0771 Leisure Winter 07 AW.indd - HLL Humberts Leisure

HLL Humberts Leisure 

chartered surveyors | international leisure business consulting 

Winter 2007/Spring 2008 

leisure 

The leisure property 

market following 

the Sub-Prime 

collapse (p21) 

Sounds Good - Alan 

Saunders Associates 

lends an ear to 

noise issues (p28) 

Pub visionaries in 

their own words 

(p23) 

and on the cover... 

Nonsuch Bay, Antigua (p12) 

Pub focus (p22) 

Wood Street, Cardiff (p14) 

www.humberts-leisure.com

From the Chairman 

Our Chairman and 

founder celebrates 

a milestone in the 

history of HLL 

Humberts Leisure. 

Established originally as Humberts Landplan 30 years 

ago, HLL Humberts Leisure is the result of a management 

buyout in 1991 from the old firm of Humberts, itself 

established in 1842. As 2008 commences I reflect on my 

involvement, from the outset, in HLL Humberts Leisure’s 

march ever onward and upward. Today we provide, 

probably, the most diversified specialist leisure property 

service to our loyal and ever expanding client base. 

Many achievements over the last 30 years have been leading 

edge, but one deserves special mention – the launch of 

Leisure and Media Venture Capital Trust Plc with J O 

Hambro Capital Management which was nominated 

“pick of the specialist VCTs” by analyst Best Invest. Now 

fully invested and about to enter its run-off period, HLL 

Humberts Leisure was one of the first firms of Chartered 

Surveyors to launch such a leisure driven venture. 

We continue to advance our skills across the 10 principal 

leisure and hotel sectors acting as consultants and advisers 

to owners, corporates and City institutions combining 

within one unique practice specialist Chartered Surveyors, 

Accountants, Planners, hotel and business consultants, real 

estate transactional specialists and management surveyors. 

In this issue of Leisure we celebrate an eclectic range of 

topics sharing with you a taste of the diversity that is HLL 


If we can assist you, now or in the future, please contact me 

personally or any one of our sector specialists. 

Good Reading! 

Nigel Talbot-Ponsonby FRICS, 

Executive Chairman, London. 

e: ntp@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

12 Bolton Street Mayfair London W1J 8BD 

t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 f: +44 (0)20 7409 0475 

2 Winter 2007/Spring 2008 

Specialist advice to help protect investments 

in the Urban Leisure sector!

Winter 2007/Spring 2008 

04 News 

12 Featured properties 

12 Nonsuch Bay 

A little piece of paradise in Antigua. 

14 Wood Street, Cardiff 

Operator sought for an exceptional development. 

16 Studley Wood GC and Middleton Hall GC 

Golf clubs on the move. 

17 Forest Hill GC and The Ridge GC 

New courses on the market. 

18 Domaine du Grand Mayne 

A model vineyard business in Bergerac sold. 

19 Cascade Springs 

A clearly superior lifestyle business opportunity. 

20 Taxing times 

Sarah Cardew of Penningtons Solicitors looks at the 

withdrawal of Taper Relief. 

21 The Sub-Prime Collapse 

John Anderson casts an eye to the future of the market. 

22 Focus on Pubs 

A section devoted to the pub and licensed property 

market including: Market conditions; SA Brains brave pub 

redevelopment; rent review advice; Tony Carson and Mark 

Jones share their experiences; plus Pub is the Hub’s approach 

to supporting rural services. 

28 Sounds good 

Ed Clarke of Alan Saunders Associates looks at noise. 

30 Energy Performance of Buildings 

Ben Allen outlines this new EU directive. 

32 Planning Reform Bill 

Rachel Whaley examines the impact of the new Bill. 

34 Planning Gain Supplement abandoned 

Simon Davis on the Government’s planning u-turn. 

36 www.lodgesales.com 

A look at the Lodge Sales Service nine months on. 

38 Planning 

Recent successes of the Planning and Public Sector 

Development team. 

39 Why choose HLL Humberts Leisure? 

www.humberts-leisure.com 

HLL Humberts Leisure 3

News 

consultancy 

Palazzo Pauly, Venice 

Palazzo Pauly Private Owners Club is a Private Residence Club located only steps away 

from Venice’s renowned Piazza San Marco. The three historical and magnificent Palazzos 

comprising what is now Palazzo Pauly were formerly the historic Venetian Headquarters 

of the Pauly Glass Company. The Palazzo boasts 26 luxury residences featuring all 

modern facilities, extensive Club benefits and traditional English butler service. The global 

membership of 260 members will acquire co-ownership of the Palazzo in perpetuity. 

CCA International is a world leader in the Private Club industry and has been selected as the 

long term operator. Opening of the Club is foreseen in the autumn of 2008. 

Contact 

Nigel Talbot-Ponsonby FRICS, London 


valuation 

under offer 

under offer 

Northern 

Racing 

HLL Humberts Leisure valued the 

portfolio of 9 Northern Racing horse 

race circuits located throughout the UK 

following the acquisition of the portfolio by 

Aldersgate (a Reuben Brothers Company). 

We continue to provide professional 

services to the Company. 

Contact 

Martin Brister FRICS, Winchester 

e: martin.brister@humberts-leisure.com 

t: +44 (0)1962 835 960 

Peter Haigh BSc FRICS, London 

e: peter.haigh@humberts-leisure.com 

t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Little Cumbrae, 

Firth of Clyde 

■ An historic island of some 277 hectares 

(684 acres) in the Firth of Clyde. Large 

12 bedroom mansion house, boathouse 

and jetty, 2 cottages, 13th century keep, 

lighthouse complex with 3 vacant houses 

■ Potential for alternative uses including 

lodge development, marina and hotel/ 

restaurant - stp 

Guide £2.5 million 

Contact 

Peter Smith BA(Hons) MRICS, Skipton 

e: peter.smith@humberts-leisure.com 

t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 

Marina Pavilion, 

Hastings 

HLL Humberts Leisure confirms that a 

preferred tenant has been selected for a 

consented new restaurant development 

scheme in Hastings. 

■ Nightclub/function rooms & café proposed 

■ Street level 3,222 sq.ft. 

■ Beach level 9,236 sq.ft. 

Contact 

Alex Campbell BA(Hons) MA, London 

e: alex.campbell@humberts-leisure.com 

t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

4 Winter 2007/Spring 2008

valuation & consultancy 

Amberley Castle, 

West Sussex 

The Cummings family has sold the 900 year-old Amberley Castle 

into the Von Essen group. Amberley Castle offers magnificent 

public rooms, 19 luxurious bedrooms/suites and 2 restaurants. HLL 

Humberts Leisure provided the Cummings family with valuation 

and consultancy advice. 

Contact 



valuation 

Hazlehead Golf Course, 

Scotland, 

comes up trumps! 

News 

Following the recent proposals by The Trump Organisation for a 

new 36 hole golf resort 12 miles north of Aberdeen (which were 

supported by Aberdeen City Council, and initially rejected by 

Aberdeenshire Council) HLL Humberts Leisure has been appointed 

by Aberdeen City Council to provide advice on the proposed long 

term lease over Hazlehead Golf Course. Hazlehead offers three 

picturesque courses and a pitch and putt course. The premier No. 

1 Course is arguably one of the best in the North East, if not in 

Scotland and was designed by Alister MacKenzie, the golf architect 

better known for designing Augusta National in America. 

Ben Allen BSc (Hons) MRICS who heads Humberts Leisure Golf 

agency team commented ‘We are delighted to have been appointed 

by Aberdeen City Council. Our experience in letting many other 

municipal golf facilities, not least the renowned Richmond Park Golf 

Course on behalf of The Royal Parks, places us in good stead to 

assist with this prestigious assignment. We look forward to marketing 

this historic property during 2008’. 

Contact 

Ben Allen BSc(Hons) MRICS, Winchester 

e: ben.allen@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1962 835 960 


e: martin.brister@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1962 835 960 

Are you ready for the 

non-domestic 

rating revaluation 2010? 

How time flies! It seems no time at all since the last non domestic 

rating revaluation in April 2005, but already the Valuation Office 

Agency (VOA) is gearing up for the next revaluation in 2010. 

Whilst the 2010 Rating List will not come into force until 1st April 

2010, it will be based upon values as at 1st April 2008 known as the 

antecedent valuation date or AVD. 

Many leisure categories of non domestic property are valued having 

regard to receipts information with the 2007 season being the most 

relevant as it immediately proceeds the AVD. 

Aldourie Castle, 

Inverness 

HLL Humberts Leisure provided business plan and valuation advice 

for a hotel, lodge and mixed use scheme at this historic property set 

in 500 acres on the shores of Loch Ness. 

Contact 




e: peter.haigh@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Nigel Mills MBHA, Brighton 

e: nigel.mills@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 

Leisure properties such as holiday caravan parks, golf courses, 

hotels, tourist attractions and theme parks will be required to 

provide details of trading receipts to the VOA on the official 

“Request for Information”. 

These forms are long and time consuming to compile, but there is 

a Civil Penalty for failure to complete the return or for providing 

false information. 

HLL Humberts Leisure has considerable experience in these matters, 

and is available to offer assistance to clients who require professional 

advice regarding the supply of confidential information, the provision of 

which will directly influence the eventual Rating Valuation. 

Contact 

Peter Boghurst MRICS, Brighton 

e: peter.boghurst@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 



News 

HLL Director 

leads planners in 

the South East 

Martin Taylor, HLL Humberts Leisure’s 

Director of Planning and Public Sector 

Development, has been elected as Chair of 

the Royal Town Planning Institute South 

East Region for 2008. The RTPI is the 

institute representing professional planners 

in the British Isles. The South East is the 

largest regional branch covering an area 

from Milton Keynes down to Southampton 

and across to Dover. 

Martin will represent planners in the region 

and chair the Regional Board and Activities 

Committee responsible for organising 

a CPD programme of seminars and 

conferences to keep the region’s planners 

up-to-date with the latest planning policy, 

legislation, and good practice. 

Martin says “It’s a great honour to be elected 

as Chair and to represent the region’s planning 

professionals at a time when there is a great 

deal of pressure on planners to deliver the 

government housing agenda. Obviously, with a 

background in economic development, tourism, 

and leisure, I will be seeking every opportunity 

to remind my co-professionals that in 

developing new communities and regenerating 

old ones it is just as important to plan for new 

business development, leisure time, and visitors 

in order to create exciting vibrant communities 

rather than soulless residential suburbs or town 

centres which are deserted at night.” 

Contact 

Martin Taylor BA(Hons) BTP MRTPI MIED MTS, Brighton 

t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 

Viability 

Assessments 

HLL Humberts Leisure’s Planning and 

Public Sector Development team has 

considerable experience in undertaking 

need and viability assessments for new lodge 

and holiday resort developments to support 

planning applications and appeals. Recent 

work includes: 

■ An assessment of the market need for 

a new timber holiday lodge resort in 

Warwickshire. 

■ An appraisal of the likely demand for a 

major lodge-based holiday centre on the 

West Cumbrian coast; 

■ An assessment of the need for upmarket 

timber lodges at a number of locations in 

and around the proposed South Downs 

National Park; 

For planning matters relating to all types of 

leisure property, please contact our specialist 

Planning and Public Sector Development team. 

Contact 


t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 

Peter Sharp BA(Hons) MBHA, Brighton 

t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 

for sale 

Marina Marco, 

Korcula Island, Croatia 

Korcula Island, the 6th largest of the Croatian Dalmatian Archipelago, is the proposed 

location for Marina Marco – an exciting mixed use leisure development based around a 

marina that is being marketed by HLL Humberts Leisure. 

Korcula Island lies some 4 Kms off the mainland coast in the Adriatic Sea, once described 

as being ‘paradise on earth’ by George Bernard Shaw. The nearest international airports with 

direct flights from the UK are from Split in the north and Dubrovnic to the south. 

The proposed Marina Marco scheme comprises an outstanding luxury resort development 

to include a 4/5 star hotel with full leisure facilities, holiday apartments, a deep-water marina 

and associated bars restaurants and shops to be developed along the boardwalk adjacent to 

the waterfront. The apartments are ‘dual key’ which allows the hotel to include these rooms 

in their bedroom inventory when not occupied by the owners and provides an income stream 

to the apartment owners when not occupied by them. The marina is likely to have up to 149 

deep water berths, although the UMP Zoning allows for up to 200 berths. 

The property is to be sold freehold with vacant possession. Offers in the region of 

€12,500,000 are invited for the property. 

Contact 

Nigel Talbot-Ponsonby FRICS, London e: ntp@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Andrew Bates MRICS, Winchester e: andrew.bates@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1962 835 960 

New face in the 

Planning team 

Rachel Whaley BSc(Hons) DipTP MRTPI has joined HLL 

Humberts Leisure as Senior Planner, to strengthen the planning 

team operating from the Northern office based at Skipton 

near Leeds. Rachel brings 14 years local authority experience, 

predominantly dealing with developments in the countryside, most 

recently within the Yorkshire Dales National Park, and is therefore well equipped to provide 

advice and assistance on planning matters, helping to achieve successful developments 

in even the most sensitive of landscapes. Rachel will be covering Yorkshire, the Northern 

regions, Scotland and North Wales, working alongside John Anderson BSc FRICS. 

