Property Asset Strategy - Final

Renfrewshire Council · 11 June 2026
Back to Finance, Resources and Customer Services Policy Board — 11 June 2026 and its agenda

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PUBLIC 
To: Finance, Resources and Customer Services Policy Board
On: 11 June 2026 
Report by: Director of Environment, Housing & Infrastructure 
Heading: Property Asset Management Strategy 2026 - 2030 
1 Summary 
1.1 To assist in strategically driving the public building portfolio, Officers have drafted
the Property Asset Management Strategy 2026 – 2030. 
1.2 The property assets that Renfrewshire Council owns and operate throughout the
year provide a catalyst for the various business, educational, leisure, cultural and
social activities that make Renfrewshire a great place to work, relax and visit.
When considering the variety of spaces that make up our portfolio we must
consider both the available supply (condition, performance, occupation, image,
operational costs, utility use, cultural & heritage significance), balanced against
the demand in relation to user requirements across the geography of
Renfrewshire. 
1.3 Renfrewshire Council has a large (400,000m2 Gross Internal Floor Area (GIFA))
and diverse mix of public buildings. The portfolio includes the Learning Estate,
Leisure Estate, Offices, Town Halls, museum, libraries, operational facilities e.g.
Depot and community facilities including halls, football pitches, bowling clubs
and a golf course. The costs associated with the operation and management of
such a wide portfolio are significant, with currently Utilities costing £11.1m per
annum, Rates £5.2m, Hard FM budget of £7.5m, (Repairs/ Maintenance/
Compliance budget of £4.5m, Capital Lifecyle replacement of £3m) and Soft FM
staffing budget of £17m – Total operational costs £41.1m or 6.6% of
Renfrewshire Council annual budget (2026/2027). 
1.4 In addition to the revenue efficiencies from utilities, reduced Planned
Preventative Maintenance (cost avoidance) and rates - cost avoidance of
Lifecyle Maintenance would also be anticipated. Capital receipts could also be
gained from the sale of the sites and aligning with the wider strategies of the
Council, this will allow budgets to be targeted at key areas and priority buildings
to ensure they are maintained. Officers will continue to explore opportunities to
improve the portfolio and to deliver benefits ensuring the portfolio meets the

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Council and community needs. Compelling business cases will be required to
demonstrate the opportunities and benefits available.   
1.5 Since 2022, Renfrewshire Council has been reviewing the public building
portfolio and now has compiled a large range of data to support the development
of informed business cases, this enables the Council to move from ‘Review’ to
initiation of the ‘Strategic Property Programme’. By initiating the Strategic
Property Programme, we aim to deliver efficiencies for Renfrewshire Council,
whilst also aligning with the operational objectives of the Council as per the
Renfrewshire Council Plan ensuring we Reshape Renfrewshire. 
1.6 It should be noted, that as previously reported to the Infrastructure, Land and
Environment Policy Board, whilst the review has been on-going, Officers have
removed the Council from “leased-in” properties e.g. Abbey House/5 High Street
and moved staff into appropriate buildings to allow the service to deliver as
required. Further properties that have been part of this are highlighted in Section
3.7 of this report. 
1.7 To assist and facilitate this move in the programme, the Property Asset
Management Strategy 2026-2030 has been developed to outline the strategy for
the operational building property portfolio over the next 5 years. 
1.8 Renfrewshire Council strives to deliver for community needs and the benefits
from reducing and consolidating the portfolio will be wide ranging. These need to
be assessed, measured and reported on throughout the SPP; measures will
consider; regeneration, environment, wellbeing, and organisational benefits for;
individuals, teams within Renfrewshire Council, and also for our partners,
stakeholders as well as community needs. 
People Place / Environment Process
Staff / Public /
Stakeholders
Property / Town
centres
Business Technological
Best locations for
stakeholders to access,
safe, and secure
facilities.
Right sizing the portfolio,
reducing duplication,
alignment with
sustainable travel
initiatives.
Enhanced
communication and
collaboration.
Improved Operations
Sustainable Working
Environment supportive
of evolving work
practices
Prioritisation of
investment against
greatest benefit.
Improved image
internally and externally
System improvements to
enable sharing of
information 
Greater adaptability for
organisational change.
Reduced operational
costs.
Adaptions to the portfolio
provide a catalyst for
change.
Agile Working
throughout
Renfrewshire. 
Greater support for
interaction and
collaboration.
Ensuring our
environmental
consideration is an
integral part of decision-
making process
Opportunities for
dormant sites to be
employment creators for
both construction and
longer-term economic
impact.
Deployment of
sustainable technology
systems to both manage
energy and generate
energy across the
portfolio. 
Providing resources
where it is most in need,
to promote the services
Efficient space utilisation
via defined work needs
and reduced storage
Greater functionality to
support business needs.
Improved access to
information for
knowledge sharing.

