According to a new study of local authorities, English councils are planning to offload community centers, athletic facilities, and retail spaces as they rely on a fire sale of assets to stabilize finances.
Growing Fiscal Pressures Drive Asset Sales
A coalition of councils representing major urban areas in the UK stated that six out of ten of councils are planning to sell assets to cover the escalating costs of social services for vulnerable individuals.
Local governments have in the past faced criticism for disposing of playing fields and open spaces to support their budgets, but they argue they must proceed to raise vital cash from property disposals or declare themselves bankrupt.
This coalition said that a high proportion of councils seeking to raise money from a quick sale of holdings represented “a distinct shift from 2024, when the largest share (60%) of municipal officials stated they would focus on restructuring services and using savings to manage increasing financial challenges.”
Specific Examples of Planned Disposals
Medway Council in Kent said its asset disposal plan included the sale of a retail complex in a local town and a social club in Rochester to generate 20 million pounds over five years.
- A local golf course and commercial properties held in Worcestershire and Suffolk, which all provide rental income for Medway council, will also be disposed of under the plan.
Local Levy Increases and Broader Financial Strains
This research of local authorities in the key cities group, which covers Sunderland, Southampton, Gloucester and Salford, further found that over seven in ten of authorities will have to increase local levies next spring to cover the growing cost of essential services, increased rates of homelessness, and a longstanding housing shortage.
Medway council said it will proceed with property disposals after steep rises in the cost of children services, support for vulnerable learners, elderly and disability services, and temporary accommodation.
“We are taking innovative approaches but certain measures take time to achieve both better provisions and financial savings,” said Vince Maple.
He added: “We face demographic pressures which will persist to increase the pressures we have. As a unitary authority, we had a 91% cut in our central funding from over the past decade, which is very challenging.”
National Trends and Forecasts
Research of regional authorities this week also found local finances being strained by the growing number of young people and adults needing Send support.
A network of councils said that council deficits will hit 4.4 billion pounds a year by 2029, as they struggle to cope with increased demand.
Government officials have delayed scheduled changes to the Send system until next year after a white paper outlining those reforms was recently delayed.
Deprivation and Funding Shortfalls
Based on the most recent deprivation measures (IMD) covering English councils, many key cities members were among the most disadvantaged in England.
- “Participating urban centers like Hull, Bradford, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland and Wolverhampton place in the top 30 nationally under the 2025 IMD measures,” said the report.
“Although only one key city is in the top 10 for deprived neighbourhoods nationally, urban areas are far more likely to be in the worst-off 20% of England. The data highlights the scale of challenges facing municipal officials across key cities in the next twelve months,” the analysis concluded.
“Local government leaders have been clear about the necessity for a fair and sustainable funding system that accounts for and responds to the actual extent of disadvantage and demand,” said Michael Mordey.
“Without this, local authorities will continue to face impossible choices around which essential services to allocate spend to, and which to cut, to the detriment of their communities.”
A fifth of councils have cut or compromised social care provision in the past 12 months, the survey found.
