Tewkesbury Borough Council's executive is being asked to write off a big debt at its meeting this week (July 17).

The Share Club owed £74,166.46 to the council for the Cleeve Hill Clubhouse.

The company had a held a 25-year lease for the clubhouse, which started in December 2011. It opted to initiate a break clause to terminate the lease early in March 2021, due to financial difficulties, by which time it had already built up significant rent arrears owed to the council.

The Share Club Ltd was dissolved on March 30, 2023. Despite the council's best efforts, this ended the opportunity to recover the rent arrears, as it wasn't a preferential creditor.

Writing off debt which is irrecoverable is recognised as good practice by the Department of Housing, Levelling Up and Communities (DHLUC) and the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA).

Debts are only considered for write-off after the council has taken all possible steps to collect. Provision for bad debts is made in the council's accounts, so writing off this debt won't have any impact on essential council services.

A new tenant, The Cotswold Hub, now occupies Cleeve Hill Clubhouse.