Best areas to open dance school in South East
8 South East local authorities ranked by the Gera Business Location Score — real rent, wages, rates and market density.
Where is the best place to open a dance or performing-arts school in South East?
In South East, the best area to open a dance or performing-arts school is Thanet, with a Gera Business Location Score of 70.8/100: premises at £40/m²/yr and local median pay £27,076. Winchester ranks lowest of 8 South East authorities at 49.5/100. From 2025 UK government open data; re-dated annually.
South East ranked for dance school
| # | Local authority | GBLS | Rent (£/m²/yr) | Local pay | Rates / 100 m² |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Thanet | 70.8/100 | £40 | £27,076 | £1,728 |
| 2 | Dover | 66.2/100 | £42 | £31,547 | £1,814 |
| 3 | Canterbury | 63.7/100 | £66 | £29,337 | £2,851 |
| 4 | Medway | 61.2/100 | £61 | £30,784 | £2,635 |
| 5 | Brighton and Hove | 57.9/100 | £77 | £33,649 | £3,326 |
| 6 | Portsmouth | 56.3/100 | £63 | £33,015 | £2,722 |
| 7 | Southampton | 50.5/100 | £82 | £33,878 | £3,542 |
| 8 | Winchester | 49.5/100 | £138 | £34,568 | £5,962 |
Frequently asked questions
- What is the cheapest area for dance school premises in South East?
- The lowest VOA rateable value for this property type in South East is £40/m²/yr in Thanet. On the combined Gera Business Location Score, which also weighs wages and demand, Thanet ranks #1.
- How much are business rates for dance school in Thanet?
- For a 100 m² unit in Thanet, business rates are roughly £1,728/yr at the 2026-27 small-business multiplier (43.2p), on top of about £4,000/yr rent — before Small Business Rate Relief.
Opening a dance or performing-arts school in South East?
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Contains public sector information published by Valuation Office Agency and Office for National Statistics and licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: VOA Business Floorspace + ONS Business Counts + ONS ASHE (work geography) + ONS population estimates (2025 (VOA 31 March 2025; ASHE 2025 provisional; Business Counts 2025; population mid-2024), published December 2025).