According to a latest survey of local authorities, English councils are preparing to offload social clubs, athletic facilities, and shopping arcades as they bet on a fire sale of assets to balance the books.
Growing Fiscal Pressures Prompt Asset Sales
A coalition of councils for second-tier cities in the UK stated that 60% of councils are planning to dispose of properties to meet the rising costs of adult and children’s social care.
Local governments have in the past come under fire for disposing of playing fields and open spaces to support their finances, but they contend they must proceed to generate essential revenue from asset sales or declare themselves bankrupt.
This coalition noted that a significant number of authorities attempting to generate funds from a quick sale of holdings marked “a distinct shift from 2024, when the majority (60%) of municipal officials stated they would prioritise restructuring services and utilising financial reserves to manage increasing fiscal pressures.”
Specific Examples of Proposed Disposals
Medway Council in southeast England announced its property management strategy included the sale of a shopping centre in Rainham and a social club in Rochester to raise £20m over five years.
- A local golf course and business parks owned in two English counties, which all provide rental income for the authority, will also be sold under the plan.
Council Tax Increases and Wider Fiscal Pressures
The survey of local authorities in the coalition, which includes Sunderland, Southampton, Gloucester and Salford, also found that more than 70% of councils will have to raise local levies next spring to address the rising cost of core provisions, higher levels of homelessness, and a longstanding housing shortage.
The authority said it will press ahead with asset sales after sharp increases in the cost of children services, support for vulnerable learners, elderly and disability services, and temporary accommodation.
“We are adopting creative strategies but some of these take time to deliver both better provisions and cost efficiency,” said a council leader.
He added: “We face population challenges which will persist to add to the pressures we have. As a local government body, we had a 91% cut in our revenue support grant from 2010-24, which is very challenging.”
Countrywide Trends and Forecasts
A survey of regional authorities this week further found local finances being strained by the increasing figures of young people and older individuals requiring special educational assistance.
A network of councils projected that council deficits will reach 4.4 billion pounds a year by 2029, as they struggle to manage increased demand.
Ministers have delayed scheduled changes to the special educational needs framework until the coming year after a white paper setting out those changes was recently delayed.
Disadvantage and Funding Gaps
According to the most recent indices of deprivation (IMD) covering English councils, several key cities members were among the most deprived in the country.
- “Member cities like Hull, Bradford, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland and Wolverhampton rank in the top 30 across the country under the 2025 deprivation indices,” said the report.
“Although only one key city is in the top 10 for disadvantaged communities nationally, cities are far more likely to be in the worst-off 20% of the nation. The data underscores the scale of challenges facing local leaders across key cities in the next twelve months,” the report concluded.
“Council officials have been clear about the need for a fair and sustainable financial structure that accounts for and addresses the real levels of deprivation and demand,” stated Michael Mordey.
“Lacking this, councils will continue to face difficult decisions around which essential services to allocate spend to, and which to cut, to the detriment of their communities.”
One in five of local authorities have reduced or weakened care services in the past 12 months, the survey revealed.