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and activities available. requirements.
Wellbeing benefits for an
inclusive society.
Increased footfall within
Town Centre locations.
More openness, visibility
and accessibility.
Technology integration
to support co-ordination.
Compliance with Legal
and Statutory
Requirements
1.9 This draft Property Asset Management Strategy 2026 - 2030 assisted in the
development of the Corporate Asset Management Strategy that was presented
to the Leadership Board on 18 February 2026. An initial 74 properties have been
recommended as requiring further exploration to assess if they can be used
better, potentially repurposed or disposed as surplus. These buildings will be
reviewed alongside workstreams/programme e.g. Learning Estate programme,
OneRen workstream, Commercial Property assessment and where there are
opportunities, Officers will develop business cases for some of these properties
to assess the potential next steps.
1.10 The draft Property Asset Management Strategy 2026 – 2030 is attached as Appendix 1 to
this report.
2 Recommendations
It is recommended that members of the Finance, Resources and Customer
Services Policy Board:
2.1 Note the updates detailed in this report.
2.2 Approve the Property Asset Management Strategy 2026 – 2030 and the initiation
of the Strategic Property Programme as outlined in the Property Asset
Management Strategy.
3 Background
3.1 As detailed in the draft Property Asset Management Strategy, Renfrewshire Council has a
wide and diverse public building portfolio. This is made up of twelve property types.

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3.2 Work continues to be undertaken to fully understand the use, placement/geography and
requirement for public building properties across Renfrewshire. A large data gathering
exercise has been conducted to influence decision making and make the best use of
resources (including usage data, maintenance, staffing and utility costs). Systems require
to be developed to ensure this information can be as accurate as possible. Building
Management System (BMS) Controls within many of the Learning Estate allow us to
monitor real time energy usage, however, many areas across the estate are not as
advanced and require manual intervention.
3.3 The objectives and goals of the Property Asset Management Strategy are aligned to the
Strategic Property Programme and the Council key objectives. For the strategy these are:
• Retain and rationalise our assets that are required and appropriate to our needs.
• Maximise the utilisation of the corporate estate.
• Match fitness for purpose with both the Council and community needs.
• Improve the condition of our assets through continued lifecycle management and
capital investment wherever possible.
• Comply with all statutory and legal requirements.
• Improve environmental sustainability outcomes as we work towards Net Zero.
3.4 These are to be supported by a focus on seven management principles:
• Long term strategic planning with regards to property.
• Collaboration and joint working across all Services.
• Appropriate governance and oversight arrangements.
• Clarity of roles and responsibilities.
• Strengthening and developing performance management.
• Importance of regularly reviewing the property assets.
• Appropriate skills, competencies and capacities to undertake good asset
management.
3.5 The Property Asset Management Strategy 2026 – 2030 goes into detail about the
following property strands:
• Overview/Inventory of buildings
• Corporate Asset Management – data and system
• Net Zero

