Council leaseholders

What is a leaseholder?

The council flat you bought only forms part of a larger building. As the owner of the block we are responsible for maintaining the structure, external and communal facilities and services such as caretaking, lighting and the laundry.  This kind of ownership is called leasehold and we have nearly 1,400 leaseholders.

What are my rights and responsibilities?

Your rights and responsibilities are set out in your lease. If you have any questions about your lease please contact Right to Buy and Leasehold Services.

How and where can I pay my service charge?

• Online payment: You can pay your service charge 24 hours a day online pay council bills online.  Please note there is a 1.8% charge on all credit card payments. This payment service provides you with the balance due on your account.

• Direct debit: This is the easiest way to pay your service charge. You must pay in advance so that your account does not go in to arrears. Payments are made automatically from your bank, building society or credit union account on a monthly basis. To set up a direct debit, please complete a direct debit form (pdf, 82 KB) (opens new window). For more information please contact Shared Transactional Services on 0117 352 1404.

• Telephone payment: You can pay your service charge 24 hours a day via our automated payment line. Telephone 0870 707 7776 (option six). Have your invoice and card details ready. Please note there is a 1.8% charge on all credit card payments.

• Pay at a bank: Pay by cash or cheque at a bank using the bank giro credit slip attached to the invoice. Please note the bank may charge.

• Pay at the post office: You will need to fill in a transcash form. You may be charged for this. If you have a giro account, you can ask the giro centre to make a free transfer to our giro account. You need to write the invoice number in the message space on the back of the transcash form, together with our giro number, which is 2031310.

• Pay by post: Please make your cheque payable to Bristol City Council. Tear off the slip on the bottom of your invoice and send it with your payment to STS Finance and Procurement, The Council House, College Green, Bristol BS1 5TR. We do not normally issue receipts. However, if you would like one, please send your invoice in with your payment, marking it receipt needed. Please do not send cash in the post.

• Pay in person: You can pay in person at any of our Customer Service Points. You can pay by cash, cheque or debit, credit card.

What if I have a question about my service charge certificate?

If you have any questions about your service charge, please contact Right to Buy and Leasehold Services.

How can I report a repair?

• We are responsible for all repairs to shared facilities such as lifts, lighting, shared heating and hot water systems, the roof and the structure of the building and communal areas.
• You can report repairs in the same way as if you were a tenant. For more information please see council tenants: how to report a repair.
• When you report a repair, we will give it a priority. This is the time we estimate it will take us to do the repair. For more information please see leaseholder repairs priorities (pdf, 19 KB) (opens new window).

Please note: a share of the cost of any repairs will be included in your future service charge.

Major works

We are working to ensure that all of our blocks of flats meet the Decent Homes Standard and our Bristol Homes Standard. It is likely that at some point your block will require refurbishment or maintenance.

Major work projects (where the cost of any individual flat's contribution is more than £250) include:

• Refurbishing the roof.
• External repairs and maintenance.
• New windows.
• Replacing lifts.
• Laundry refurbishment.

To find out the procedure we have to follow, how we will bill you and how you can pay please see our leaseholders handbook (pdf, 234 KB) (opens new window).

Maintaining your home

For general advice on maintaining your home and information on a range of loans and grants available to homeowners, please see our homeowners section.

Further information

For further information please see our leaseholders handbook (pdf, 234 KB) (opens new window).