Lakeview Estate Woking: Leaseholder Bills Cut by 40% to 50%

The 85 leaseholders on the Lakeview Estate in Goldsworth Park will pay about half what they were first told. The total they are expected to contribute to the refurbishment of their 14 blocks has been cut by £1,352,504.

Estimated recharges fall from £2,622,557 to £1,270,053. That is an average of about £30,900 a leaseholder falling to about £14,900, on our arithmetic. The report describes the cut as around 40% to 50%, though the two totals it gives work out at 52%. Actual bills differ by block, and the council has sent revised estimates to each leaseholder rather than publishing them (Woking Borough Council, EXE26-118, published 4 November).

The Executive will be asked on Thursday 12 November to note the changes and to allow repayment over up to 10 years, instead of the current maximum of five.

What has come off the bill

Twenty-six leaseholders responded to the formal consultation, which ran from 23 July to 24 August. The report says many complained about the total cost, and about estimates that had risen since the figures given during conveyancing or at earlier stages.

After a further review, these items have been removed from the recharge:

• rainwater goods, fascias, soffits and bargeboards
• the extension to the roofline past the new external wall insulation
• new windows and door sets

Charges for roofing and facilitating works have also been reduced. The report says the removed work is “more closely attributable” to the replacement of the external walls, which the Executive agreed not to recharge in November 2025.

That is a significant change from September. Windows and doors were then among the main items leaseholders were being asked to pay for.

Who pays instead

The £1.35m does not disappear. The report says it “will need to be borne” by the capital programme of the Housing Revenue Account, the ring-fenced account funded by council tenants.

The report gives that as the reason for not going further. It says the proposal keeps recharges fair “without passing the burden of cost unjustifiably” on to the account.

How repayment would work

The council’s existing policy for bills of £5,000 or more allows payment over five years, with no interest or administration fee (Major Works Repayment Options, Appendix 1).

The recommendation extends that to up to 10 years for this project only. The report does not spell out how the existing conditions apply to the longer plans. Under the current policy:

• missing an instalment makes the whole charge payable at once
• selling the flat also makes it payable at once
• interest on late amounts can run at 0.25% above the Bank of England base rate

Other options exist for leaseholders in hardship, each with its own eligibility tests. They include a limit on the charge of £10,000 in some circumstances, a voluntary legal charge on the property and a council loan.

What happens next

The contract went to Mulalley & Co Ltd, and the Executive awarded it in September. Phased work is expected to start in January 2027, block by block. It replaces the temporary covering put on after the combustible cladding came off in 2024.

The meeting starts at 7pm at the Civic Offices, and the decision can be called in (Executive agenda, 12 November).

What it means for you

• If you are a Lakeview leaseholder: check that the revised pricing schedule for your block reflects the removed items.
• If you want to dispute a charge: the report says charges can be challenged at the First-tier Tribunal. The tribunal cannot rule on whether the council should have waived more.
• If you are a council tenant: the report puts the £1.35m on the account your rent funds. It does not say what, if anything, will be cut to pay for it.