Somerset’s four district councils have invested more than £200 million between them in commercial property in order to fund front-line services – and Somerset West and Taunton (SWT) has invested £37.173m of that.

Local authorities across the UK have been buying up property, using the rental income to make up for reduced grant funding from central government.

Each of Somerset’s four councils has poured taxpayers’ money into a range of investments, ranging from offices and warehouses to housing projects and business parks.

Between the four of them,  £202,427,000 has been invested to date.

SWT currently has the lowest value property portfolio of the four districts – which is not entirely surprising, given it was only formed in 2019.

However, the council has hinted it could invest significantly in property over the coming 12 months, potentially outstripping each of its three neighbours.

Here’s a rundown of the council’s current investments, from largest to smallest in value:

n Wickes Extra, Birmingham – £9.81m

n Aztec West Business Park, Bristol (unspecified number of units) – £9.1m

n B&Q store, Ayr – £6.6m

n The Range, Halifax – £5.445m

n Mecca Bingo, Corporation Street, Taunton – £1.614m

n Roughmoor Enterprise Centre, Roughmoor Lane, Williton – £1.405m

n Blackdown Business Park, Scott’s Lane, Wellington (four units) – £1.308m

n The Arcade (formerly The Carousel or K’s), Warren Road, Minehead – £314,000

n Other investments (under £250,000 in value) – £1.577m

The council previously owned a scrap yard in Priory Way in Taunton but this was recently sold off for £546,000.

This list does not include any of the council’s regeneration sites, such as Firepool and Coal Orchard in Taunton or the Seaward Way site in Minehead.

Martin Henwood, the council’s corporate finance adviser, recently told the executive committee that the scale of investment was ‘an essential response’ to the cuts in Government funding since the credit crunch.

He said in his written report: “We invest in a diverse investment property portfolio, both locally and nationally, with the intention of generating surplus income that will be spent on local public services delivered within the district.

“This is an essential response to significant reductions in government funding over recent years and further reductions expected in future, in order to meet our service delivery objectives and avoid service cuts.

“We plan to increase our investment by up to £100m by the end of 2021/22.”

DANIEL MUMBY

Local democracy reporter