According to a latest poll of municipal councils, English councils are planning to sell social clubs, athletic facilities, and retail spaces as they rely on a fire sale of properties to stabilize finances.
Increasing Financial Challenges Prompt Asset Sales
A coalition of councils representing major urban areas in the UK stated that 60% of councils are intending to dispose of properties to meet the rising costs of social services for vulnerable individuals.
Councils have previously come under fire for disposing of public land and land to support their finances, but they contend they must continue to raise vital cash from asset sales or face insolvency.
This coalition noted that a high proportion of councils seeking to generate funds from a fire sale of assets marked “a distinct shift from 2024, when the largest share (six in ten) of local leaders stated they would focus on restructuring services and using financial reserves to manage growing financial challenges.”
Detailed Examples of Planned Disposals
Medway Council in Kent said its asset disposal plan featured the disposal of a retail complex in a local town and a social club in another town to generate £20m over the next half-decade.
- A local golf course and commercial properties owned in Worcestershire and Suffolk, which all provide rental income for Medway council, will also be disposed of under the plan.
Local Levy Increases and Wider Fiscal Pressures
The survey of local authorities in the key cities group, which includes several urban centers, also found that more than 70% of councils will have to raise council taxes next April to address the rising cost of core provisions, higher levels of homelessness, and a longstanding accommodation deficit.
Medway council said it will proceed with asset sales after steep rises in the cost of children services, support for vulnerable learners, adult social care, and temporary accommodation.
“We are adopting innovative approaches but certain measures require time to deliver both improved services and cost efficiency,” stated Vince Maple.
He added: “We face population challenges which will continue to add to the pressures we have. As a unitary authority, we had a 91% cut in our revenue support grant from 2010-24, which is extremely difficult.”
Countrywide Trends and Projections
Research of county councils this week also found local finances being strained by the growing number of children and older individuals needing Send support.
The County Councils Network projected that local shortfalls will hit 4.4 billion pounds a year by 2029, as they struggle to cope with rising needs.
Government officials have delayed planned reforms to the special educational needs framework until the coming year after a policy document outlining those reforms has been postponed.
Deprivation and Funding Gaps
According to the latest deprivation measures (IMD) for English councils, many key cities members were included in the most disadvantaged in England.
- “Member cities like several major towns place in the most deprived 30 nationally under the 2025 IMD measures,” said the report.
“While only one key city is among the top 10 for deprived neighbourhoods countrywide, urban areas are much more prone to be in the most deprived fifth of the nation. The figures highlights the extent of difficulties facing local leaders across major urban centers in the coming year,” the analysis added.
“Local government leaders have been explicit about the necessity for a equitable and lasting financial structure that reflects and responds to the real levels of disadvantage and need,” stated Michael Mordey.
“Without this, councils will continue to face impossible choices around which essential services to fund, and which to reduce, to the disadvantage of their residents.”
One in five of local authorities have reduced or weakened social care provision in the last year, the study found.