Contact 

Rachel Whaley BSc(Hons) DipTP MRTPI, Skipton 

e: rachel.whaley@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 

John Anderson BSc FRICS, Skipton 

e: john.anderson@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 


News 

site requirement 

sold 

sold 

Kidspace 

Adventures 

■ Sites of approximately 20,000 sq.ft. + 

leasehold or freehold. Must be suitable for 

use as a Children’s Play Centre (D2 use) 

■ Greater London 

■ Retail/leisure parks units, redundant 

nightclubs, former bowling alleys or 

stand-alone industrial units considered. 

Car parking essential 

■ Large open plan space ideally on single 

floor. Minimum Eaves height of 6.5 

metres over most of area 

Contact 

Gavin Brent BSc MRICS, London 

e: gavin.brent@humberts-leisure.com 

t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Brimham Rocks 

Cottages, Yorks 

HLL Humberts Leisure confirms the sale 

of Brimham Rocks Cottages in North 

Yorkshire. The property comprises a 

four star holiday cottage complex with 

10 cottages and a substantial 4 bedroom 

farmhouse, set within the glorious 

Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural 

Beauty overlooking the famous Brimham 

Rocks. The sale generated considerable 

interest in the market as properties of 

this type rarely come to the market in the 

Yorkshire Dales. 

Contact 

Richard Baldwin BSc(Hons) MRICS, Skipton 

e: richard.baldwin@humberts-leisure.com 

t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 

Long Sutton Golf 

Club, Somerset 

■ 18 hole 6,352 yard (par 71) golf course 

■ 12 bay driving range 

■ Substantial well-appointed clubhouse 

■ PP for 38 bedroom golf lodge 

■ Turnover c. £1.0 million 

■ Acquired by GCH Golf Ltd 


Contact 


e: ben.allen@humberts-leisure.com 

t: +44 (0)1962 835 960 


e: martin.brister@humberts-leisure.com 

t: +44 (0)1962 835 960 

to let 

let 

under offer 

First Floor Cinema, 

Catford 

■ Occupying the first floor/circle level 

■ Capacity for approximately 200 cinema 

style seats 

■ Densely populated location with busy 

main road frontage 

■ Refurbished shell available on flexible 

terms 

Contact 



t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Loch Fyne come 

to South Wales! 

HLL Humberts Leisure acting for private 

clients has successfully negotiated a lease 

deal with Loch Fyne Restaurants at the 

Mulligans site in Cowbridge in the Vale of 

Glamorgan. This will be the seafood chain’s 

first site in South Wales. The unit will be 

totally refurbished and will reopen in Late 

spring 2008. This deal confirms the level 

of demand in the casual dining market for 

good quality sites. 

Contact 

Peter Constantine BSc(Hons) FRICS, Chepstow 

e: peter.constantine@humberts-leisure.com 

t: +44 (0)1291 627 813 

Weir Wood 

Reservoir 

Long leasehold leisure investment 

opportunity. 

HLL Humberts Leisure was instructed by 

Southern Water Services Ltd to market the 

long leasehold interest in the recreational 

area of Weir Wood Reservoir, subject to the 

existing sailing and fishing leases. 

Contact 



t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 



News 

Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire 

Colchester Castle 

Regeneration Spearheads 

Hotel Development 

HLL Humberts Leisure is 

increasingly being asked by 

both public and private sector 

clients to analyse and assess 

the current provision of hotel 

accommodation and conference 

facilities in an identified area, in 

order to assess the opportunities 

and capacities for growth and 

development. 

One of HLL Humberts Leisure’s Planning and Public Sector Development team’s most 

recent assignments was on behalf of Colchester Borough Council. Colchester is set to 

undergo significant transformation through a number of regeneration initiatives and HLL 

Humberts Leisure was retained to assess possible gaps in the market, identify opportunities 

for hotel development and evaluate a number of potential sites which would be suitable that 

match both market and planning criteria. Our report is proving to be invaluable to both 

developers looking to invest in Colchester as well as informing the Council’s emerging LDF. 

HLL Humberts Leisure has subsequently been retained to actively market potential sites and 

find suitable operators. 

The team has recently been appointed to undertake a similar study for North East 

Lincolnshire, which includes Grimsby and Cleethorpes. North East Lincolnshire is also set to 

undergo significant regeneration, which could be a catalyst for hotel development and we are 

currently assessing future opportunities. Other such studies in the recent past have included 

work in Newquay, East Cambridgeshire and Boston. 

Contact 

Nigel Mills MBHA, Brighton 

e: nigel.mills@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 


e: martin.taylor@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 

HLL Humberts Leisure heads up a 

powerful group to maximise service 

to hotel developers and operators 

In a new initiative, this respected group of companies have formed a marketing consortium 

for the hotels sector whereby, through quarterly meetings and regular discussions, they 

maximise their market contacts. More importantly, in an increasingly competitive market 

place, it ensures that the team can truly provide a one stop shop to developers and operators. 

By teaming up with similar companies who consider client service, to be as important as we 

do, we have established a powerful group able to provide a full service to the market. 

Contact 

Tim Smith BSc(Hons) MRICS, London 

e: tim.smith@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 


News 

sold 

The White Horse 

Chilgrove, West Sussex 

“Places of this quality, style and long-standing 

reputation just don’t come on to the market. This is 

a rare opportunity; it is a gem of the South” 

HLL Humberts Leisure is delighted to announce contracts have been 

exchanged (November 2007) for the sale of this outstanding country 

pub, restaurant and boutique hotel to an exceptional operator who aims 

to maximise the turnover of this well known and loved Sussex hostelry. 

The freehold property, extending to approximately 0.49 hectares 

(1.2 acres), was offered for sale as a going concern, with a manager 

and full staff complement in situ, with significant potential for 

further development of the business. 

Planning and listed building consents have been granted for seven 

additional en-suite letting rooms, a conservatory extension to the 

restaurant, an extension to the bar, a larger store area, and 

additional parking. 

Contact 



Boutique 

hotel 

opportunity, 

City of 

London 

HLL Humberts Leisure has been instructed to sell a stunning 

Listed building in the heart of the City. Renowned hotel architects, 

Reardon Smith, have judged that a boutique hotel of circa 89 

bedrooms can be created in the existing building. This property 

represents an outstanding opportunity to create a spectacular 

upmarket hotel in a prime location. 

Contact 



A conference for all 

(Ho)seasons 

This year HLL Humberts Leisure was honoured to be chosen as 

main sponsors at the second annual Hoseasons conference which 

was held in early November at Holburne Naish Holiday Park, 

situated between the South Coast and the New Forest. 

The Holiday Property team were out in force for the event, and not 

only enjoyed main stand position but Peter Smith from our Northern 

office spoke on the current state of the lodge sales market. In all the 

event provided an excellent opportunity for HLL Humberts Leisure 

to promote its specialist valuation, planning and agency expertise as 

well as highlight the new website-based lodge sales service, which 

is proving to be very popular amongst lodge owners and potential 

purchasers alike. 

The well-attended conference of over 350 lodge park owners and 

operators also heard Alison Rice, a journalist and broadcaster, 

speaking somewhat controversially on the ‘UK Holiday Market (a 

view from the media)’ and Philip Hesketh, professional speaker and 

author, who entertained the delegates with a quirky (and surprisingly 

relevant) look at ‘The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire’. 

Hoseasons are to be congratulated on putting together a professional 

and informative programme which included their own detailed 

analysis of current market trends and future growth prospects for the 

holiday letting sector, combined with various practical workshops, 

plenty of networking opportunities and topped off with a sparkling 

dinner and awards ceremony. 

Regrettably, no one from HLL Humberts Leisure was available to 

enter the amusing human-hamster-ball-race-on-water competition 

at the pool, but as part of an ongoing training and familiarisation 

programme, the Holiday Property team enjoyed a pleasant stay in 

lodge accommodation for the duration of the conference. 

Contact 


e: peter.smith@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 

Emma Carling, Skipton 

e: emma.carling@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 

Paul Barnes BSc(Hons) MRICS, London 

e: paul.barnes@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 



News 

Holiday property 

HLL’s continued success in the dynamic and 

fast-moving holiday park & park home market 

To discuss your holiday park requirements in confidence, or for 

advice, information, professional services, consultancy and planning 

queries contact: 

Peter Smith BA(Hons) MRICS, Skipton (ref PRS) 


John Mitchell BSc MRICS, London (ref JCM) 

e: john.mitchell@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Paul Barnes BSc(Hons) MRICS, London (ref PGB) 

e: paul.barnes@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Emma Carling, Skipton (ref ELC) 

e: emma.carling@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 

Richard Baldwin BSc(Hons) MRICS, Skipton (ref RNB) 

e: richard.baldwin@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 



Martin Reed MRICS IRRV, Brighton 

e: martin.reed@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 



Sold 

Badgers Retreat Holiday Park, 

Yorkshire 

An excellent opportunity to acquire a lodge 

park with a secluded countryside setting yet 

easily accessible from the A1. Comprising 

a total area of 8.9 hectares (22 acres) with planning consent for 50 

timber-clad units (to include 1 park owner/manager’s unit). 8 twin 

units and 15 fully serviced bases currently sited. Tremendous scope 

for further development. Sold freehold. 

Guide £2 million - Ref PRS/ELC t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 

Grosvenor Park, 

North Yorkshire 

A well located park home estate set in North 

Yorkshire. Site Licence for 55 park homes 

(38 twin units and 11 single units sited) with 

planning permission for 58. Approximately 1.51 ha/3.73 acres in 

total. Sold freehold. 

Guide £1.9 million - Ref PRS/ELC t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 

Bourne Park Home Estate, 

Kent 

Park home estate with planning consent and 

site licence for 29 homes, 24 sold freehold 

subject to service charge, with 5 twin units 

held on Mobile Home Act Agreements. 2007 pitch fees of £1,460 per 

pitch exclusive of all services and Council Tax. Attractive location with 

excellent communication links with the M25 (J.5) about 13 miles and 

the M20 (J.4) about 9 miles. Sold freehold as a going concern. 

Guide £200,000 - Ref JCM/PGB t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Under offer 

Three Star Park Home Estate, 

Bedfordshire 

A substantial park home estate in a prime 

location with considerable development 

potential. Currently 140 park homes (67 

twin and 73 single units), 5 residential chalets, central management 

office, shop and licensed club. In addition, 66 garages, workshop, 

open amenity/touring caravan storage area ripe for development. In all 

about 5.68 ha/14.03 acres. For sale freehold. 

Guide £6 million - Ref JCM/PGB t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Willow Trees Holiday Park, 

Kent 

A profitable private owner holiday static 

park set in mature landscaped grounds 

overlooking the sea. The caravan park has 

planning consent for 82 static holiday caravans for use from 1 March 

to 31 October and a warden’s unit. Freehold. 

Guide £1.3 million - Ref JCM/PGB t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Broughton Park Home Estate, 

Somerset 

A well-established residential park in an 

attractive rural location close to Taunton, 

presently developed with pitches for 22 twin 

mobile homes with good level of pitch fees. Main services and bulk 

LPG gas connected. M5 (J.25) about 3 miles. In all about 0.72 ha/ 

1.79 acres of mature grounds. For sale freehold. 


Riverside Caravan Park, 

Isle of Wight 

An attractive static holiday park 

redevelopment opportunity in the popular 

resort of Sandown, close to the coast, 

comprising a bare site (with old bases and services) with valid 

planning consent and site licence for use as a holiday static park for 

up to 59 pitches with an 8 month season. 3-bed manager’s/owner’s 

bungalow, former licensed clubhouse, former shower/toilet block. In 

all about 1.1 ha/2.72 acres. Freehold. 


Forest Hill Park Estate, 

Kent 

Planning and site licence for 10 large 

holiday units. M20/M26 junctions within 3 

miles – central London about 30 miles. In 

all about 1.46 ha/3.6 acres of mature landscaped grounds. Freehold. 



On the market 

Woodlands Park, 

Kent 

A substantial mixed residential and holiday 

park with development potential in a 

prime location, with an owner’s/manager’s 

4 bedroom bungalow and separate field. Currently 119 park 

homes (planning for 125 homes), 25 holiday static units and 200 

touring units. Planning for further 55 holiday statics (subject to the 

reduction of touring pitches to 100). In all about 15 ha/37 acres, 

available as a whole or in 3 lots. For sale freehold. 

Guide price £7 million - Ref JCM/PGB t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Carnaby Heritage Park, 

East Yorkshire 

A rare opportunity to acquire a newly 

constructed holiday bungalow development, 

close to the resort of Bridlington. Exceptional 

location close to the coast. 28 x 2 bedroom holiday bungalows and 3 x 

2 bedroom holiday apartments. Fully furnished show home. Suitable 

for individual sales, buy to let investors or holiday letting operators. 

Full vacant possession available. For sale freehold. 

Guide price £3.5 million - Ref PRS/ELC t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 

Land at Barefoots, 

Scottish Borders 

Outline planning consent for a proposed 

total of 20 dwellings. 3 to be affordable 

housing. Approximately 1.5ha/3.7 acres in 

total. For sale freehold. 

Guide price £1.5 million - Ref PRS t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 

Stone Valley Court PHE, 

Lincolnshire 

A well established park home estate in a 

town location with 26 homes - 25 privately 

owned, one on AST. Separate 4 bedroom 

bungalow let on AST. In all about 0.76 ha/1.80 acres. 

Guide price £1.15 million - Ref JCM/PGB t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Bartington Hall PHE, 

Cheshire 

A well located park home estate in a highly 

sought-after village location. Site Licence for 

21 park homes, 11 twin and 10 single units 

sited. For sale freehold. 

