According to a new survey of local authorities, UK councils are planning to offload community centers, athletic facilities, and retail spaces as they rely on a rapid disposal of properties to balance the books.
Increasing Fiscal Pressures Prompt Asset Sales
The Key Cities Group representing second-tier cities in England stated that six out of ten of councils are intending to sell assets to meet the escalating costs of adult and children’s social care.
Local governments have in the past faced criticism for disposing of playing fields and open spaces to support their finances, but they argue they must proceed to raise vital cash from property disposals or face insolvency.
The group said that a high proportion of authorities attempting to generate funds from a fire sale of assets marked “a distinct shift from 2024, when the largest share (60%) of local leaders said they would focus on service redesigns and utilising savings to manage growing fiscal pressures.”
Detailed Cases of Planned Disposals
One local authority in southeast England announced its property management strategy featured the sale of a retail complex in a local town and a social club in Rochester to generate £20m over the next half-decade.
- Gillingham golf club and commercial properties held in two English counties, which all provide rental income for the authority, will also be disposed of under the strategy.
Council Tax Rises and Wider Fiscal Pressures
This research of local authorities in the key cities group, which covers several urban centers, also found that more than 70% of authorities will have to raise council taxes next spring to address the growing cost of essential services, increased rates of housing insecurity, and a persistent housing shortage.
The authority explained it will press ahead with asset sales after sharp increases 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 some of these take time to achieve both better provisions and cost efficiency,” stated Vince Maple.
He continued: “There are population challenges which will continue to increase the strains we have. As a unitary authority, we had a 91% cut in our central funding from over the past decade, which is very challenging.”
Countrywide Patterns and Forecasts
Research of county councils recently further found council budgets being strained by the increasing figures of children and older individuals needing Send support.
The County Councils Network projected that council deficits will hit £4.4bn a year by the end of the decade, as they grapple to manage rising needs.
Ministers have put off planned reforms to the Send system until the coming year after a policy document outlining those changes was recently delayed.
Deprivation and Funding Gaps
Based on the latest indices of deprivation (the Index of Multiple Deprivation) covering English councils, many participating urban areas were among the most deprived 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 study.
“While only one key city is among the top 10 for disadvantaged communities nationally, urban areas are far more likely to be in the worst-off 20% of England. The data highlights the extent of challenges confronting local leaders across major urban centers in the next twelve months,” the report concluded.
“Council officials have been explicit 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.
“Without this, councils will continue to face difficult decisions around which essential services to fund, and which to cut, to the detriment of their communities.”
A fifth of councils have cut or compromised care services in the past 12 months, the study revealed.
