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Woking BC's wholly owned company racked up debts of more than £600m, according to its latest accounts.Documents published last week showed Thameswey group owed the council £624m in March 2025, up from £599m a year earlier.Thameswey incurred a loss of £49m, compared to losses of £115m up to March 2024.The figures emerged following Woking's decision to dispose of its energy firm ThamesWey Central Milton Keynes (TCMK).This sale to an unnamed specialist required a debt‑for‑equity swap to convert £42m of debts owed to the council into shares.At a cabinet meeting, deputy leader Dale Roberts said it was a ‘relief' to offload TCMK despite the writing off debts of £42m in the process as Woking ‘wants to be a council, not an energy company'.Cllr Roberts added: ‘A single scheme owned by a local authority and operating outside its core geography was always likely to face structural challenges.'Communities portfolio holder Steve Greentree said: ‘It's sad to see the £42m loss money that has been lost in a venture that with hindsight should never have been put at risk by a borough council in a geography that is in no way related to Woking.'Cllr Roberts described Thameswey as the ‘world's most expensive jigsaw puzzle', with subsidiaries covering property development, housing, energy, maintenance services, solar power and guest houses in addition to TCMK.The Lib Dem administration that took control of Woking in 2022 had to unravel the complex financial arrangements of the council to begin the process of reducing its debt pile, now standing at £2.6bn.Ministers have agreed to write-off £500m of Woking's debt as part of reorganisation, under which Woking will become part of a West Surrey unitary council.In addition to TCMK, the council has also authorised the sale of housing developments, Wolsey Place shopping centre and the Victoria Place development.Cllr Roberts said: ‘These decisions mark another important step in our company divestment strategy, helping to simplify complex company structures and continuing the work of reducing historic borrowing. This work also enables the council to refocus on its core responsibilities to residents and businesses across the borough.'

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FINANCE

Woking-owned Thameswey debt exceeds £600m

By Martin Ford | 20 April 2026

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