Guide price £750,000 - Ref PRS/ELC t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 

Harbourside, 

Hampshire (To Let) 

Redevelopment opportunity - former 

holiday park adjacent to Langstone 

Harbour. In all about 1.89 ha/4.66 acres. 

Available to let on a new lease - Ref JCM/PGB t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Two in a year 

News 

Large caravan parks are rarely brought to the market outside the 

large portfolios. Therefore it is a coincidence that two of the largest 

holiday parks on the Yorkshire coast, located only 3 Km apart, 

were both brought to the market and sold in 2007 by HLL 


Far Grange Park was sold in January 2007 to Bourne Leisure, as 

reported in the previous bulletin. In October 2007, Park Resorts 

acquired Skipsea Sands Holiday Park from United British Caravans. 

Skipsea Sands provides an excellent addition to the Park Resorts 

portfolio with over 700 caravan holiday home pitches, a modern hire 

fleet and excellent indoor leisure facilities. United British Caravans is 

the family company of Tom Lambert, recently Chairman of the 

National Caravan Council and a well known figure in the industry. 

Both sales were handled by the Skipton office of HLL Humberts Leisure. 

Contact 



valuation 

Lake District Portfolio 

sells for £125 million 

In a deal which has confirmed the strength of the mid-cap market in 

the leisure sector, despite the current uncertainties, Legal & General 

Ventures and Management have sold South Lakeland Group 

Limited to White Ocean Leisure Limited. The portfolio of 9 parks 

includes 3 of the finest Lake District holiday businesses including 

White Cross Bay Leisure Park and Fallbarrow Park, both of which 

enjoy frontage onto Lake Windermere. 

The vendors acquired the portfolio in 2006 from Pure Leisure 

Group Limited. The management team led by Graham Hodgson has 

been retained with a strong mandate to grow the business further. 

It is understood the company is already looking at a number of 

potential acquisitions within the sector. 

HLL Humberts Leisure was retained by the company to provide 

vendor due diligence valuations for incorporation within the sale 

process, which was handled by Deloittes. This work followed a 

similar valuation exercise on other large deals within the sector 

during the year, in respect of Park Resorts and Weststar Holidays. 

Contact 





Featured property | Nonsuch Bay 

Nonsuch Bay Paradise has 

Antigua is widely regarded as the emerging 

island of the Eastern Caribbean. Excellent 

transport links and stunning natural scenery have 

always made this a popular tourist destination 

and the island is undergoing rapid growth in 

infrastructure and amenities. 

Location 

Antigua is located in the middle of the 

Leeward Islands in the Eastern Caribbean, 

roughly 17 degrees north of the equator. To 

the south are the islands of Montserrat and 

Guadaloupe, and to the north and west are 

Nevis, St. Kitts, St. Barts, and St. Martin. 

Nonsuch Bay is a large sheltered bay 

situated on the east coast of the 

island. The bay forms a natural harbour 

considered by locals, yachtsmen and the 

more adventurous tourists to be one of 

the hidden treasures of the island. The 

tranquil waters are protected by a reef 

and are home to a variety of beaches and 

islands and their easterly location ensures 

a constant, cooling sea breeze. 

Antigua is the centre of sailing in the Caribbean, with English 

Harbour and Nelsons Dockyard alive with boats and their crews 

throughout the winter season. The island is also home to a 

surprising number of gourmet restaurants, often undiscovered by 

tourists but highly regarded by those ‘in the know’. 

The 40 acre site at Nonsuch Bay sets new standards in resort 

development on this rapidly emerging and eminently accessible 

Caribbean island. For many, the combination of direct beach 

access, waterfront living and breathtaking ocean views epitomise 

the Caribbean second home experience. 

Masterplan 

Construction at Nonsuch Bay is well under way with delivery of 

the first apartments and townhouses scheduled for early 2008. 

The focal point of the development will be the clubhouse, home 

to guest reception and concierge, a five star waterside restaurant, 

a breakfast and lunch bar and a stunning infinity pool wrapping 

around the headland. There will be two additional swimming 

pools, tennis courts and boat moorings. 

Within a very short drive or boat ride is the superb restaurant and 

boutique hotel at Harmony Hall, regarded by many as one of the 

best lunch venues in Antigua and the Caribbean. Harmony Hall is 

also the centre of the Antiguan arts community and the home to 

a new yacht club established to take advantage of the excellent 

sailing conditions in the bay. 

Nonsuch Bay is just 20 mins away from English 

Harbour and 25 mins from the airport. 


Featured property | Nonsuch Bay 

never looked better 

The Hughes Bay side of the development forms a natural 

amphitheatre and is home to the apartment buildings, which 

enjoy stunning views of Nonsuch Bay towards Bird Island and 

beyond. Crowning this feature are the villa plots which again offer 

quite exceptional coastal and inland views. To the front, adjacent 

to the beachfront apartments will be the fine dining restaurant 

and jetty. 

In contrast, Ayres Creek is the setting for a small, intimate cluster 

of townhouses which directly front the tranquil waters of the 

creek, the venue for a small number of private boat moorings. The 

westerly aspect of these homes affords beautiful views inland and 

of the setting sun across the island. To the rear of the townhouses 

it is proposed to locate the clubhouse and tennis courts. 

Properties 

Villas 

The elevations of the villa plots at Nonsuch Bay provide each 

property with stunning views either out to sea, across the bay 

itself or looking west over Ayres Creek towards the hills. Each of 

these plots provide a blank canvas to create your own home and 

La Perla together with architect Andrew Goodenough can be on 

hand to manage the project from inception to delivery. There is 

a stipulation that no more than 20% of each plot is built upon; 

decorative gardens surround the properties with the rest of each 

plot and the areas where they overlap left more natural, to create 

the atmosphere of a lovely tropical Eden. 

Townhouses 

The 15 three-bedroom townhouses in Nonsuch Bay have private 

plunge pools, and a generous living space of 220 sq.m. With most 

rooms of the townhouses opening onto a large terrace, your 

outdoor living space is extended by over half as much again. The 

graceful, curving layout of the townhouse community means you 

have a selection of views over the water, boat berths and towards 

the rolling hills from which to choose. 

This area will be the centre of activity for the sailing and boating 

community. Day sailing boats will be available for Nonsuch owners 

and guests to rent. Moorings will also be available to boat owners 

during their stay. 

Apartments 

Nonsuch Bay offers a variety of apartment types, ranging from 

one to three bedrooms (118 sq.m. to 326 sq.m. including terraces), 

to suit individual preferences. The apartment area forms a natural 

amphitheatre overlooking the bay towards the east. The sloping 

nature of the site is such that no one property has its views 

obscured by another. The individual buildings contain only a few 

apartments and are designed to maximise the intimate nature of 

the development and the privacy of the homeowners. 

Contact 

Robson Barnes t: +44 (0) 1483 242491 

or visit www.rbnonsuchbay.com 





Featured property | Wood Street, Cardiff 

The best resi scheme 

Operational partner sought for 

Wood Street a landmark development 

of serviced apartments/hotel suites 

in central Cardiff 

Opportunity 

HLL Humberts Leisure is instructed to offer the opportunity to 

operate a truly spectacular block of serviced apartments or hotel 

suites forming part of a 20 storey iconic development in the 

centre of Cardiff. 

The development comprising 220 apartments and 

up to 150 hotel suites has been described as the 

“best mixed use residential scheme” in Cardiff. 

An experienced operational partner of good covenant strength 

to match the high standards of the residential units is sought to 

enjoy the many benefits of this prestigious high rise development 

close to the main train station and Millennium Stadium. 

Location 

The development is situated in Wood Street in Central Cardiff 

within close proximity to the Millennium Stadium, the Central 

Square, and Cardiff Central Train Station. Cardiff (population 

305,353) is the capital of the Principality of Wales and home to the 

Welsh Assembly. The City is located some 152 miles from London; 

operator sought 


Featured property | Wood Street, Cardiff 

in Cardiff? 

114 miles from Birmingham; 45 miles from Bristol and 41 miles 

from Swansea and enjoys a prestigious list of companies who have 

made Cardiff their headquarters. 

The development 

The Wood Street re-development is part of several schemes in 

the centre of Cardiff aimed at regenerating and rejuvenating 

the city into a truly 21st Century capital. The views from the 

development are unrivalled with Cardiff city centre, the River 

Taff and Millennium Stadium all within a few minutes walk. The 

recently extended shopping facilities of St David’s Centre are 

within 10 minutes of the property. This hotel will be truly city 

centre adjacent to the main transport hub and within minutes 

walk of the rapidly expanding retail and leisure facilities Cardiff has 

to offer. 

The ground floor of the development will comprise circa 15,000 sq ft 

of retail units with residential apartments on the upper floors. 

It is envisaged that up to 150 hotel rooms will be created 

between floors 4 to 10 (inclusive) with a reception at the main 

entrance at ground floor level. The exact design and number of 

rooms is flexible as further floors can be incorporated into the 

hotel if required. At this stage the hotel 

mix is proposed as 21 suites, 84 studio 

apartments. 

Basis of disposal 

Our clients wish to retain the long 

leasehold interest in the whole property 

and would like to grant a lease or 

management contract over the completed 

development to an experienced operator. 

Planning permission for the scheme 

was granted in November 2007. The 

development is due to be completed in 

Q1 2010. For further information on Wood 

Street contact HLL Humberts Leisure. 

Contact 


e: tim.smith@humberts-leisure.com 

t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 



Featured property | Studley Wood & Middleton Hall Golf Clubs 

sold 

Studley Wood GC 

A magnificent parkland golf 

course with a fine pedigree. 

■ 18 hole 6,709 yard (par 73) Simon 

Gidman designed championship 

golf course, constructed to USGA 

specification 

■ Pavilion style clubhouse extending to 

approximately 829 sq.m. (8,925 sq.ft.) 

furnished, fitted and equipped to a high 

specification 

■ 15 bay golf practice range 

■ Purpose built greenkeeping complex 

■ Circa 76 hectares (170 acres) 

■ Commercial trading location in central southern England: 

Oxford – 10 mins 

M40 Motorway – 5 mins 

Central London – 1 hr 26 mins 

Birmingham (NEC) – 1 hr 20 mins 

■ Turnover circa £1,200,000 (including food and beverage) 

■ Franchised food and beverage operation 

■ Leasehold - rent £135,000 p.a. 


www.studleywoodgolf.info 

Contact 

Ben Allen BSc(Hons) MRICS, Winchester e: ben.allen@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1962 835 960 

under offer 

Middleton Hall GC 

■ Practice facilities 

A mature parkland golf course in 

a popular tourist area, with an 

established trading record. 


constructed to USGA specification 

■ Pavilion style clubhouse furnished, 

fitted and equipped to a high 

specification 

■ Golf shop 

■ 10 bay floodlit golf driving range 

■ Purpose built greenkeeping complex 

■ Circa 40.5 hectares (100 acres) 

■ Commercial trading location in popular tourist area 

■ Close to Sandringham and the North Norfolk Coastline 

■ Established profitable business 

■ All aspects of the business in hand (excl golf shop) 

■ Freehold 


Contact 


Paul Barnes BSc(Hons) MRICS, London e: paul.barnes@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 


Featured property | Forest Hill & The Ridge Golf Clubs 

for sale 

Forest Hill GC 

An established and recently extended 18 hole 

proprietary golf course, with floodlit golf driving 

range, substantial clubhouse & new 9 hole short 

game course. 


■ 9 hole short course 

■ 26 bay floodlit golf driving range 


■ Well appointed 1,090 sq.m. (11,700 sq.ft.) 

clubhouse with function facilities 

■ Established, successful and growing business 

■ Commercial trading location close to Leicester and 

the M1 motorway 

■ Freehold 

Offers invited in excess of £2.25 million 

Contact 



for sale 

The Ridge GC 

A well presented 18 hole proprietary golf course, 

with a substantial clubhouse. 


■ 10 bay driving range 


■ Spacious clubhouse with leisure club & 

two bedroom apartment 

■ Established business with growth potential 

■ Commercial trading location close to Maidstone & 

M20 motorway 

■ Freehold 

Offers invited in excess of £1.75 million 

Contact 





Featured property | Domaine du Grand Mayne 

‘Model’ Bergerac 

vineyard and UK 

business sold 

Humberts Leisure reports the sale of the Domaine du Grand Mayne vineyard located 

near Bergerac in south west France, together with its associated UK based business 

Wineshare. The property has been sold to a Hampshire vineyard owner following an open 

marketing campaign, which attracted interest from around the world. 

Domaine du Grand Mayne is a ‘model’ vineyard 

started from scratch some 20 years ago by husband 

and wife team Andrew and Edwina Gordon. 

The Gordon’s acquired a run down farm at Villeneuve de Duras, in the much sought after 

Appellation Contrôlée region of Côtes de Duras in 1985 and transformed it into a state of 

the art, award winning winery with the latest wine production and storage equipment. 34 

hectares (84 acres) are now planted with vines growing a variety of the classic grapes of 

the region, allowing the production of high quality red, white and rosé wines. 

Wineshare, the marketing arm of the vineyard, based in Dorking, Surrey, was launched 

in 1986 and was the first vineyard ‘rent a vine’ concept. Wineshare now has over 5,000 

members who account for circa 70% of the total production of Domaine du Grand Mayne, 

giving the vineyard a significant advantage over other vineyards in the region. 

The property included two farmhouses, a new 5 bedroom villa with a swimming pool, and 

a shop/visitor welcome centre with tasting room. The business achieved a turnover in the 

region of £1.7 million and was marketed with a £2.5 million guide price. 

