Based on a new poll of municipal councils, English councils are planning to offload community centers, athletic facilities, and shopping arcades as they bet on a rapid disposal of assets to balance the books.
Increasing Fiscal Challenges Prompt Asset Sales
A coalition of councils representing second-tier cities in the UK reported that six out of ten of councils are intending to dispose of properties to cover the escalating costs of adult and children’s social care.
Councils have previously come under fire for selling playing fields and land to support their budgets, but they contend they must continue to raise vital cash from asset sales or declare themselves bankrupt.
The group said that a high proportion of authorities attempting to raise money from a quick sale of holdings marked “a distinct shift from 2024, when the largest share (60%) of local leaders said they would focus on service redesigns and utilising financial reserves to weather increasing fiscal pressures.”
Detailed Examples of Proposed Sales
One local authority in southeast England announced its property management strategy included the disposal of a shopping centre in Rainham and a community venue in Rochester to raise £20m over five years.
- Gillingham golf club and business parks held in two English counties, which all generate rent for the authority, will additionally be disposed of under the plan.
Council Tax Increases and Broader Fiscal Pressures
This research of councils in the key cities group, which includes several urban centers, also found that more than 70% of authorities will need to raise council taxes next spring to address the growing cost of core provisions, increased rates of homelessness, and a longstanding housing shortage.
The authority explained it will proceed with asset sales after steep rises in the cost of children services, special educational needs and disability (Send) provision, elderly and disability services, and short-term housing.
“We are adopting creative strategies but certain measures require time to deliver both better provisions and cost efficiency,” said a council leader.
He continued: “We face population challenges which will continue to increase the strains we have. As a local government body, we had a drastic reduction in our revenue support grant from over the past decade, which is very challenging.”
National Trends and Forecasts
Research of county councils this week further found local finances being strained by the increasing figures of young people and older individuals needing special educational assistance.
The County Councils Network said that council deficits will reach £4.4bn a year by the end of the decade, as they grapple to manage rising needs.
Government officials have put off planned reforms to the Send system until next year after a policy document outlining those changes was recently delayed.
Deprivation and Financial Shortfalls
According to the most recent indices of deprivation (the Index of Multiple Deprivation) for UK local authorities, several participating urban areas were among the most deprived in England.
- “Participating urban centers like Hull, Bradford, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland and Wolverhampton place in the most deprived 30 across the country under the 2025 IMD measures,” said the study.
“Although only one key city is in the top 10 for deprived neighbourhoods countrywide, cities are much more prone to be in the worst-off 20% of England. The figures underscores the scale of difficulties confronting municipal officials across key cities in the coming year,” the report concluded.
“Local government leaders have been clear about the need for a fair and sustainable financial structure that reflects and addresses the real levels of deprivation and demand,” stated Michael Mordey.
“Without this, councils will persist to face difficult decisions around which vital provisions to fund, and which to cut, to the detriment of their communities.”
One in five of local authorities have reduced or weakened social care provision in the last year, the study found.
