While this was an important budget for the business community, with many of the headline announcements “leaked” into the media well in advance, it did not offer any shocks in the way that the increase in Employer NICs did in 2024. One thing that offers little reassurance to business is the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR)’s revising its forecast for medium-term productivity growth from 1.3% to 1% – things will not be getting easier for us all anytime soon. That said, Wimbledon remains remarkably resolute, with footfall continuing to surge to record levels, and several exciting new additions to the Town Centre arriving early next year to improve things further – watch this space for more details soon.
One glimmer of hope for investment back into town centres was the Government removing customs duty relief, which previously allowed goods worth up to £135 from overseas to enter the UK without customs duty. With online giants like Shein and Temu harming UK retail significantly through this duty-free loophole, we will hopefully see a return to a more level playing field.
Something that was promised by the current government in its Manifesto (and by several prior governments too), but has not been delivered yet, is business rates reform. If anything, the business rates situation as we await the announcement of new valuations from April 2026, has become even more confusing. From 1 April 2026, the government is introducing two permanently lower business rates multipliers for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure properties with rateable values below £500,000. The government is also introducing a high-value business rates multiplier for properties with rateable values of £500,000 and above. This will apply to all property uses including retail, hospitality and leisure, and there will be transitional relief for businesses who experience any dramatic change in their business rates.
We will be looking at all of this data closely once we receive it, to understand the implications for our businesses and for Love Wimbledon’s levy income, which is calculated as a percentage of business rates. This will also be the business rates data which we will be required to use to model funding scenarios for our next 5-yearly renewal ballot, which will be taking place towards the end of 2026. Over the coming months we will be keen to discuss with our businesses how we can best strike a balance between securing the income Love Wimbledon needs to continue to deliver improvement to the Town Centre, while delivering value to our levy payers.
Please get in touch if you’d like to discuss anything further regarding Wimbledon Town Centre.