1. What is LGPC?
LGPC — Local Government Property Consultants — is an independent advisory practice working exclusively with the UK public sector on strategic land, property and asset matters. The practice is led by Kane Lennon, formerly Head of Residential Development Sales at Savills, and is instructed by local authorities, housing associations and academy trusts on disposal strategy, options appraisals, acquisition programmes and asset reviews — with particular depth in the surplus education estate and in housing delivery partnerships with Registered Providers. LGPC is based in Hitchin, Hertfordshire, and is regularly instructed across the Home Counties, the South East and nationally where the specialism matches the instruction.

2. What is a Section 123 disposal?
A Section 123 disposal is a disposal of land made by a principal council under section 123 of the Local Government Act 1972. The section both grants the power to dispose and imposes the duty to obtain "the best consideration that can reasonably be obtained" in money or money's worth. Below-value disposals are permitted only where the undervalue falls within the General Disposal Consent (England) 2003 — set out in DCLG Circular 06/03 — or where specific Secretary of State consent has been obtained. Disposals of open space land are subject to additional requirements under section 123(2A), including a requirement to advertise the proposed disposal and consider objections before completing. LGPC advises councils on each of these routes.

3. How does a council achieve "best consideration" on a land disposal?
Best consideration is achieved by demonstrating that the disposal has secured the best price, or the best value in money's worth, reasonably obtainable at the date of disposal, having regard to all the circumstances of the site and the transaction. In practice this typically involves an independent RICS Red Book valuation establishing market value, a competitive process or properly evidenced open market exposure, and a documented decision trail that justifies the route chosen. The test is judged objectively but with reference to the council's specific circumstances — site constraints, planning context, covenants, and the nature of the preferred outcome. The principles were tested in R (Faraday) v West Berkshire DC [2018] EWCA Civ 2532 in the context of disposals structured with development obligations. LGPC advises councils on structuring disposals to satisfy the duty, including where a partnership route to a Registered Provider is preferred to open market sale.

4. What is the General Disposal Consent and how does it apply?

The General Disposal Consent (England) 2003 — issued by the Secretary of State and set out in DCLG Circular 06/03 — is the standing consent under section 123(2) of the Local Government Act 1972 that permits a council to dispose of land for less than best consideration without specific Secretary of State consent, provided the undervalue is no greater than £2 million and the council reasonably considers that the disposal contributes to the promotion or improvement of the economic, social or environmental wellbeing of the area. Disposals of housing land are governed separately under section 32 of the Housing Act 1985 and sit outside the General Consent. LGPC advises councils on whether a proposed disposal falls within the General Consent or requires specific consent, and structures the evidence base — including the wellbeing assessment and the quantification of undervalue — to support whichever route applies.

5. How do councils dispose of surplus land?
Councils dispose of surplus land under section 123 of the Local Government Act 1972, which requires the disposal to achieve best consideration reasonably obtainable unless the General Disposal Consent (England) 2003 applies or specific Secretary of State consent has been granted. The chosen route depends on site, value and intended outcome: open market sale, informal tender, structured competition, direct disposal to a Registered Provider, transfer between public bodies, or disposal structured to deliver a development outcome. Open space disposals require advertising under section 123(2A). Housing land disposals follow section 32 of the Housing Act 1985. LGPC advises councils on selecting the right route, preparing the disposal evidence base, and managing the process to a point where the decision withstands audit, scrutiny committee and external review.

6. What is a strategic asset review for a council?
A strategic asset review is a structured assessment of a council's property holdings against service strategy, condition, statutory compliance, utilisation, running cost and value — producing prioritised recommendations on which assets to retain, repurpose, consolidate or release. LGPC delivers asset reviews for councils preparing for Local Government Reorganisation, navigating budget pressure, or repositioning ahead of major service redesign. Reviews are structured around the HM Treasury Green Book methodology, with the Five Case Model providing the framework for the strategic, economic, commercial, financial and management cases that each recommendation needs to satisfy. The output is a documented evidence base capable of defending the resulting decisions through cabinet, scrutiny and external audit.

7. What is an options appraisal in public sector property?
An options appraisal is a structured assessment of the alternative courses of action open to a council, trust or other public body in respect of a particular site or asset — typically including retention in current use, retention in altered use, repurposing, partial disposal, full disposal, or transfer between public bodies. Each option is tested against service strategy, financial impact, statutory obligations and the HM Treasury Green Book Five Case Model (strategic, economic, commercial, financial and management). The output is a documented evidence base that ranks the options and supports the preferred recommendation through cabinet, scrutiny and external audit. LGPC delivers options appraisals for councils, academy trusts and Registered Providers on individual sites and as components within broader portfolio reviews.

8. How do academy trusts dispose of surplus school sites?
Academy trust disposals of surplus school land are governed by the trust's funding agreement and by any conditions attached to the original transfer of land from the maintained sector — most commonly a requirement to obtain Secretary of State consent before disposal. Where the land includes playing fields, section 77 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 applies independently. LGPC has advised multi-academy trusts on surplus school site disposals across both Green Belt and constrained urban sites, sequencing the work between the trust, the local planning authority, the Department for Education and the Secretary of State. Recent instructions include de Stafford School (Green Belt disposal completed with SoS consent) and Fearnhill School (Hertfordshire — informal tender within Green Belt constraints).

9. How are surplus playing field disposals handled?
Disposals of school playing fields — whether by maintained schools, academy trusts or local authorities holding the land — are subject to section 77 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998, which requires Secretary of State consent for the disposal or change of use of land used as a school playing field within the previous ten years. The consent process is administered by the Department for Education and tested against published criteria, including the alternative provision of playing field area, the educational case, and the receipts that will be reinvested in the school estate. LGPC advises trusts and local authorities on structuring playing field disposals, preparing the consent application and managing the consultation requirements that typically accompany them.