Contact 



Glenn Hickman, London 

e: glenn.hickman@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)20 7629 670 

sold 


Featured property | Cascade Springs 

for sale 

Cascade Springs Water 

Company & High Furze 

House – an ideal leisure 

lifestyle opportunity 

Set high in the hills overlooking the St Breock Downs, Cascade Springs Water Company is a unique business 

established by the current owners some 16 years ago. Cascade Springs supplies Cornish spring water to 

commercial, institutional and leisure business consumers throughout Devon and Cornwall from premises located 

in the former farmyard of High Furze House. 

Cascade Springs Water Company is located near Wadebridge, close to the Rock and Padstow honey pot and 

within easy reach of Newquay Airport. The Company is almost the perfect business model: 

■ A non-seasonal highly profitable business producing consistent EBITDA in excess of £150,000 per annum on a 

turnover of c. £645,000. 

■ Established, growing client base in defined geographical area with few competitors. 

■ Potential for future diversification (eg supplies of tea/coffee/consumables). 

■ Small, long serving, loyal work force. 

■ Minimal requirements for Director’s specialist/technical skill (all expertise bought in when 

occasionally required). 

■ Monday to Friday operation 9.00 to 5.00. 

■ Freehold property/premises. 

Combine this exceptional business with a recently renovated 5 bedroom, 3 bath/shower room house set in 

grounds approaching c. 3.6 ha (9 acres) that include 3 stables, a ménage and 4 paddocks and the ideal leisure 

lifestyle business appears in front of your eyes. Add to this heavenly mix endless local leisure pursuits including 

the renowned St Enodoc Golf Club, surfing at Newquay, country sports (including riding with the North Cornwall 

Hunt) and fine dining and it is readily apparent that this exceptional leisure lifestyle business is worthy of further 

investigation – it certainly beats the grind of City life! 

Cascade Springs Water Company & High Furze House are being marketed by HLL Humberts Leisure at a guide 

price of £1.75 million. 

Contact 





Taxing times 

Taxing Times for 

Business Owners 

Sarah Cardew of Penningtons Solicitors 

considers the impact of the withdrawal of 

taper relief announced in the Pre Budget 

Report and the Chancellor’s introduction of a 

new form of capital gains tax retirement relief 

Taper relief 

To widespread outcry, the Government announced in the Pre- 

Budget Report that they intended to withdraw taper relief and 

replace it with a new 18% rate of tax, with effect for disposals of 

assets on or after 6 April 2008. 

Current position 

Under the current law, individuals, trustees and personal 

representatives are taxed on the gain arising on a disposal of an asset 

at the rate of income tax charged on the top slice of their income. 

The resulting gain can then be decreased by applying taper relief, 

depending on the number of years the asset has been held. 

For business assets, Business Asset Taper Relief would be available 

so that, after two qualifying years, only 25% of the gain would be 

chargeable, typically giving an effective maximum rate of 10%. For 

non-business assets, Non-Business Asset Taper Relief would be 

available so that, after a ten year qualifying period, only 60% of the 

gain would be chargeable, giving an effective maximum rate of 24%. 

Changes 

For disposals on or after 6 April 2008, or for “held over” gains 

coming into charge after 6 April 2008, it is proposed that taper relief 

will no longer be available for individuals, trustees and personal 

representatives, and a new flat rate of 18% will be applied. Of course, 

this means that it will be much simpler to work out how much CGT 

will be due because it will not be dependent upon the income tax 

bracket of the person who disposes of the asset or how long the asset 

has been held. 

Practical consequences 

Some people will want to accelerate a disposal to ensure the existing 

rules apply to a gain e.g. if someone has held their business asset for 

longer than two years. Conversely, some people may want to defer a 

disposal in order to benefit from the new 18% tax rate because they 

would not have qualified for taper relief in the first place. If you are 

contemplating a disposal, it would therefore be prudent to undertake 

an assessment of your precise position. 

The interesting question is whether the change actually has retrospective 

effect and as the Government has not yet published any draft legislation, 

it is impossible to say with any certainty. However, if someone has 

already sold a company (or will pre April 2008) and some element of 

the payment is deferred, to be paid after April 2008, that element of the 

payment is likely to be subject to the new 18% rate. 

A new form of retirement relief 

There has been a huge outcry from those adversely affected by the 

above changes and in response, the Government has proposed a 

new form of CGT retirement relief. It is understood that the first 

£100,000 of any chargeable gain on retirement will be exempt from 

tax. However, as usual, we do not have any draft legislation and 

accordingly, it will be interesting to see what is the Government’s 

definition of “retirement”. 

Those of us who are not yet ready to retire have not, as yet, been 

offered any concessions. It is understood that the Government is 

currently consulting on its proposals and it is hoped that there will 

be a package of measures to promote investment. 

Good news for inheritance tax 

There has been much press attention devoted to IHT and the other 

headline grabbing PBR announcement was in relation to IHT. 

Current position 

Under current law, each individual is entitled to an amount known 

as the IHT Nil Rate Band (“NRB”), which is chargeable to IHT at 

0%. The current NRB is £300,000 but increases each year. 

If an estate is left to a surviving spouse or civil partner, the estate is 

exempt from IHT anyway and, therefore, the NRB is wasted. The 

surviving spouse or civil partner inherits all the assets free of IHT but 

their estate is only entitled to a single NRB at the date of their death. 

Change 

From 9 October 2007, any proportion of the NRB unused on the 

first death is available automatically on the second death. This rule 

applies retrospectively. Therefore, a widow or widower who inherited 

all the assets of their spouse some years ago will now be able to pass 

assets with a value of up to £600,000 free of tax to their children. 

When the second spouse or civil partner dies, a specific claim 

needs to be made in order to obtain the benefit of the previously 

unused NRB from the estate of the first spouse or civil partner. It is 

important to remember that part or all of the NRB may have been 

used on the first death if the deceased had made chargeable gifts 

during the seven year period prior to their death or if the deceased 

was entitled to the income from a trust fund. 

This article was drafted on the basis of current tax law, 

practice and interpretation thereof as at 20 December 2007 

and is intended for general guidance only. Specific legal and 

tax advice should always be sought in relation to the facts of a 

particular situation. 

Contact 

Sarah Cardew, Penningtons Solicitors LLP 

e: sarah.cardew@penningtons.co.uk 

t: 01256 407170 

www.penningtons.co.uk 


Comment | The Sub-Prime Collapse 

Reading runes 

The impact of the Sub-Prime Collapse 

When it became clear that the serious problems within the US sub-prime mortgage 

market had international repercussions some commentators predicted a serious effect on 

the property market in the UK. There is no doubt that many lenders are now increasing 

their lending rates in the residential and commercial markets. The problems experienced 

at Northern Rock are certainly not unique. Many of the leading international investment 

banks have seen a vicious effect on their profitability, with the Chief Executives of Merrill 

Lynch and Citigroup both being ousted. The UK clearing banks are being forced to inform 

the markets of the likely losses they will suffer through the sub-prime crisis. The buy-to-let 

mortgage specialist Paragon is facing a very real prospect of collapse unless a rights issue 

is successful. 

Taken together the problems might be expected to indicate a severe slowing down in the 

leisure property market due to the lowering of confidence and tighter bank lending criteria. 

Certainly in the late summer it was generally expected that deals over £100m would be 

extremely difficult and there would be downward pressure on pricing. 

However at the time of writing this article, towards the end of December, there are mixed 

messages from the deals with which HLL Humberts Leisure has been involved; some show 

little sign of the difficulties which had been predicted. The recent sale of South Lakeland 

Parks to White Ocean Leisure (reported elsewhere in this bulletin) at a reported price of 

£125m shows no indication that prices have deteriorated over the last 6 months. We are 

aware that there was substantial competition for the portfolio. Likewise some individual 

property sales have been completed at prices which suggest demand has held up well. In 

contrast, other deals are under pressure. 

There is still an immense amount of capital looking for investment opportunities. It would 

appear that this is helping to balance the problems within the market. There is also no doubt 

that many investors have become disenchanted with commercial property as an investment 

vehicle and are turning their attention to the leisure industry, appreciating that it provides an 

interesting mix of asset backing and business upside. 

Contact 





Focus | Pubs 

The pub and restaurant 

market overview 

HLL Humberts Leisure’s Peter Constantine reviews the current 

conditions in the pub, restaurant and licensed property market 

The market continues to evolve with the scarcity of quality freehold properties continuing 

to underpin values. The major pub companies with their focused in-house acquisition teams 

are effectively purchasing freehouses as soon (or even before) they get to the market. This 

acquisition activity is offset by a churn of the lower quality tail of the large pub companies’ 

estates, which have been acquired by new entrants to the sector such as London Town, AAIM 

and Indeed. The prices paid for individual pubs in many cases now equate to yields of circa 

7% for good quality outlets with a well balanced and sustainable business which could be 

converted to a tied lease model. 

Another feature of the current market is the sale of many of the lower quality pubs for 

alternative use. We have acted on numerous occasions for vendors who wish to take a licensed 

unit out of the market whilst achieving a sale price in excess of the existing use value by 

selling the property for commercial or residential use. An example of this is the Greyhound 

at Tunbridge Wells where we acted for Punch Taverns and sold the property with planning 

permission for residential development. 

We anticipate further consolidation within the sector with low quality pubs being packaged in 

order to improve the quality of the larger pub companies’ estates. Multiples of 9, 10 and 11 

on EBITDA have been achieved and the basic supply/demand inbalance should ensure that 

values are maintained. 

The latest deal within the sector is the acquisition by Greene King of the New Century Inns 

estate of 49 pubs for £32.6 million, which equates to a headline multiple on EBITDA 

of 10.8. 

It will be interesting to assess the impact of the smoking ban following a full winter’s trading 

period. In our experience to date good operators who have invested in outdoor facilities 

will be best placed to protect their existing trade. There should also be an opportunity for 

pubs with good facilities including restaurants to be able to improve their catering trade by 

attracting families and non smokers to a smoke free environment. 

In the restaurant sector activity has also 

been frenetic with corporate deals such as 

the sale of Loch Fyne to Greene King for a 

reported £68 million for a leasehold estate 

of 36 restaurants. This deal demonstrates 

the high level of interest in the casual dining 

market with recent deals including Laurels 

acquisition of La Tasca and Ultimate 

Leisure’s purchase of Bel and the Dragon. 

We anticipate more deals in this sector as 

pub companies look to acquire operating 

formats that could be rolled out within their 

large property portfolios and provide them 

with a platform for the growth of food sales. 

We think it is safe to assume 

that the next 12 months 

within the sector will be a 

challenging time for operators 

with continued high levels of 

activity on the disposal and 

acquisition fronts. 

Contact 



t: +44 (0)1291 627 813 


Focus | Pubs 

Brains gets brave with 

pub development 

When SA Brain & Co Ltd bought an old Whitbread site it was determined to fill a gap in the upper 

end of the casual dining market. Grape & Olive is the result. 

The site was initially acquired by Wales’ leading brewer and pub operator as a defensive move. Philip 

Lay, Retail Director at Brains explains, “We have half a dozen pubs in the area, all trading reasonably 

well. A rival operator could have bought the pub and taken trade off any or all of them. 

“The challenge for us was to come up with a concept that could win new trade without having an 

impact on our other businesses in the area.” 

So Brains got brave and moved away from the classic pub development, settling instead on a stylish 

brasserie style operation. 

The bright, contemporary design, with a varied mix of seating areas, is designed for everything 

from a meal for two to after-work groups and extended families enjoying Sunday brunch. 

As the name implies, food is as integral to the mix as drinks and Brains wanted to create a menu 

very different to anything else in the estate. The mediterranean inspired menu is based on fresh, 

authentic ingredients and includes antipasto, fresh pastas and stone-baked pizzas. 

A glass panel allows customers to observe their food being prepared and adds a sense of theatre to 

the occasion. The kitchen has been fitted out with brand-new equipment, including a pizza oven. 

The drinks portfolio itself was carefully chosen and varied from the standard Brains list. Only 

premium brand of ales and lagers are on sale as well as a range of classic cocktails. 

The Grape and Olive has a large function area and an upmarket outdoor terrace. And uniquely 

there is also a marketing suite, with two-way mirrors and the chance to run focus groups for 

product launches and similar research. 

“There isn’t anything else like this in Wales,” says Lay proudly. 

Humberts Leisure advised SA Brain & Co. on this acquisition. 

Contact 

Peter Constantine BSc(Hons) FRICS, Chepstow e: peter.constantine@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1291 627 813 

Bernard Wilkinson BA(Hons) MRICS, London e: bernard.wilkinson@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 


Rent review 

advice needed? 

At HLL Humberts Leisure we have a 

team of experienced Chartered Surveyors 

who are able to advise clients on all 

aspects of Landlord & Tenant matters. 

This includes advising landlords and 

tenants on rent reviews and lease 

renewals from the initial valuation 

through to negotiating the rent review 

and if necessary dealing with referrals to 

Arbitrators and Independent Experts. 

We act for major Pub Companies and 

also a large range of private clients and 

financial institutions and deal with the 

whole spectrum of properties from city 

centre pubs and bars, community pubs, 

pub/hotels, restaurants and destination 

food pubs located in the countryside. 

Should you wish to have an informal 

discussion on any aspect of rent reviews 

and lease renewals please contact a 

member of our skilled and experienced 

team. 

