Sevenoaks Town Council considers District Council’s proposed ownership and management options for the Stag
Published: 09 June 2026
Sevenoaks District Council (SDC) has published agenda papers for its Finance & Investment Advisory Committee meeting on 9 June 2026, setting out options for the future ownership and management of the Stag Community Arts Centre, ahead of Local Government Reorganisation.
Sevenoaks Town Council is actively considering all the proposed options in the short timescale set by the District Council.
Option 1 – Freehold Transfer: SDC recommends the transfer of the freehold of The Stag to Sevenoaks Town Council (STC) through a Community Asset Transfer for £650,000, subject to a range of legal safeguards, including restrictions on future use, disposal controls, overage and continued community access. This would give the Town Council long-term ownership certainty and transfer liabilities away from the District Council and give the Town Council greater confidence to invest in the building.
The Town Council’s key concern is the funding of £650,000, as it does not currently have these funds. Potential funding options could include the use of capital receipts, borrowing, community fundraising and, if necessary, an increase in the Town Council precept. The Town Council also notes that more than 7,500 people have signed the Stag’s petition calling for the Stag to be transferred at no cost, an approach being used for community asset transfers across the country.
In addition, the Town Council has yesterday received sight of SDC's valuation report, noting that SDC's valuation of £650,000 differs from a valuation commissioned by the Town Council which indicated a figure of £400,000 and a comment that the Valuer would not be surprised if the agreement for transfer was at nil value, the difference in the two valuations needs to be carefully analysed bearing in mind it is public funds being requested.
Option 2 – New 30 Year Lease: SDC proposes a new 30-year lease at a peppercorn rent while retaining freehold ownership, giving the Town Council ongoing operational control of the venue.
The Town Council’s concern with this option is that the agenda papers refer to a peppercorn rent, but do not address whether rent reviews could be introduced during the lease term. At a liaison meeting on 2 June 2026, SDC indicated verbally that the peppercorn rent could remain fixed for the duration of the lease, although STC would wish to see this reflected in any formal agreement. The Town Council is also concerned that a lease arrangement would not provide the same level of security as ownership. More fundamentally, the Town Council considers the lease to provide less certainty than ownership and would make it much harder to make significant investment in the building. Equally, STC could invest substantially into the building only to face renewed uncertainty later, particularly as the current lease provides no tenancy rights.
Images above show 3D renders of future proposals for the Stag (AI generated, for illustrative purposes only, not to scale or final detail). The proposals include providing additional seating (to attract touring shows), an Art Gallery in a glass wall, linking the back and front of the building internally, disabled access to the stage, a Fly Tower, additional toilets, and an extension above the Plaza Suite to enable tertiary education.
Option 3 – No Change: the current arrangements would continue with around nine years left on the existing lease before the freehold transfers to the new unitary authority.
The Town Council is concerned that this is the highest risk option. With only nine years remaining on the lease, no tenancy rights and a change of ownership as the new unitary councils are set up, the Stag faces a very uncertain period. The new unitary could take a very different approach to the asset, particularly given that SDC agenda papers acknowledge an open market disposal could potentially realise between £1 million and £1.5 million.