High Street Rental Auction - Lewisham Pilot

Overview

Across the borough, the Council is working to improve our high streets so that the local businesses and the wider community can thrive.

Unfortunately, in Lewisham, several of our high streets have empty commercial properties, which can take away from the liveliness of the town centre and impact other local businesses. These vacant properties may even be rented out but do not have any businesses actively trading there.

To tackle this London-wide issue, the government has introduced a new High Street Rental Auctions (HSRA) pilot programme which gives local authorities the power to require landlords who have persistently vacant commercial properties to rent them out new tenants such as local businesses or community groups. To use these powers, the Council must designate an area or street where are there are a number of long-term empty properties. 

The Council has undertaken a review and identified Forest Hill as having the highest number of vacant units, and therefore a potential location for a pilot scheme.  

This also follows the Council’s adoption of an Article 4 direction in 2024, which is designed to protect commercial property from being converted into residential without planning permission.

Why your views matter

It’s important that the Council gathers the community’s feedback on the programme, so that we can make sure this pilot reflects what residents, businesses and community groups would like to see for their local area.

Before the Council can designate an area where a High Street Rental Auction power can be used, we must undertake a public engagement for a minimum of 28 days. From Monday 2 June until 9am Monday 30 June residents, local businesses and landlords are encouraged to have their say and leave feedback on the proposed utilisation of the HSRA powers. 

If you have any difficulty completing the survey or would like to know more, please email business@lewisham.gov.uk.