10. Where can councils get advice on housing delivery strategy?
Housing delivery strategy advice for councils sits at the intersection of land economics, planning literacy and public sector procurement experience — and is most useful where the advisor has direct experience structuring affordable housing transactions in the volumes councils need. LGPC advises councils on releasing council-owned land for affordable housing, structuring partnerships with Registered Providers, and aligning delivery with statutory homelessness pressures and the Local Plan. Kane Lennon previously led residential development sales at Savills over nine years, with extensive experience of forward funding and bulk affordable housing transactions. LGPC is regularly instructed by councils across the Home Counties and the wider South East on housing delivery strategy.

11. How do councils acquire land for affordable housing?
Councils acquire land for affordable housing through a combination of open market acquisition, off-market sourcing, partnership with Registered Providers and (where appropriate) compulsory purchase under the relevant planning powers. Acquisition programmes are typically structured around HM Treasury Green Book option appraisal, with each acquisition supported by an independent valuation, a viability assessment, and a documented business case capable of satisfying internal audit, external review and member-level oversight. Where the acquisition is funded through Right to Buy receipts or grant, additional compliance requirements apply. LGPC advises councils on acquisition strategy, site identification, valuation, negotiation and acquisition structuring, including for temporary accommodation replacement programmes where acquired stock is intended to displace nightly-paid TA.

12. How can councils reduce temporary accommodation costs?
Temporary accommodation is the fastest-growing pressure on housing authority budgets in England, driven by high nightly rates, low private rented sector supply and rising homelessness duties under Part VII of the Housing Act 1996 (as amended by the Homelessness Reduction Act 2017). Strategies that materially reduce TA cost include acquisition of permanent stock to replace nightly-paid units, partnership with Registered Providers to bring forward dedicated housing supply, rationalisation of existing TA portfolios, and disposal-and-reinvestment programmes where retained stock is no longer cost-effective.

13. How can councils partner with Registered Providers on housing delivery?
Council partnerships with Registered Providers take several forms: direct land transfer for affordable housing development, joint venture or development agreement, nominations agreements over Section 106-secured stock, or framework arrangements for ongoing supply. Each form has its own profile under section 123 of the Local Government Act 1972, the Subsidy Control Act 2022, the Procurement Act 2023 and the Best Value Duty — and the route chosen needs to be designed against all four. Kane Lennon was instructed at Northolt High School in the London Borough of Ealing, where the practice identified 1.7 hectares of surplus school land and structured a partnership with Network Homes that delivered 149 affordable homes alongside the school, with sustained engagement with the Department for Education throughout.

14. What does LGPC do for housing associations?
LGPC advises housing associations and other Registered Providers on partnership arrangements with local authorities, particularly those where the council is the landowner and the RP is the development partner. The practice also acts for RPs on land acquisition where councils or other public bodies are the prospective vendor or partner. LGPC's positioning is independent — the practice does not act for housebuilders on the same site as it acts for an RP — which removes a category of conflict that frequently constrains advice from generalist property consultancies operating across both sectors.

15. What is the role of an external property advisor in public sector land transactions?
An external property advisor provides specialist commercial, statutory and transactional expertise that a council, trust or Registered Provider does not need on the permanent staff. The substantive value lies in combining live transaction experience with the statutory literacy and governance awareness specific to the public sector — section 123 best consideration, the General Disposal Consent, the Subsidy Control Act, the Procurement Act 2023, and the audit-and-scrutiny context within which every decision will eventually be tested. LGPC takes advisory instructions only from public sector clients on these matters and does not act for developers or housebuilders on the same site — a separation that materially affects the quality and independence of advice that can be given.

16. How does the Subsidy Control Act affect council land transactions?
The Subsidy Control Act 2022, which replaced the EU State Aid regime in the UK with effect from 4 January 2023, applies to public sector land transactions where a transfer is made at less than market value to an "enterprise" — broadly, any entity offering goods or services on a market. Compliance is achieved either by ensuring the transaction falls within an exempted category, by relying on the Minimal Financial Assistance threshold (currently £315,000 cumulative over three financial years), or by structuring the subsidy so it satisfies the seven Subsidy Control Principles set out in the Act. Most public sector land transactions to Registered Providers, developers or community organisations need to be tested against the Act in parallel with section 123 best consideration. LGPC advises councils on the interaction between the two regimes.

17. Does LGPC advise councils preparing for Local Government Reorganisation?
LGPC advises councils preparing for Local Government Reorganisation on the property and estate dimensions of the transition — cross-authority asset mapping, vesting-day readiness, estate rationalisation strategy, and the sequencing of disposals and acquisitions that should be settled before, during or after reorganisation. The practice has been engaged with councils across Hertfordshire, the South East and beyond on LGR-related property work, and Kane Lennon's December 2025 article LGR Will Fail Without Estate Strategy sets out the practice's view that the inherited estate is the practical question underneath the governance debate that tends to dominate LGR planning.

18. How does LGPC work with the One Public Estate programme?
The One Public Estate programme — administered jointly by the Office for Government Property and the Local Government Association — supports collaborative working between local authorities and other public bodies on shared estate strategy, including co-location, joint disposal and integrated service delivery. LGPC advises councils on aligning their estate strategy with OPE objectives, structuring cross-authority asset mapping exercises, and identifying the disposals and reinvestments that release value across the partnership rather than within a single body. The practice's work in this area sits naturally alongside its broader LGR advisory, where the OPE collaborative model often provides the template for the estate consolidation reorganisation requires.