Contact 



t: +44 (0)1291 627 813 

Andrew Moore BSc(Hons) MRICS, Skipton 

e: andrew.moore@humberts-leisure.com 

t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 


e: peter.haigh@humberts-leisure.com 

t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Charles Kaminaris BSc(Hons) MRICS, Chepstow 

e: charles.kaminaris@humberts-leisure.com 

t: +44 (0)1291 627 813 


Focus | Pubs 

Tony Carson and Mark Jones, both HLL Humberts Leisure 

clients and successful licensed property operators share their 

experiences in their own words... 

A simple recipe 

for success 

Tony Carson is Chairman of Eat Your Heart Out Ltd - a chain of ‘exceptionally 

good food pubs’ and CEO of The Close Imperial Pub Co. Plc - a pub EIS. 

Local provenance - local to who? And what 

have the French got to do with it anyhow? 

And is it organic and sustainable? Fairtrade 

- are they paying the Romanian cabbage 

pickers a fair wage? If the British won’t do 

it for that wage how can it be fair? And 

are they feeding them organic sustenance 

and the like? But what about their carbon 

footprints? They travelled a long way to get 

here in the back of smelly old lorries! Hand 

picked - did they wash them first? 

Right then, I’ve been putting this off for weeks. Peter Constantine 

asked me to write an article for the HLL Humberts Leisure mag. But 

what I do is what all the other pub guys do, day in, day out. 

And that is? You name it, we do it. Property evaluation, 

development and maintenance. The legals, the market analysis, 

the concept development, the hiring and (sadly) firing. People 

development, financial planning, cash-flows, budgeting, 

sensitivity analysis and as the uninspiring advert ends... and 

much, much more. 

There’s at least double that of ‘strategic’ importance before we get 

to the PAT testing and the like - fun eh! 

But the one real thing that can make and break us all is our menu. 

Get that wrong and whatever else we’ve grafted at and invested in 

is kyboshed (never wrote that word before so don’t have a clue if it’s 

spelt properly), knackered, kaput! 

But surely it’s simple, isn’t it? Just put down a few ‘traditional 

favourites’ and they’ll beat a path to our doors. But then again have 

you seen what M&S and Sainsbury’s and the Behemoth Tesco’s are 

doing in ready meals? Bleeding everything that’s what! And at a 

garage near you! And every pub’s doing ‘good’ food now. There’s 

probably more hand battered fish and chips served in the local pub 

than Harry Ramsden’s and more Aberdeen angus burgers than BK! 

So how do I differentiate my offer? How do I steal a marketing gain? 

O.K., lets think! I’m going to start from a clean sheet and wow the 

world. So where are consumers minds being pushed and pulled? If 

I can ride the wave I’ll surely score! Buzzwords, spin, that’s what I 

need. Loads of them! Alistair where are you? No, maybe not! 

Start with the big one: Organic - but it’s expensive and they look sick! 

Sustainable (what does that mean?). If Gordon Ramsey can’t tell his skate 

from cod, what chance I? But they are ‘line caught’ - cruel *’stards! 

Farm to fork via a processing plant (more 

Romanians!), a distribution warehouse, M1, 

M25, Tesco’s, the freezer and a microwave. 

Free range - hardly free, they’re twice the 

price! And what about all that methane 

they produce? Never mind the Romanians! 

And do I contribute to Greenpeace to show 

my social awareness? Like Pizza Express 

and the Leaning Tower of Pizza. “Stop 

Greenhouse gasses, ozone layers, melting 

polar-ice caps, save the whale...” or is it 

sustain the whale? Low fat, no-salt, notaste. 

No poly-unsaturates or poly doodle 

day either! Renewable, re-usable - Yuk! 

I’m exhausted, confused and starving. Think 

I’ll go down the pub for some good old fish 

and chips or a burger. But are they.....? “A 

pint of lager and a bag of nuts please?” But 

are they? 

Maybe I should go the other way! Buck the 

trend. Give them what everybody else isn’t. 

Who cares where it comes from as long as 

it’s fulfilling, tasty and value for money! 

That’s it, food for the common man and 

the wealthy man. Hey, now there’s an 

idea: Common and Wealth. They all like 

‘British’ and they all like the spice and exotic 

dishes of our Commonwealth cousins. 

After all there are more Indian and Chinese 

takeaways in our neighbourhood than in 

Bombay and Hong Kong. 

That’s it then ‘Classic British and 

Commonwealth Cooking’ coming to a pub 

near you! 

www.eyho.co.uk 


Focus | Pubs 

Growth is the target 

for Premium Bars 

and Restaurants plc 

Mark Jones writes: 

I am excited by the future for my Company as we seek to 

aggressively grow our brands, The Living Room, Bel and the 

Dragon and Prohibition Bar and Grill. 

Our recent name change from Ultimate Leisure to Premium Bars 

and Restaurants underlines the progress we have made over the 

last 2 and a half years. 

Essentially we have transformed ourselves from a pure late night 

bar and nightclub operator to a vibrant and growing restaurant 

and premium bar business – and we have positioned ourselves for 

growth. Food will be the platform around which we will grow and 

the drive now is to find exciting new sites to expand our business. 

This major strategic shift was best demonstrated by our £25 million 

fundraising earlier in the year. Part of these proceeds saw the 

acquisition of The Living Room and Bel and the Dragon pub 

restaurant businesses. These outstanding brands are capable of 

strong growth. For example The Living Room brand enjoys average 

weekly sales of £44,000 net one of the highest in the industry. 

This now gives us the platform for future growth. 

Our plans for The Living Room are bold as we seek to expand the 

brand to 30 sites across the UK from the present 13. We have 

started a pipeline for 2008 with Bristol Harbourside signed and 

two others with heads of terms agreed, but we continue to seek 

high quality sites of 7,000 – 10,000 sq ft in key towns and cities. 

Our experience of The Living Room is that 

its high quality offering with a focus on 

outstanding food and drink service is a real 

hit with customers and landlords alike and 

we are keen to showcase the brand to a 

wider audience. 

Our other main strategic thrust is to grow 

our Bel and the Dragon division. Bel is a 

great pub restaurant business with a high 

quality offering in great surroundings. 

Already we are planning for the future as 

we seek further sites to grow the business 

from its current 4 sites to our target of 20 

within 5 years. We are currently seeking 

freehold pubs with good demographics 

where we believe we can add value 

with our growing food expertise. The Bel 

philosophy of simple honest food in a 

pub restaurant environment is a winning 

formula and the brands average weekly 

sales are some £25,000. 

So the growth of business will be driven 

by a major expansion into new sites 

throughout the UK. 

So as you can see, the future for Premium 

Bars and Restaurants plc is exciting as we seek 

a major expansion of our food led businesses. 



Focus | Pubs 

Pub is 

Village pubs in support 

of rural services 

Traditional rural services and the village inn are 

under threat. Economic pressures are tempting 

landlords to sell up and many important local 

services in the rural community are in danger 

of disappearing. But, all is not lost, as many 

licensees and their communities are seeking 

alternative ways to save them. Helped by Pub 

is the Hub, an initiative set up through HRH 

The Prince of Wales in 2001, a new regional 

advisory group is to be set up for the South East 

of England led by Anthony Miller, a Consultant 

with HLL Humberts Leisure. 

With the changing economic pressures and the 

rapid decline of what were previously seen as 

essential local services, it is estimated by the 

Commission for Rural Communities that 70% 

of villages now no longer have a village shop or 

Post Office. Indeed nearly 70% may no longer 

have their own local pub, which has often 

been lost for conversion to higher value 

residential accommodation. 

HRH The Prince of Wales established Pub is 

the Hub in 2001 as part of the Rural Action 

Programme of Business in the Community, to 

encourage pub owners, licensees and their local 

communities to work together and to support, 

retain and co-locate services where possible 

within the pub which at the same time will often 

improve the viability of the total business itself. 

The advisory scheme looks for innovative 

ways to ensure rural pubs remain relevant 

to the needs of their local communities. In 

some instances, village communities acting 

as co-operatives, have bought their own local 

pub to ensure it is retained as a service centre 

for the local community. Pub is the Hub acts 

as a catalyst for small local groups by helping 

licensees support their local needs, being 

concerned with what they have lost or are 

about to lose and wanting to keep or bring 

back the local services. 

In over 5 years this support network for local 

licensees has amazingly created over 300 

projects nationally. These range from providing 

local shops, encouraging the local sourcing of 

products, accommodating Post Office services, 

providing local school meals, IT training or 

community centres and even church services 

and many of the projects today include a local 

shop plus extra facilities. 

Recognising how vulnerable small communities 

are and how a few small changes can bring 

about a huge loss of facilities, links have been 

the Hub 

made to progress schemes with support from Diageo, the Post Office, Enterprise Inns, Punch 

Taverns, Scottish and Newcastle Pub Enterprises, Marstons and several other trade bodies 

including the Beer and Pub Association, the British Institute of Innkeeping and the Campaign for 

Real Ale. 

Five regional advisory groups have already been established around the country by Pub is the Hub, 

in the North West and Cumbria, Yorkshire, East Midlands, Wales and the South West. 

John Longden, Chief Executive of Pub is the Hub is delighted to be setting up a South East 

Advisory Group because there is a constant demand for help and support in many rural areas of 

the country despite the apparent prosperity of the south east region. Local rural communities need 

a local base to meet, shop and exchange information and it is only when those services are lost 

that a community realises that the heart and soul of the village has gone. This new advisory Group 

which will be made up of voluntary representatives from the pub industry, Post Office, Local 

Development and Tourist Agencies and other trade bodies interested in supporting the role of the 

Pub is the Hub. It will use its many professional and industry contacts to give time to encourage 

and support rural licensees in the South East. 

As well as the hard work put in by the licensees, other values can be measured. These can include 

an increase in the turnover and profit of the property, the creation of local jobs and support for 

local suppliers. Pub is the Hub is more than making a profit, it is also about social values and the 

motivation of a small community that makes its living and existence sustainable e.g. in being able 

to go to the shop or Post Office and particularly recognising the disadvantages to the elderly or 

people on low incomes in being able to obtain services today. People are now more aware of the 

changing environment and the necessary support that can be encouraged for local communities by 

championing individual needs. 

This project is a way for individuals to support socially responsible issues and initiatives in their 

communities. After all the position of the local licensee or his landlords is unique as part of the 

local community as they are used to being seen as the social centre. This is all about encouraging 

local communities to identify their own needs, which then becomes the driving force to make it all 

happen. 

Many of the projects around the country have been financially supported by direct grants from 

Regional Agencies, such as through the East Midlands Development Agency and Cumbria County 

Council, who have made small services grants available. It is hoped that this may now be replicated 

in other areas of the country where local needs can be demonstrated. 

Two interesting examples of projects associated with Pub is the Hub can be seen at The Black 

Swan, Ravenstonedale in Cumbria and The Blacksmith Arms school meals service in Rothwell, 

Lincolnshire (case studies opposite). 

Anthony Miller in welcoming his new community role explained, “Pubs are unique and you have 

to know the business to help them. All pubs are individual particularly in rural areas and there is 

never one reason why one is successful and there are many different service provision ideas, which 

can be incorporated in pubs, sharing overheads or creating part-time jobs. The more that people 

are aware of the help and support from Pub is the Hub, with a constantly changing economic 

environment this advice can hopefully help and encourage many local communities and licensees 

to retain their necessary services and it is also an exciting and rewarding project with which to be 

involved and put something back into the industry and community in the South East.” 

Contact 

Anthony Miller FRICS IRRV, London 

e: anthony.miller@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 


Focus | Pubs 

Black Swan Village Shop, 

Ravenstonedale, Cumbria 

The Black Swan holds a pivotal role within the small remote 

community of Ravenstonedale, being a hotel, restaurant and public 

house. After many years of decline Mr and Mrs Dinnes purchased 

the hotel in July 2006, and have invested around £150,000 restoring 

the building and developing the business. The business provides 

valuable local employment for 3 full-time and 9 part-time staff, 

and it has always been the aim of the owners to provide as many 

services as possible. There are currently no community services 

in Ravenstonedale, and the hotel provides a meeting place and 

holds many community events and fund raising activities for the 

village. The parish of Ravenstonedale has 570 residents, and 107 

people are aged 65 and over (Source: 2001 Census). The final 

grocer shop closed some 7 years ago, and the nearest shops are at 

Kirkby Stephen (4 miles) and Tebay (6 miles). This means that local 

residents, particularly the elderly, infirm, and those with no transport 

have to travel to Kirkby Stephen for the most basic groceries. 

The Parish Council have been very supportive of the creation of a 

new village shop, and many local people (and visitors to the area) 

consistently commented that the lack of a shop in the village is a 

frustration. From anecdotal evidence to date it was felt that there is 

a definite need for a shop, and that there will be local support for the 

new service. 

Project summary 

The shop is a small scale, cost-effective development, which has 

converted an existing ground floor bedroom adjacent to the car park, 

and has good disabled access. The room was in good condition, 

with basic services installed, and the work included the removal of a 

partition wall and ensuite bathroom, plastering and decorating, and 

installing shelving, fridge and freezer and sales area. New signing 

was also provided. The work was project managed by the owners, 

completed on budget and within a very short timescale of around 

8 weeks. 

Outcomes 

The shop has strengthened the community role of the hotel and 

added to the quality of life for local people; particularly those who 

find it difficult or are unable to travel to local shops further afield. 

The shop has created new employment opportunities for local 

people, immediately providing 1 part-time job. The shop sources 

all goods locally, and the fresh food section sells only local produce, 

supporting local suppliers. The increased turnover in fresh goods has 

also helped to improve the overall buying power of the business. 

