This section looks at some of the implications of owning, leasing and managing a resource or capital asset – this includes all kinds of buildings or premises (from village halls to community-owned shops) and vehicles (such as minibuses). It may also include land.

Many communities already have volunteer committees running the village hall or community centre – or you may be thinking of building a new one. Your group may be looking at acquiring premises as an office, or you may have identified an empty building in your community which you think would be ideal as a centre for the services or activities which your group has been set up to provide. Buying a minibus could appear to be the best solution to helping the older people in your community get to the shops. There is also increasing pressure from Government for communities to take over the running of other types of community resources - community shops, petrol stations, nurseries, even libraries.

If your group or organisation is considering the management of any type of resource like this, it is important to be aware that capital assets bring with them liabilities and legislation requirements. That may also mean that your group will need to consider taking on staff and/or more volunteers to run things.

Owning, leasing and/or running a community resource makes it even more important for your group to have a suitable legal structure along with strong, skilled committee or board members who understand the implications and are prepared to manage your group effectively, efficiently and within the law.

Why would your group consider managing a resource or asset?

in response to community need (listening and responding to your community and identifying gaps in the current services)
purchasing a building as an investment
you may have weighed up the pros and cons of renting or leasing, and decided that owning a building is a more cost-effective way of running your group
as a way of increasing the potential for income generation to further your group’s purposes (for example, charging for your services or renting out rooms as offices to other groups)

Key things to consider

your group’s structure - to limit any personal liability for your members your group will need to be incorporated
finance – how will you fund the cost of purchasing and equipping the resource?
maintenance and security – how will you keep up with the maintenance of the resource? Do you know what licenses and/or insurances you will need? Will you need security alarms and/or CCTV?
recruitment – will you need to employ staff and/or more volunteers? Have you thought about the implications of being an employer?

Resource Management

Why would your group consider managing a resource or asset?

Key things to consider

Other Community Toolkit Topics to look at: