North West · 2025-26
Business Rates in Knowsley
Businesses in Knowsley paid £58.4m in net business rates during 2025-26, below the average English council's £93.2m.
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Relief granted in Knowsley
Share of £11.7m total relief, 2025-26.
Knowsley at a glance
Knowsley granted £11.7m in relief overall, lower than the national council average of £26.3m. This included £3.5m in Small Business Rate Relief and £1.4m in retail, hospitality and leisure relief.
A further £3.2m went to charity relief and £2.2m to empty property relief, reflecting the mix of ratepayers across the local authority.
Knowsley has an estimated 3,330 active businesses, according to the latest ONS Business Counts (2025).
Knowsley ranks 13 out of 296 local authorities in England on the 2025 Index of Multiple Deprivation, where 1 is most deprived and 296 is least deprived.
Following the 2026 revaluation, the total rateable value of industrial property in Knowsley rose by 23.8% — if this pushed your assessment too high, an appeal may be worth considering.
Frequently asked questions
How much are business rates in Knowsley?
Knowsley's local authority collected £58.4m in net business rates income during 2025-26, based on the national multiplier applied to each property's rateable value, less any relief granted.
What reliefs are available in Knowsley?
Knowsley granted £11.7m in business rates relief in 2025-26, including £3.5m in Small Business Rate Relief, £1.4m in retail, hospitality and leisure relief, £3.2m in charity relief, and £2.2m in empty property relief.
How do I know if I'm overpaying?
If your rateable value looks high compared to similar properties nearby, or you're not currently receiving relief you may be entitled to, it's worth checking your assessment. Use our free checker to compare your rateable value and see if you may be eligible for a reduction or backdated refund.
Knowsley compared with the North West and England
- Average rateable value
- £40,696£15,367 above the North West average (£25,329)£6,706 above the England average (£33,990)
- Largest sector by value
- Industrial property, 55.9%25.7 percentage points above its 30.2% share in the North West
- Total rateable value, 2023 to 2026 list
- +18.7%North West: +19.3%England: +19.6%
Counts and rateable values are from the stock of properties at March 2026, on the 2023 rating list. Changes are from the 2026 revaluation, comparing the 2023 rating list with the 2026 rating list.
Property mix
On average rateable value, Knowsley sits 66th among England's 296 councils at £40,696, which is the highest in the North West. The same sector leads on numbers too: 35.7% of Knowsley's rateable properties fall in the industrial category.
Retail accounts for 27.6% of Knowsley's rateable properties and 14.8% of its rateable value, compared with 25.1% and 22.4% across the North West. At March 2026, around 30 of Knowsley's rateable properties had a rateable value of £500,000 or more, rising to around 40 on the 2026 list.
Change at the 2026 revaluation
Knowsley's +18.7% change in total rateable value at the 2026 revaluation sits mid-table in the North West: stronger than in 23 of the 34 other councils and weaker than in 10. The sharpest increase in Knowsley was in office property, where total rateable value rose 23.8% at the 2026 revaluation, compared with +14.6% for office property across the North West. No sector fell in Knowsley: retail property moved least, up 0.9% at the 2026 revaluation, compared with +6.2% for retail property across the North West.
Reliefs
In 2025-26, relief in Knowsley came to 16.5% of gross rates payable, below the 21.2% for England as a whole. Small Business Rate Relief was the largest of the four main reliefs in Knowsley, at 29.9% of total relief, close to 28.0% across England.
Source: HM Revenue & Customs, using Valuation Office Agency data, and MHCLG relief returns. Open Government Licence v3.0. Method and rounding: /methodology.
See how Knowsley compares with the rest of the region: Business rates in North West, State of Business Rates in England 2026 →
Nearby areas
Compare with other councils in the North West
Other North West councils with their average rateable value, listed from the closest to Knowsley's £40,696.
- Business rates in Halton UA£39,065 average rateable value, £1,631 lower than Knowsley
- Business rates in Warrington UA£38,215 average rateable value, £2,481 lower than Knowsley
- Business rates in Manchester£36,591 average rateable value, £4,105 lower than Knowsley
- Business rates in Cheshire West and Chester UA£32,859 average rateable value, £7,837 lower than Knowsley
- Business rates in Trafford£32,698 average rateable value, £7,998 lower than Knowsley
- Business rates in St Helens£31,876 average rateable value, £8,820 lower than Knowsley
Figures from MHCLG National Non-Domestic Rates statistics (2025-26), ONS UK Business Counts (2025), and English Indices of Deprivation (2025).
Updates for Knowsley
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