Blacksmiths Arms School Meals Service, 

Rothwell, Lincolnshire, East Midlands 

Ian Quill is the owner and landlord of the Blacksmith’s Arms, 

Rothwell near Market Rasen. Ian owns two pubs and employs 

approximately 40 staff. He was approached by the Head teacher of 

Kelsey Primary School to discuss the possibility of supplying hot 

school meals to pupils at Kelsey Primary. Ian was interested in the 

opportunity but understood that if the scheme was to be successful 

he needed to supply meals to more than one school. Ian also wanted 

to be able to separate the school meals enterprise away from that of 

his pub business so that the enterprise could be monitored. 

Project summary 

The project has set up a catering unit within the existing kitchen of 

the Blacksmiths Arms, and has involved the sourcing, purchasing and 

installation of the equipment required to produce high quality school 

meals to stringent requirements. The kitchen has been completely 

re-designed in order to meet both the high volume of school meals 

produced daily and improve the efficiency of this highly complex new 

catering operation. 

Outcomes 

The Blacksmiths Arms now supplies 5 local primary schools with 

hot meals, and on average just over 300 meals are transported 

to the schools every day. The project has provided valuable local 

employment and training with 7 new members of staff employed as 

part of the school meal catering enterprise. This has had a positive 

effect on the local rural community in its own right, 6 people are 

employed on a job share, (3 people plus manager required on a daily 

basis). All 6 employees are parents of children at the schools and all 

but one were previously unemployed, the hours fit in with parental 

responsibility and can be flexible when shared. All the staff recruited 

had no previous catering experience, but have been given training 

and they now have all the skills necessary. One of the benefits of 

providing a school meal service has been increased ingredient 

purchasing for the business thus allowing the whole business to 

benefit from economies of scale. Full use is made of seasonal 

vegetables, regular communication with suppliers is carried out and 

menus are adjusted accordingly. Produce is sourced locally where 

applicable, which also helps with reducing the cost of the meal, as 

local seasonal produce is cheaper. Being involved with such a project 

helps build upon the existing good name of the Pub business and 

quite often good feedback is received relating to the school meals, 

which can only be good publicity. 



Focus | Noise Reduction 

Sounds good 

Ed Clarke of Alan Saunders Associates lends an ear. 

Some people like the sound of racing cars. There 

is an hotel close to a contentious windfarm 

development which now runs guest trips to 

experience the calming effect of the sounds made 

by the turbines. I even heard about a community 

in Yorkshire which complained en masse when the 

local factory stopped making the distinctive process 

noise with which they had become so familiar. 

As noise consultants we find ourselves asked to make sweeping 

generalisations about what levels of noise are or are not acceptable in 

certain situations. There is a common misconception that there must 

be proscriptive limits for all such situations. 

The reality, however, is less clear cut. We can measure and predict 

noise levels very accurately, but we don’t know how any given 

individual will respond. This is the ‘soft’ end of the noise impact 

equation, often referred to as ‘psycho-acoustics’. 

People respond to noise differently, some are overly sensitive, some 

surprisingly indifferent. All we can do is deal with the average 

expectations of society, rather than each individual in it. 


Focus | Noise Reduction 

You may be surprised to discover that the 

threshold of “acceptability” for airport noise 

is a level at which 10% of the population are 

still “extremely annoyed” by the aircraft. 

Some people would be annoyed at any 

level, so it is impossible to achieve 100% 

satisfaction. All legislative and planning 

guidance in this field applies a compromise 

Airport Noise Contours 

determined by the percentage of the 

population it is practical and economical to satisfy. 

If a mattress manufacturer were to fill a contract to supply beds for the entire population, but 

designed for the level of comfort demanded by a pea-sensitive princess, he would achieve a 

high level of customer satisfaction, but at an uneconomical and unnecessary cost. 

ASA also work on hotel projects very close to international airports, where unsurprisingly 

there is great demand for hotel rooms, and the budget end of the market is very competitive. 

Here too we must establish a right balance, in this case between restful conditions, and an 

economical build cost. Guests accept that they will be aware of the proximity to the airport, 

but deserve a suitable level of protection. 

The same principles apply in two other fields of recent activity: clay target shooting and 

motorsport noise. 

It would be impractical to control the noise emitted by gunshots in the countryside to make 

them inaudible at all times, at all dwellings in all weather conditions. Some complainants will 

be annoyed by any audible shooting, therefore a compromise is needed. 

After many arguments about this compromise, the interested parties got together and 

wrote a guidance document ‘Clay Target Shooting, Guidance on the Control of Noise’, 

to provide a framework for the measurement, assessment and control of the community 

disturbance from this source. The arguments continue, but at least the protagonists are 

talking the same language, using the same measurement techniques and generally comparing 

apples with apples. 

Palmer Sport Nissan 350z 

The world of motorsport, however, is a 

different story. As one of the noisiest and 

most contentious leisure activities in the 

country, motorsport in all its formats, is a 

frequent source of complaint and conflict. 

ASA works with a number of major circuits 

in the UK to assess and control noise 

impact. We have experience of motocross 

activities and go-kart tracks too. 

Motor-circuit noise emissions mapping 

The issues surrounding the generation and propagation of noise from these activities and 

their impact on nearby communities are the same, only the geography, vehicles and context 

change. There is no standard method, however, for measurement, prediction and assessment, 

so over time a number of approaches have developed, with varying levels of success. 

For this reason, ASA has become involved with the other key stakeholders (Institute of 

Acoustics, Association of Noise Consultants, Chartered Institute of Environmental Health, 

Auto Cycle Union, Motor Sports Association) in seeking to draft some comprehensive 

guidance in this field. It is unlikely that we shall readily agree levels of universally acceptable 

motorsport activity noise, for the reasons above, but we hope to at least help establish a 

framework on which future arguments can be more constructively based. 

ASA is based in Winchester, covering national and international projects in a number 

of leisure related fields. Planning assessments and public inquiry expert witness work 

feature strongly in this field, as do licensing and nuisance assessments particularly in the 

entertainment and licenced premises sectors. We even did a noise at work assessment in a 

strip club once, but that’s a story for another day... 

Contact 

t: +44 (0)1962 872130 e: edclarke@alansaunders.com www.alansaunders.com 



Energy Performance of Buildings Directive 

Bright sparks move 

early on EPBD 


(EPBD) . The facts you need to know. 

What is the Energy Performance 

of Buildings Directive? 

The EU Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) 

was introduced in the UK from January 2006 with a three year 

implementation period ending January 2009. 

Its objective is to improve energy efficiency and reduce carbon 

emissions as part of the government’s strategy to achieve a 

sustainable environment and meet climate change targets agreed 

under the Kyoto Protocol. 

The EPBD introduced higher standards of energy conservation for 

new and refurbished buildings from April 2006 and will require 

energy performance certification for all buildings when sold or 

leased. In addition it will introduce regular inspections for larger air 

conditioning systems and advice on more efficient boiler operation 

for commercial property. 

What are the requirements of the EPBD? 

Commercial property 

There are two types of energy certificate required for new and 

existing commercial buildings; Energy Performance Certificates that 

will be required on construction, sale or lease of all buildings by 

October 2008 and Display Energy Certificates (DEC) required for 

public buildings over 1000sq.m. from April 2008. 

Energy Performance Certificates 

From April 2008 all newly constructed non-dwellings will require an 

Energy Performance Certificate and existing buildings with a floor 

area over 500 sq.m. will require an EPC when sold or rented. The 

certificate will include an energy rating, as well as advice on how to 

make cost effective improvements to the building to make it more 

energy efficient. The ratings will be similar to those currently used for 

white goods, ranging from A to G, with A the best and G the worst. 

From October 2008 the requirement for an EPC will be extended to 

all non-dwellings sold or rented (not just those over 500 sq.m.). 

From January 2009 air conditioning systems (larger than 12kW) will 

be subject to inspection every five years. 

What type of buildings need an 

EPC or Display certificate? 

Energy Performance Certificates will be required upon construction 

sale or lease for all non-dwellings from small high street retailers and 

offices to larger scale commercial/leisure premises such as airports, 

shopping centres, hotels and health clubs. 

Exemptions to the requirement for an EPC are: 

■ Places of worship 

■ Temporary buildings in use for less than two years, e.g. site offices 

■ Low energy demand buildings such as agricultural buildings, 

e.g. barns 

■ Stand alone buildings less than 50 sq.m., e.g. sheds/ 

summerhouses 

When are EPCs required? 

Energy Performance Certificates will be introduced for nondwellings 

upon construction, sale or lease from April 2008. 

Newly constructed buildings 

All newly constructed buildings will require an EPC. Off plan 

buildings do not require an EPC until the construction is complete, 

however the government are encouraging the production of a 

predictive EPC based on the building regulation compliance check at 

the design stage. 

Commercial Sales and Lettings 

An Energy Performance Certificate is valid for 10 years and must 

be made available to a prospective buyer or tenant at the earliest 

opportunity before entering a contract for sale of lease but no later 

than the release of marketing material or the request for a visit to the 

property. 

For commercial lettings an EPC is only required for a newly leased 

property. There is no need to obtain an Energy Performance Certificate 

for an existing tenancy. If a valid Energy Performance Certificate still 

exists when changing tenants no new certificate is required. This applies 

to both private and social sector landlords and tenants. 

How long is an EPC valid for? 

Energy Performance Certificates are valid for 10 Years. 

The accompanying advisory report on cost effective improvements is 

valid for 7 years. 



Are there any enforcements? 

Building Control will enforce certification of newly constructed 

buildings. 

Trading Standards will enforce certification of existing buildings. 

Penalty fines will apply if a valid certificate is not produced up to 6 

months after the certificate was required. 

When is the EPBD being implemented? 

6 April 2008 EPCs required for the sale or rent of 

buildings other than dwellings with a 

floor area over 500 sq.m. 

EPCs required on construction for all 

non-dwellings 

1 October 2008 EPCs required on the sale or rent of all 

remaining non-dwellings 

EPCs required on the sale or rent of 

all remaining buildings other than 

dwellings. 

4 January 2009 First inspection of all existing 

air-conditioning systems over 250 kW 

must have occurred by this date. 

4 January 2011 First inspection of all remaining 

air-conditioning systems over 12 kW 

must have occurred by this date. 

Does the EPBD apply in Scotland and 

Northern Ireland? 

The EPBD will be implemented in Scotland and Northern Ireland 

but the timetable will be different to that for England and Wales. 

How are Energy Performance Certificates 

produced? 

Buildings will be rated on predicted energy use, calculated mostly 

using the Simplified Building Energy Method (SBEM) methodology, 

which is also used for Part L of the Building Regulations. 

The SBEM methodology is a new development specifically created 

for the EPBD by the Building Research Establishment on behalf 

of the government. Unlike the SAP used for dwellings there is no 

reduced data version for use on existing property, which means a full 

calculation must be carried out each time. 

The basic principles of the methodology are: 

■ The building must be zoned by use, 

therefore a set of up-to-date plans will be 

required in order to calculate the zone sizes. 

■ Each zone is treated as a cube and a U 

value of each face of the zone must then 

be determined either from look up tables 

or by calculation from first principles. 

■ Similarly all the services must be 

determined, such as boiler type and 

output and the runs of the services 

around the building. 

■ All these elements are then entered 

into the software, which compares 

the building to a benchmark property. 

For new buildings the software will 

determine whether the property meets 

the energy requirements of the building 

regulations. For existing property it will 

give a energy performance rating plus a 

comparative benchmark building. 

■ The software will also generate 

generic cost effective improvement 

recommendations to accompany the 

EPC, which must be tailored to suit the 

property. 

Who can produce Energy 

Performance Certificates? 

Only accredited energy assessors will be 

able to carry out assessments to produce 

Energy Performance Certificates. It is 

expected that there will be three levels of 

assessor; Basic, qualified to survey simple 

properties up to 500 sq.m., Intermediate, 

qualified to survey all buildings, both new 

and existing using the SBEM methodology 

and Advanced, highly specialist consultants 

qualified to survey complex buildings using 

dynamic simulation models. 

For further information on Energy 

Performance Certificates visit www.rics.org/epbd 

or contact HLL Humberts Leisure. 

Contact 


e: ben.allen@humberts-leisure.com 

t: +44 (0)1962 835 960 

Stephen Morgan FRICS, Chepstow 

e: stephen.morgan@humberts-leisure.com 

t: +44 (0)1291 627 813 



Planning Reform Bill 

Planning for 

the future 

Rachel Whaley, Senior Planner at HLL 

Humberts Leisure examines the impact of 

the Government’s new Planning Reform 

Bill and its likely effect on the future of the 

planning system. 

The Planning Reform Bill was introduced to Parliament on 27 

November 2007 promising to “…reform the planning system, providing 

for quicker and more transparent decision-making…” The Bill is the 

latest stage in a major overhaul of government policy which has 

seen reviews of land use planning and transport with the Planning 

White Paper and Housing Green Paper putting forward proposals for 

change in the last year. 

The primary purpose of the Bill is to streamline the process for 

major infrastructure projects. The bulk of the provisions in the 

Bill deal with establishing this new system, as well as introducing 

National Policy Statements to set out government policy advice on 

development. The Bill also brings changes to the existing planning 

system – ensuring that climate change policies are included in 

authorities’ local development documents and making significant 

changes to the process for handling appeals, now making provision 

for local planning authorities to consider appeals for minor 

developments. It is this latter proposal which is likely to have most 

immediate impact on the outcome of development proposals but first 

a quick overview of the system introduced by the Bill. 

