Based on a new survey of municipal councils, English councils are planning to offload social clubs, athletic facilities, and retail spaces as they rely on a fire sale of assets to balance the books.
Growing Financial Challenges Prompt Asset Sales
A coalition of councils for second-tier cities in the UK reported that six out of ten of local authorities are planning to sell assets to cover the rising costs of social services for vulnerable individuals.
Councils have in the past come under fire for disposing of public land and land to shore up their budgets, but they argue they must proceed to raise vital cash from asset sales or face insolvency.
The group noted that a high proportion of councils attempting to generate funds from a fire sale of holdings represented “a distinct shift from 2024, when the majority (six in ten) of local leaders said they would prioritise restructuring services and utilising savings to manage growing financial challenges.”
Specific Cases of Planned Sales
One local authority in Kent announced its asset disposal plan included the sale of a shopping centre in Rainham and a community venue in another town to raise 20 million pounds over five years.
- A local golf course and business parks held in two English counties, which all generate rent for Medway council, will also be sold under the plan.
Council Tax Increases and Broader Financial Strains
This research of councils in the key cities group, which covers Sunderland, Southampton, Gloucester and Salford, also found that over seven in ten of authorities will need to increase council taxes next spring to address the rising cost of essential services, increased rates of housing insecurity, and a persistent housing shortage.
The authority said it will proceed with property disposals after sharp increases in the cost of children services, special educational needs and disability (Send) provision, adult social care, and temporary accommodation.
“We are adopting creative strategies but some of these require time to achieve both better provisions and cost efficiency,” stated a council leader.
He continued: “There are population challenges which will persist to increase the pressures we have. As a local government body, we had a 91% cut in our revenue support grant from over the past decade, which is very challenging.”
Countrywide Patterns and Projections
A survey of regional authorities recently further found local finances being strained by the growing number of children and adults requiring special educational assistance.
A network of councils said that local shortfalls will hit £4.4bn a year by 2029, as they struggle to cope with increased demand.
Ministers have put off scheduled changes to the special educational needs framework until the coming year after a white paper outlining those reforms has been postponed.
Deprivation and Financial Shortfalls
According to the latest indices of deprivation (IMD) for English councils, several participating urban areas were included in the most disadvantaged in England.
- “Participating urban centers like Hull, Bradford, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland and Wolverhampton rank in the top 30 nationally under the 2025 deprivation indices,” noted the report.
“While only a single urban area is among the ten most deprived for deprived neighbourhoods nationally, urban areas are much more prone to be in the worst-off 20% of the nation. The figures highlights the extent of difficulties confronting local leaders across key cities in the next twelve months,” the analysis concluded.
“Local government leaders have been clear about the need for a equitable and lasting financial structure that reflects and addresses the actual extent of deprivation and demand,” stated a council leader.
“Without this, councils will continue to face difficult decisions around which essential services to allocate spend to, and which to cut, to the disadvantage of their residents.”
A fifth of councils have cut or compromised care services in the past 12 months, the study revealed.
