Based on a new poll of local authorities, English councils are preparing to offload social clubs, athletic facilities, and retail spaces as they rely on a fire sale of properties to balance the books.
Growing Financial Pressures Drive Asset Sales
A coalition of councils for second-tier cities in the UK stated that six out of ten of local authorities are intending to sell assets to meet the rising costs of adult and children’s social care.
Councils have in the past come under fire for disposing of playing fields and land to support their finances, but they contend they must proceed to raise vital cash from asset sales or declare themselves bankrupt.
The group said that a significant number of councils seeking to raise money from a quick sale of holdings marked “a distinct shift from 2024, when the majority (60%) of local leaders stated they would prioritise restructuring services and using savings to manage increasing fiscal pressures.”
Detailed Examples of Planned Sales
One local authority in southeast England said its property management strategy featured the disposal of a shopping centre in a local town and a community venue in another town to raise £20m over five years.
- Gillingham golf club and business parks owned in two English counties, which all generate rent for the authority, will also be disposed of under the strategy.
Local Levy Rises and Broader Fiscal Strains
This research of local authorities in the coalition, 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 persistent housing shortage.
Medway council explained it will proceed with asset sales after steep rises in the cost of youth support, special educational needs and disability (Send) provision, adult social care, and short-term housing.
“We are taking innovative approaches but certain measures require time to achieve both better provisions and financial savings,” stated Vince Maple.
He added: “We face demographic pressures which will persist to increase the strains we have. As a local government body, we had a drastic reduction in our central funding from over the past decade, which is very challenging.”
National Patterns and Forecasts
A survey of regional authorities recently also found local finances being strained by the increasing figures of young people and older individuals needing special educational assistance.
A network of councils said that local shortfalls will reach 4.4 billion pounds a year by 2029, as they struggle to manage increased demand.
Ministers have put off planned reforms to the Send system until next year after a white paper setting out those changes was recently delayed.
Deprivation and Financial Gaps
According to the most recent indices of deprivation (IMD) for UK local authorities, several key cities members were among the most deprived in the country.
- “Member cities like several major towns rank in the most deprived 30 across the country under the 2025 deprivation indices,” noted the study.
“Although only a single urban area is among the top 10 for deprived neighbourhoods countrywide, cities are far more likely to be in the worst-off 20% of the nation. The data underscores the extent of challenges facing local leaders across key cities in the next twelve months,” the report added.
“Local government leaders have been clear about the need for a fair and sustainable financial structure that reflects and responds to the real levels of deprivation and need,” said Michael Mordey.
“Lacking this, councils will continue to face impossible choices around which vital provisions to allocate spend to, 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 survey revealed.