New Infrastructure Planning Commission to grant 

‘development consent’ for major infrastructure projects 

A separate body, the Infrastructure Planning Commission, will be 

set up to deal with applications for major infrastructure projects, 

developers applying not for planning permission but for an ‘order 

granting development consent’ which will replace the existing forms 

of planning permission for projects identified as nationally significant 

infrastructure projects. Such projects include generating stations, 

electric lines, underground gas storage, pipe-lines, highways, airports, 

harbour facilities, railways and rail freight interchange, plus dams, 

reservoirs, transfer of water resources, waste water treatment plants, 

and hazardous waste facilities. 

It is unlikely that many leisure and tourism developments would 

fall within these categories of nationally significant infrastructure 

projects, although of course some major schemes may include within 

their proposals elements which trigger the need for the new form 

of development consent. It should be noted that the provisions of 

the Bill only apply to projects of a certain scale within the above 

categories. For example, waste water treatment plants exceeding a 

population equivalent of 150,000, not the private treatment plants 

regularly included in development proposals. 

Community consultation: pre-application requirements 

A key feature of the new system for obtaining an order for 

development consent is the requirement for applications to include 

a consultation report stating what community consultation has been 

carried out, results of that consultation and the account taken of 

those results in preparing the scheme. 

Whilst the formal pre-application requirements for community 

consultation set out in the Planning Reform Bill apply only to the 

new process for major infrastructure projects, this does mirror the 

increasing demands local planning authorities are already placing on 

developers. Despite assurances of a more efficient system being in 

place, the process of applying for planning permission is becoming 

ever more difficult. Whilst house extensions and renewable energy 

initiatives could soon be going through more or less ‘on the nod’, and 

such development can often be potentially very intrusive, many of the 

developments carried out by caravan and holiday park operators, and 

on park home sites, are still likely to require full planning permission. 

The increasing demand for yet more pre-validation requirements for 

these still relatively minor developments is a real cause for concern. 


Planning Reform Bill 

Community Infrastructure Levy 

Provision is also made in the Bill to introduce regulations for 

imposition of a charge to be known as the Community Infrastructure 

Levy, the overall purpose of which is to ensure that costs incurred in 

providing the infrastructure required to support development of an 

area can be funded by the landowners whose land value increases 

due to permission for development being granted. 

Clearly this will set alarm bells ringing, incurring additional costs 

onto a development scheme. A typical leisure and tourism proposal 

could be a small extension to an existing caravan or holiday park, 

for example, yet this will no doubt result in a significant increase 

in the value of the land in question. Will the authorities decide that 

such a proposal puts additional pressure on local infrastructure 

and therefore attracts the charge? Will authorities see this as an 

opportunity to improve existing infrastructure at the developer’s 

expense when previously it would be their responsibility? 

There is very little detail in the Bill to indicate what type or scale 

of development proposals or level of increase in land value would 

attract the levy. Unlike some of the provisions outlined above, 

however, neither is there any suggestion that the new charge would 

relate only to the nationally significant infrastructure projects 

requiring development consent. A watchful eye should be kept while 

the details of this particular proposal unfold as it could potentially 

prove a major constraint to small businesses seeking to expand. It 

is important that the leisure and tourism industry has a voice in the 

political debate on this issue. 

Local Planning Authorities to determine Appeals 

An item of more pressing concern arising from the Planning Reform 

Bill is the move to allow local planning authorities to determine 

appeals on minor planning applications. 

The intention would be that for applications determined at officer 

level the right to appeal against refusal of permission or conditions 

imposed on a permission is to be replaced with a review process, 

whereby the local planning authority must review its decision if 

asked to do so by the applicant. Under this process the authority 

may either uphold their original decision or reverse or vary any 

part of that decision. The same process would also apply for 

Lawful Development Certificates and any appeals against nondetermination 

of an application. 

The details of this process have yet to be drawn up but the Bill 

makes it clear that applicants cannot appeal to the Secretary of State 

against a decision unless they have first asked the local authority to 

review their decision and the authority has failed to do so within 

the prescribed period. Again, details of the relevant timescales have 

yet to be drawn up. If applicants are not satisfied with the decision 

following this review then there does not appear to be an option 

to take the matter to the Secretary of State through the Planning 

Inspectorate. The next step would be to pursue the matter through 

the High Courts within 6 weeks of the decision being issued which 

is an extremely complex and costly process, far more so than the 

current process of lodging an Appeal with the Planning Inspectorate. 

Whilst this process may be helpful to the local planning authorities 

and greatly reduce the workload of the Planning Inspectorate, it is 

hard to see how the process can be of any assistance to the applicant. 

It seems unlikely that a planning authority having just refused 

planning permission for a development, presumably believing it did 

not comply with their adopted policy, could then if faced with an 

Appeal come to a different view. Normally at an Appeal the authority 

is charged with defending its original decision; it is therefore difficult 

to imagine how they would now take a truly impartial view in 

reconsidering the application. 

Watch this space 

So whilst at first glance the most significant items of the Bill appear 

to have little impact on many of the development proposals we see 

coming forward, within this Bill is a major change to the existing 

planning system that can only serve as a huge disadvantage for 

applicants at every level, taking away the right to an impartial 

hearing and fair reassessment of delegated decisions. 

At this stage it is a case of ‘watch this space’, as the exact details 

are drawn up of how the process will work in practice and some 

careful analysis of the first review decisions to be made will help 

in developing the most effective strategy for operating in this 

framework. 

Contact 

Rachel Whaley BSc(Hons) DipTP MRTPI, Skipton 

e: rachel.whaley@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 



Update | Planning Gain Supplements Abandoned 

Government u 

The Government have decided against 

Planning Gain Supplements (PGS) in favour 

of a new planning charge system, 

HLL’s Simon Davis explains... 

In the Spring 2007 edition of the Leisure bulletin, we reported on 

the proposed introduction of a Planning Gain Supplement (PGS) in 

place of the current Section 106 system. 

This proposed system was essentially a tax on new development 

imposed through the planning application process. If introduced, 

it would have been applied to the majority of new developments 

including leisure and residential caravan sites and may have resulted 

in significant extra costs to applicants across the country. We 

considered that this would have been particularly detrimental to 

owners of smaller leisure based developments including residential 

and holiday parks as they, unlike residential developers would 

not have previously had to pay large sums of money to fund 

infrastructure improvements. 

Notwithstanding the fact that this u-turn in policy has undoubtedly 

cost the tax payer significantly already, it is clear that the new system 

could potentially be just as unkind and costly as the previous PGS 

system. In this article we outline the new system and the pros and 

cons evident thus far. But first it is important to set the scene: 

Background 

The Planning Gain supplement was proposed in 2006 as a result of 

growing concerns about the inability of local government and utility 

providers to provide the necessary infrastructure to cope with the 

number of new homes required to meet current and projected needs. 

It was to replace the existing Section 106 system which was seen 

to be too cumbersome, time consuming and generally inefficient 

to allow for use across the vast majority of planning applications. 

Indeed, Mr Hood made the point in his article that the majority 

of small to large housing developments, as well as commercial and 

industrial schemes currently escape the Section 106 process. 

The PGS was proposed to streamline the existing system, to make 

it easier to achieve financial contributions, to make the system fairer 

and more transparent. It involved capturing a portion of the land 

value uplift arising from the planning process. 


Update | Planning Gain Supplements Abandoned 

There were no firm details on how the PGS would work (these were to be made public in 

early 2008), however the proposed system was heavily criticised in numerous corners for: (a) 

making development less attractive and thus slowing down the economy and house building 

process, (b) hitting small developers hard, (c) not resulting in spending in the communities 

in which the money was raised, (d) how the system would work in terms of calculating land 

value increases and (e) reducing the attractiveness of Brownfield sites which are already very 

costly in terms of remediation issues. This prompted calls for improvements to the current 

Section 106 system and had numerous organisations and associations up in arms as to the 

impact of such a ‘tax’ on developers both small and large. 

-turns on PGS 

The u-turn and Current Proposals 

The strength of objection to the PGS system, coupled perhaps with the change in leadership 

and thinking of central government (particularly the Communities and Local Government 

Department) has resulted in PGS being dropped. New Planning Minister, Yvette Cooper 

announced in October 2007 that a planning charge system will be introduced instead and 

that this would build on the existing Section 106 approach and Tariff system pioneered by 

Milton Keynes. 

Ms Cooper went on to explain that the planning charge would “capture more planning gain 

to finance additional investment in local and strategic infrastructure whilst preserving incentives to 

develop”. The planning charge is still in its infancy and full details are yet to be published. 

However, the main features of the system have been put forward, and these are: 

■ Residential and commercial development will be liable to pay the planning charge but 

subject to low de-minimis thresholds; 

■ Local Planning Authorities will be able, where appropriate, to use planning charges 

to supplement a negotiated agreement (i.e. Section 106). However, such negotiated 

agreements will still be necessary to secure affordable housing and to address costs related 

to a specific development site; 

■ The planning charge should be based on a costed assessment of the infrastructure 

requirements arising as a result of the development and as outlined by the development 

plan for the area (which comprises of the regional spatial strategy and the local 

development framework), taking account of land values; 

■ The planning charges should include a contribution towards the costs of infrastructure of 

sub-regional and regional importance as identified in development plans; and 

■ New planning charge policies in development plans will be tested through the 

development plan process, in consultation with developers, stakeholders and the 

community to ensure they support the viability of new development and levels of new 

housing required. 

Ms Cooper also stated that she believed that the proposals will: “(a) Make the planning 

charge-setting process simpler and more certain; (b) Provide a fairer means of securing 

contributions from developers for infrastructure and (c) Encourage regions and local 

authorities to plan positively for housing and economic growth”. 

In practice, this sounds like a much fairer system and compares favourably with the PGS. 

However, the proof is invariably in the detail and until more specifics are made public, it will 

not be clear just how much better this idea is. One thing that strikes me already is that whilst 

I accept that infrastructure improvements are required elsewhere in the regional context and 

for strategic purposes, it is difficult to imagine small developers being happy seeing their 

contributions siphoned away to help fund major road building schemes or power plants, 

particularly if their local roads continue to have potholes or if local post offices are closed. 

Notwithstanding the proposals for a planning charge, it is understood that many local 

authorities have been working independently following the mooting of PGS, in order to push 

through their own tariff based systems or strengthen existing policy for use in the negotiation 

of Section 106 agreements. Tariffs similar to that pioneered by Milton Keynes are already in 

use in more than 20 areas and several people 

have questioned why the government needs 

to have this system embedded in national 

legislation. Particularly as costs can be saved 

by continuing to allow local authorities to 

develop their own systems under existing 

laws and with more localised consultation. 

Perhaps one of the reasons is to ensure that 

the financial ‘rewards’ are not restricted to 

the local area and instead are freed up to be 

used on projects of regional importance as 

mentioned above. 

Case Study: Milton Keynes Tariff 

Milton Keynes launched its own 

infrastructure tariff in March 2007 under 

existing planning law and is operated 

by both Milton Keynes Council and the 

Milton Keynes Partnership authorities. 

The tariff scheme that has been developed 

sets out agreed principles for the provision 

of infrastructure and funding to be carried 

forward and incorporated into site specific 

agreements. In addition to providing the 

basis for charges of £18,500 for each 

new house, £67 for every square metre 

of commercial floor space and £260,000 

per hectare of employment land, the tariff 

scheme also includes measures to prevent 

land banking, penalise developments that 

are not completed in agreed time frames, 

ensure high quality, apply construction and 

environmental standards and reserve sites 

for community use. 

Payments are typically spread over a 

period with 25% required when the project 

commences, 25% before completion of 

each unit and the outstanding 50% prior to 

occupation. However, the Milton Keynes 

system does not require payments for leisure 

based development and therefore the same 

might be true for a national wide system. 

What happens next? 

Details are limited at present. However it 

is certain that more specifics will follow 

in 2008 and that consultation will be 

undertaken before the proposals are 

introduced. Yvette Cooper has also stated 

that once the charge has been introduced it 

will be continually monitored and evaluated 

to ensure its aims are being achieved. It will 

be important to ensure that consultation 

opportunities are grasped fully in order to 

ensure that the views of the leisure market 

are represented on this matter. 

Contact 

Simon Davis BA(Hons) DipTP MRTPI, Brighton 

e: simon.davis@humberts-leisure.com 

t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 



Update | www.lodgesales.com 

Chesil Vista 

www.lodgesales.com 

nine months on 

Created in response to lodge developer 

clients’ requests, HLL Humberts 

Leisure’s www.lodgesales.com service 

which was launched in Spring 2007 is 

going from strength to strength 

Dedicated to the sale of quality lodges in prime locations, this high 

profile, web-based marketing service is designed to complement the 

developer’s own marketing strategy and aims to provide another 

string to the marketing bow. 

The site not only offers tailored descriptions of the individual parks 

and lodges, but also advice to potential lodge buyers, information for 

lodge developers and some useful links to related advice and services. 

Many potential lodge buyers are unaware of the range of holiday 

lodges available in the market. A regular series of advertisements in 

key publications directs buyers to the website which promotes both 

‘lifestyle’ second home ownership and ‘buy-to-let’ investment in the UK. 

We have a significant number of parks 

registering for the service in preparation for 

the 2008 holiday season. 

To find out more about the HLL Humberts 

Leisure Lodge Sales service and 

www.lodgesales.com please contact one of 

the team below. 