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• Compliance, Repairs and maintenance
• Community Asset Transfer (CAT). 
3.6 In addition to the above, the strategy also outlines the Governance and oversight through
the Asset Management Oversight Group (AMOG) with reports coming to this Board (or
the Infrastructure, Land and Environment Policy Board for disposal of Assets) as required. 
3.7 In addition to looking forward, several properties have been disposed of since
January 2025, attracting capital receipts of over £2.5m and revenue savings of £123.6K
per annum (excluding FM and Backlog maintenance costs).  
Former Property Disposal Revenue Savings
Old Farmhouse Community Centre Sale £2,662 (utilities)
Houston Village Hall Sale £1,500 (utilities)
Robertson Centre Sale £36,000 (utilities)
Legal Store, Sir James Clark Building,
Paisley
Lease exited £3,000 (lease)
Montrose Care Home, Paisley Sale £80,436 
Total Over £2.5M  £123.6K per annum 
3.8 The following surplus properties from the portfolio were marketed for sale in 2025 or have
been considered for CAT: 
Former Property Proposed Disposal Revenue Savings
Chivas site, Paisley  Advertised for sale   N/A
Former Community
Centre, Blackstoun Road,
Paisley 
Advertised for sale/under
offer.  
£18.75K rates
Beechwood Community Centre  CAT in progress   £14.5K utilities
Woodlands Bowling Club  CAT in progress   low
Total TBC £33.25K 
4 Next Steps 
4.1 The Property Asset Management Strategy will help drive forward
Renfrewshire’s assets and public building portfolio over the next 5 years. This
will include the development of business cases (where required) to ensure that
Renfrewshire Council is using the public building portfolio well and that the
communities have access to buildings that meet their needs. 
4.2 The Action Plan within the Appendix, will be used to assist in delivering
outcomes and improvements across the portfolio. Officers will continue to
review property and potentially rationalise buildings as required to ensure a
sustainable portfolio moving forward. This will be a live programme that will be
reviewed regularly (annually). In relation to Governance the Strategic Property
Programme will report to the Finance, Resources, & Customer Services Policy
Board.

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4.3 Whilst financial challenges remain a major risk, additional funding has been
allocated to ensure compliance, repairs, maintenance and capital lifecycle
budgets are increased to £6m per annum. This budget will ensure funding is
available for the Strategic Property Programme. 
4.4 Work will continue in regard to working towards Net Zero and assisting with the
New Learning Estate Strategy. As we Reshape Renfrewshire our Property
Asset Management Strategy will align with our Local Development Plan 3 to
assess all opportunities. 
4.5 Recruitment will be undertaken and contractors engaged to continue to update
condition surveys across the Estate to allow an up-to-date picture and financial
costs for works to be undertaken. 
4.6 The Council’s New Ways of Working programme will continue to evolve and be
expanded throughout the portfolio to ensure that they are fit for purpose and
modern day working to assist the communities of Renfrewshire. 
Implications of the Report 
1. Financial – The financial implications, including capital lifecycle works,
compliance, repairs and maintenance are outlined in the report. 
2. HR & Organisational Development – None 
3. Community/Council Planning – 
• All Community Asset Transfer activities will be coordinated through
discussion and agreement with the CAT Officer and authorised
Community Representatives. 
4. Legal – As the strategy progresses, ongoing support with property related
matters will be undertaken with Legal Services. 
5. Property/Assets – As detailed within the report in relation to work on the
Council property portfolio. 
6. Information Technology – Support of our essential Asset Management
Systems (CAMIS - Contract renewal), BMS (Energy management), Security
systems, and IT infrastructure to support our operations 
7. Equality & Human Rights – The recommendations contained within this
report have been assessed in relation to their impact on equalities and human
rights. No negative impacts on equality groups or potential for infringement of
individuals’ human rights have been identified arising from the
recommendations contained in the report. If required following implementation,
the actual impact of the recommendations and the mitigating actions will be
reviewed and monitored, and the results of the assessment will be published
on the Council’s website.

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8. Health & Safety – As detailed within the report. 
9. Procurement – As detailed within the report. 
10. Risk – The current condition of the assets within the Council Public Building
portfolio is on the Corporate Risk Register due to the condition of some of the
buildings. 
11. Privacy Impact – None 
12. COSLA Policy Position – None 
13. Children’s Rights – None. 
14. Climate Change – The Property Asset Management Strategy is essential to
working towards Net Zero within Renfrewshire. Work has been undertaken to
fully understand works required across the public building portfolio.
Rationalisation of our state will allow us to focus our efforts on areas where the
greatest benefit can be achieved. 
List of Background Papers – 
Renfrewshire Council – On-going Strategic Property Review. Infrastructure, Land and
Environment Policy Board, 22 January 2025. 
Renfrewshire Council – Strategic Property Review. Infrastructure, Land and
Environment Policy Board, 24 May 2023. 
Author: Chris Dalrymple, Head of Facilities and Property Services
Email: chris.dalrymple@renfrewshire.gov.uk