to discuss ideas and ad hoc issues. I can only offer the highest praise to James and his team for the support provided to me and RNIB."
- Sean Owen, Head of Property at RNIB


"The property team at Blake Morgan provide a one-stop shop for all of our property requirements, including lettings and sales of our investment property portfolio, practical legal advice on dealing with tenant issues and advice on complex development transactions. They are responsive and efficient and guide us through the necessary processes including compliance with the requirements of the Charities Act with a minimum of fuss."
- Clive Cook, Charity Director at St John's Winchester.


"They have always been efficient. Work has been completed on time and in a cost-effective manner."
- Chambers UK A Client's Guide to the Legal Profession 2016


Awards and Accolades

Highlights

We acted for the University of Chichester Academy Trust, alongside Hampshire County Council, East Hampshire District Council and Sport England, in relation to the relocation of Mill Chase Technology College. The project was part of the wider Whitehill and Borden regeneration development.


Our expert team advises charities with large property portfolios including Tenovus Cancer Care, which we advised on issues associated with its portfolio of 66 shops based across Wales and the South West of England, as well as its warehouses and its head office accommodation.


Our expert team advised a household name charity on all of its property matters in England and Wales including all transactional matters (sales, acquisitions, lease renewals, development matters), general advice in relation to its property portfolio and providing property litigation support.


Our Experts

Anna
Larbi
Legal Director

Southampton

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Rachel
Sales
Senior Associate

Oxford

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James
Egan
Partner

Cardiff

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Awards and Accolades

We are members of the Charity Law Association.

BM Insights

Articles

Court of Appeal clarifies how eligibility for charity business rates relief is assessed where a charity owns a portfolio of commercial properties

A registered charity's particular use of a property will not be scrutinised by the courts when the court is determining if a property occupied by a charity is eligible for...

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Articles

Notice periods for Section 8 and Section 21 Housing Act Notices to be reduced from the 1 October 2021

In response to the coronavirus pandemic, the UK Government introduced the Coronavirus Act 2020 which, as well as halting evictions, increased the notice periods for both Section 8 and Section...

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Electronic signatures – increased usage during COVID "lockdown"

A positive of the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic is that it has led to a substantial increase in the use of electronic signatures, which is largely as a result...

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COVID-19 – how is it affecting agreement for lease and lease negotiations?

The 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has led to a large number of tenants (of both office and retail/restaurant premises) being unable to fully utilise their premises for periods of...

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