Contact 


e: peter.smith@humberts-leisure.com 

t: +44(0)1756 799 271 

Emma Carling, Skipton 

e: emma.carling@humberts-leisure.com 

t: +44(0)1756 799 271 

Paul Barnes BSc(Hons) MRICS, London 

e: paul.barnes@humberts-leisure.com 

t: +44(0)20 7629 6700 


Update | www.lodgesales.com 

Brandedleys 

Silver Ridge 

Kingsmere Lodges 

Bassenthwaite 

Lodges at Cretingham Golf Club, 

Suffolk 

A peaceful lodge development on the edge 

of a golf course in rural Suffolk. 

Prices from £125,000 

Castle Cary Holiday Park, 

Dumfries & Galloway 

A beautiful coastal setting in the heart of 

Dumfries & Galloway. 


Burton Waters Lodges, 

Lincolnshire 

An exciting new lodge development forming 

part of this highly sought-after inland 

marina resort. 


Chesil Vista, Dorset 

An attractive, small lodge development in a 

spectacular setting with stunning views over 

the sea. 


Flusco Wood, Cumbria 

Breathtaking location in the Lake District 

close to Ullswater. 


The Park of Brandedleys, 

Dumfries 

Overlooking Auchenreoch Loch, the park 

is currently being developed with The 

Retreat units. 

Prices on application 

Abbey View Lodges, Suffolk 

A small and attractive development of 

timber lodges in a peaceful and rural setting. 


Silver Ridge Park, Cumbria 

Within the spectacular South Lakeland area 

of Cumbria, close to the village of Hale. 


Melldalloch Retreats, Argyll 

A tranquil setting overlooking Loch Fyne 

with The Retreat contemporary units. 


Kingsmere Lodges, 

Cambridgeshire 

A small and exclusive development of 

architect designed lodges on the edge of a 

golf course. 


Hare Hill Lodges, 

North Yorkshire 

On the edge of a picturesque country 

village close to the North York Moors 

National Park. 


Little Eden Country Park, 

Yorkshire 

Well located close to the popular seaside 

resort of Bridlington. 

Prices dependent upon style and design 

Bassenthwaite Lakeside Lodges, 

Cumbria 

A peaceful and relaxing lodge park on the 

shores of Bassenthwaite in the Lake District. 


Swainswood Park, Derbyshire 

Set in the Derbyshire countryside in the 

heart of the National Forest. 


Long Ashes Park, North Yorkshire 

In the heart of Wharfedale in the idyllic 

Yorkshire Dales National Park. 

Prices for Phase 2 available soon 



Planning | Recent Successes 

Change of planning 

condition allows 12 month 

season for holiday caravans 

With milder winters, and the increased use of long weekend and 

mini break vacations, operators of static holiday caravans want to 

offer their customers the chance to occupy caravans at any time of 

the year. 

However, traditionally, holiday caravan parks are subject to a 

Planning Condition limiting the occupation of holiday caravans 

to 10 or 11 months in each year. The purpose of these Planning 

Restrictions is to ensure that holiday caravans are not used for all 

year round residential occupation. 

Acting on behalf of our client, who operates a holiday static holiday 

park in West Sussex, HLL Humberts Leisure was able to obtain 

a variation of the Planning Condition to permit all year round 

occupation in accordance with the recommendations contained in 

the Good Practice Guide on Planning for Tourism drawing particular 

attention to the changing nature of caravan holiday homes, and the 

advantages to the businesses which provide the accommodation and 

to those host communities which are supported by the spending that 

it generates. 

In order to prevent the holiday homes being occupied for residential 

purposes, our client agreed to a planning condition requiring 

documentary evidence of occupiers maintaining a primary residence 

elsewhere by way of an up to date register of all the names of all 

owner / occupiers of individual caravans on the site, and of their 

main home address. This information had to be in a form that would 

be available at all reasonable times to the Local Planning Authority. 

With the benefit of the revised Planning Consent, our client is 

now able to operate his static leisure caravan park for 12 months in 

each year. 

Seasonal tourers operate 

as static caravans 

Our client had the benefit of a Planning Consent for a mixed use 

static and holiday and touring park in the West Country, subject 

to planning conditions which limited the length of stay on part of 

the touring and camping field to no more than 28 days. However, 

a separate Planning Consent for an extension to the touring and 

camping field was granted omitting both the length of season and 

length of stay conditions. 

This Planning Consent enabled our client to station touring caravans 

on the same pitch without limitation as to length of season or length 

of stay, thus the touring caravans operated as, what is commonly 

referred to, seasonal tourers”. 

The statutory definition of a caravan as contained in the Caravan 

Sites and Control of Development Act 1960 as amended by the 

Caravan Sites Act 1968 does not differentiate between a touring 

caravan or a static caravan, and in the absence of a specific planning 

condition, our client was able to argue that a seasonal tourer 

operated as a static caravan within the meaning of the statutory 

definition. 

Using this argument, our client was able to obtain a Certificate of 

Lawfulness for a Proposed Use for the siting of static caravans in 

place of touring caravans, thereby adding considerable value to his 

property asset. 

Residential consent for a 

static holiday park 

A long standing client of HLL Humberts Leisure had for many years 

permitted static holiday caravans on her park to be occupied for 

residential purposes following the issue of a Residential Site Licence 

by the Local Site Licencing Officer. 

However, it transpired that the Residential Site Licence had been 

issued in error. The residential Site Licence was revoked and replaced 

by a Site Licence for holiday purposes only and at the same time the 

Local Planning Officer threatened enforcement action. 

HLL Humberts Leisure, acting on behalf of the site operator, entered 

into detailed discussions with the Local Planning Officer, highlighting 

the fact that the planning breach had been triggered by an error on the 

part of the Local Authority, and emphasizing the plight of the 50 or 

so families who resided at the caravan park, many of whom would be 

made homeless if enforcement action were to take place. 

Following a lengthy detailed consultation with the Planning Officer 

and a presentation to the Planning Sub-Committee, HLL Humberts 

Leisure was able to obtain a consent enabling the caravans to be 

occupied for residential purposes even though this was contrary to 

Planning Policy in that locality. 

For planning matters relating to all types of 

leisure property, please contact our specialist 

Planning team. 

Contact 


e: martin.taylor@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 

Simon Davis BA(Hons) DipTP MRTPI, Brighton 

e: simon.davis@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 



Debbie Marriage BSc MA MRTPI, Brighton 

e: debbie.marriage@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 

Peter Sharp BA(Hons) MBHA, Brighton 

e: peter.sharp@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 

Cherise Smith BA(Hons), Brighton 

e: cherise.smith@humberts-leisure.com t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 


Why choose | HLL Humberts Leisure 

specialist 

expertise, 

professional 

insight 

HLL Humberts Leisure provides results-driven specialist property 

expertise to clients across the UK and overseas, with dedicated 

professionals working in ten distinct leisure-business sectors. 

Hotels 

London/City Centre Hotels 

Resort Hotels 

Commercial/Business Hotels 

Country House Hotels 

Motor Lodges and Budget Hotels 

Golf 

International Golf Resorts 

Golf Hotels and Country Clubs 

Proprietary Golf Clubs 

Pay and Play Golf Centres 

Driving Ranges and 

Golf Academies 

Golf Development Sites 

Holiday Property 

Caravan Parks 

Lodge Developments 

Holiday Villages 

Cottage Letting Complexes 

Club Membership Resorts 

Park Home Estates 

Sports Complexes 

and Venues 

Racecourses 

Stadia 

Grandstand Hospitality Boxes 

Tennis Centres 

Squash Clubs 

Dry Ski Slopes 

Health & Fitness Clubs 

Playing Fields/Sports Grounds 

General Sports Complexes 

Shooting Schools 

Urban Leisure 

Cinemas and Theatres 

Night Clubs and Discotheques 

Indoor Bowling Centres 

Snooker Clubs 

Integrated Retail and 

Leisure Complexes 

Children’s Nurseries 

Water-Based Leisure 

Coastal & Inland Marinas and 

Related Development 

Multi-use lakes 

Fisheries 

Visitor Enterprises 

Theme Parks 

Tourist Attractions 

Heritage Centres 

Historic Buildings 

Factory Shopping 

Children’s Play Centres 

Public Houses and 

Licensed Property 

Pub Restaurants 

Theme Bars 

Tenanted and Managed 

Public Houses 

Wine Bars 

Freehouses 

Funding 

Sale and leaseback 

Introduction to sources of 

equity and debt finance 

Specialist VCT Leisure Fund 

Institutional Property 

Schools 

Colleges 

Here are a few of the key 

people at HLL Humberts 

Leisure who can help you 

make the most of your 

leisure property 

Pubs 

Peter Constantine BSc(Hons) FRICS, t: +44 (0)1291 627 813 

Anthony Miller FRICS IRRV, t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Bernard Wilkinson BA(Hons) MRICS, t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Richard Baldwin BSc(Hons) MRICS, t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 

Andrew Moore BSc(Hons) MRICS, t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 

Marcus Street BSc(Hons) MRICS, t: +44 (0)1291 627 813 

Charles Kaminaris BSc(Hons) MRICS, t: +44 (0)1291 627 813 

Consultancy 

John Anderson BSc FRICS, t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 

Nigel Talbot-Ponsonby FRICS, t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Georgina Anastasakis BA(Hons) MSc MBHA MTS, 

t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 

Nigel Mills MBHA, t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 

Peter Sharp BA(Hons) MBHA, t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 

Planning and Public Sector Development 

Martin Taylor BA(Hons) BTP MRTPI MIED MTS, 

t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 

Simon Davis BA(Hons) DipTP MRTPI, t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 

Aimeé Cannon BA(Hons) SRTPI, t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 

Rachel Whaley BSc(Hons) DipTP MRTPI, t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 

Debbie Marriage BSc MA MRTPI, t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 

Hotels and General Leisure 

Gavin Brent BSc MRICS, t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Nigel Talbot-Ponsonby FRICS, t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Tim Smith BSc(Hons) MRICS, t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Peter Haigh BSc FRICS, t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Richard Baldwin BSc(Hons) MRICS, t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 

Andrew Bates MRICS, t: +44 (0)1962 835 960 

Alex Campbell BA(Hons) MA, t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Luke Cutler BSc(Hons) MRICS, t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Holiday Property & Golf 

Ben Allen BSc(Hons) MRICS, t: +44 (0)1962 835 960 

Martin Brister FRICS, t: +44 (0)1962 835 960 

John Anderson BSc FRICS, t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 

Martin Reed MRICS IRRV, t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 

John Mitchell BSc MRICS, t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Peter Smith BA(Hons) MRICS, t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 

Peter Boghurst MRICS, t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 

Stephen Morgan FRICS, t: +44 (0)1291 627 813 

Paul Barnes BSc(Hons) MRICS, t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

Emma Carling t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 

What can HLL do for you? 

Valuations 

For all types of leisure property, for balance sheet 

purposes, purchases, sales and for raising finance 

for acquisition or further development. 

Professional services 

Rent reviews and lease renewals for both 

landlord and tenant, rating, litigation, dilapidation 

claims and all other professional matters for all 

types of leisure properties. 

Agency 

Acquisition, sale and leasing of leisure related 

property in the UK and overseas. 

Marketing 

Integration of mailing, advertising, public 

relations and other publicity material to achieve 

the widest exposure and the optimum sale. 

Consultancy 

Feasibility studies, viability testing and 

development option appraisal on a full range 

of leisure business and property proposals to 

ensure correct conceptualisation and successful 

implementation. 

Finance 

Funding for leisure industry schemes. Advice on 

availability of funding packages, together with 

introductions to sources of equity including the 

Leisure and Media VCT plc and debt finance. 

Development/Investment 

Arrangement of an integrated service including 

site acquisition, valuation, planning, funding and 

ultimate disposal, together with advice on the 

selection of other professional intermediaries. 

Planning 

Planning appraisal, planning history research, 

planning applications and appeals, expert 

witness, enforcement notice, licensing and 

technical advice in the pursuance of leisurerelated 

property development proposals. Site 

finding and assessment. 

Research 

Property market appraisal, leisure market 

research and trends monitor, competitor analysis, 

demographic catchment and visitor profiling, 

economic impact measurement. 

Humberts Leisure Ltd. Registered in England & Wales No. 2567699. VAT No. 761 451 929. 

Registered Office: 12 Bolton Street, Mayfair, London W1J 8BD. e: contact@humberts-leisure.com

Top: Aldourie Castle Below left: Domaine du Grand Mayne Below centre: Kidspace Below right: The Ridge Golf Club 

Designed by www.anothervision.co.uk Printed by Portishead Press 0117 955 5811 

London 

12 Bolton Street 

Mayfair 

London W1J 8BD 

North 

2 Stable Courtyard 

Broughton Hall 

Skipton BD23 3AE 

South West & Wales 

Bank Buildings 

High Street 

Chepstow NP16 5XQ 

South East 

Pavilion View 

19 New Road 

Brighton BN1 1UF 

South 

Westgate House 

39-41 Romsey Road 

Winchester SO22 5BE 

t: +44 (0)20 7629 6700 

f: +44 (0)20 7409 0475 

t: +44 (0)1756 799 271 

f: +44 (0)1756 700 811 

t: +44 (0)1291 627 813 

f: +44 (0)1291 625 614 

t: +44 (0)1273 325 911 

f: +44 (0)1273 329 602 

t: +44 (0)1962 835 960 

f: +44 (0)1962 835 961 

www.humberts-leisure.com

0771 Leisure Winter 07 AW.indd - HLL Humberts Leisure

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