Stewart - if you are looking for wider comments then it's unlikely you will get them on this forum. I'd suggest trying forums such as Money Saving Expert where people in your position have done as suggested and can offer some advice guidance.
From a purely LR perspective
transferring the legal ownership can be quite a simple process provided the correct forms etc are completed and submitted. But you are paying a conveyancer for their wider professional services also which can include legal advice as well as verifying your identities and so on
It would be odd for you to buy just your flat's freehold and I'd perhaps expect the freeholder to wish to transfer the freehold to all of you as a group. That's something to perhaps consider with the other leaseholders.
And T
he Leasehold Advisory Service is a useful resource if not already visited their site of course