South East · 2025-26
Business Rates in New Forest
Businesses in New Forest paid £77.5m in net business rates during 2025-26, below the average English council's £93.2m.
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Relief granted in New Forest
Share of £22.3m total relief, 2025-26.
New Forest at a glance
New Forest granted £22.3m in relief overall, lower than the national council average of £26.3m. This included £9.0m in Small Business Rate Relief and £5.0m in retail, hospitality and leisure relief.
A further £4.4m went to charity relief and £2.5m to empty property relief, reflecting the mix of ratepayers across the local authority.
New Forest has an estimated 7,820 active businesses, according to the latest ONS Business Counts (2025).
New Forest ranks 236 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 New Forest rose by 19.4% — if this pushed your assessment too high, an appeal may be worth considering.
Frequently asked questions
How much are business rates in New Forest?
New Forest's local authority collected £77.5m 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 New Forest?
New Forest granted £22.3m in business rates relief in 2025-26, including £9.0m in Small Business Rate Relief, £5.0m in retail, hospitality and leisure relief, £4.4m in charity relief, and £2.5m 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.
New Forest compared with the South East and England
- Average rateable value
- £26,255£9,041 below the South East average (£35,296)£7,735 below the England average (£33,990)
- Largest sector by value
- Industrial property, 44.8%14.8 percentage points above its 30.0% share in the South East
- Total rateable value, 2023 to 2026 list
- +17.4%South East: +19.7%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
At £26,255, New Forest's average rateable value ranks 175th of 296 councils in England and 47th of 64 in the South East. The largest group of New Forest's rateable properties is other commercial property (39.0%), yet industrial property holds the largest share of value (44.8%).
Retail makes up 21.0% of New Forest's rateable properties and 16.4% of its rateable value, both below the 22.5% and 20.7% across the South East. At March 2026, around 40 of New Forest's rateable properties had a rateable value of £500,000 or more, unchanged at around 40 on the 2026 list.
Change at the 2026 revaluation
New Forest's +17.4% change in total rateable value at the 2026 revaluation sits mid-table in the South East: stronger than in 36 of the 63 other councils and weaker than in 26. The sharpest increase in New Forest was in other commercial property, where total rateable value rose 19.9% at the 2026 revaluation, compared with +26.7% for other commercial property across the South East. No sector fell in New Forest: retail property moved least, up 10.1% at the 2026 revaluation, compared with +10.8% for retail property across the South East.
Reliefs
In 2025-26, relief in New Forest came to 21.3% of gross rates payable, close to the 21.2% for England as a whole. Small Business Rate Relief was the largest of the four main reliefs in New Forest, at 40.4% of total relief, above 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 New Forest compares with the rest of the region: Business rates in South East, State of Business Rates in England 2026 →
Nearby areas
Compare with other councils in the South East
Other South East councils with their average rateable value, listed from the closest to New Forest's £26,255.
- Business rates in Horsham£26,070 average rateable value, £185 lower than New Forest
- Business rates in West Oxfordshire£26,770 average rateable value, £515 higher than New Forest
- Business rates in Ashford£26,782 average rateable value, £527 higher than New Forest
- Business rates in Havant£27,166 average rateable value, £911 higher than New Forest
- Business rates in Sevenoaks£25,287 average rateable value, £968 lower than New Forest
- Business rates in Brighton & Hove UA£27,771 average rateable value, £1,516 higher than New Forest
Figures from MHCLG National Non-Domestic Rates statistics (2025-26), ONS UK Business Counts (2025), and English Indices of Deprivation (2025).
Updates for New Forest
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