Based on a latest study of municipal councils, English councils are planning to sell social clubs, sports centres, and shopping arcades as they rely on a rapid disposal of assets to stabilize finances.
Growing Fiscal Pressures Prompt Asset Sales
The Key Cities Group representing second-tier cities in England stated that six out of ten of local authorities are intending to dispose of properties 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 shore up their budgets, but they contend they must continue to raise vital cash from property disposals or face insolvency.
The group noted that a significant number of councils seeking to generate funds from a quick sale of assets marked “a clear change from 2024, when the majority (six in ten) of municipal officials stated they would prioritise service redesigns and utilising financial reserves to manage increasing fiscal pressures.”
Detailed Examples of Planned Disposals
One local authority in southeast England said its property management strategy included the sale of a retail complex in Rainham and a community venue in Rochester to generate £20m over five years.
- Gillingham golf club and business parks owned in Worcestershire and Suffolk, which all generate rent for Medway council, will also be sold under the strategy.
Council Tax Rises and Broader Fiscal Pressures
This research of councils in the coalition, which covers several urban centers, also found that over seven in ten of councils will need to increase local levies next spring to cover the growing cost of core provisions, higher levels of homelessness, and a longstanding housing shortage.
Medway council said it will proceed with asset sales after sharp increases in the cost of youth support, special educational needs and disability (Send) provision, elderly and disability services, and short-term housing.
“We are adopting creative strategies but certain measures take time to deliver both better provisions and cost efficiency,” stated a council leader.
He added: “We face demographic pressures which will persist to add to the strains we have. As a unitary authority, we had a drastic reduction in our revenue support grant from over the past decade, which is very challenging.”
Countrywide Trends and Forecasts
A survey of regional authorities this week also found council budgets being stretched by the growing number of young people and older individuals needing special educational assistance.
The County Councils Network said that local shortfalls will reach £4.4bn a year by the end of the decade, as they struggle to cope with increased demand.
Government officials have put off planned reforms to the special educational needs framework until next year after a white paper setting out those changes was recently delayed.
Deprivation and Financial Shortfalls
According to the most recent indices of deprivation (IMD) covering English councils, many participating urban areas were among the most disadvantaged in the country.
- “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.
“Although only a single urban area is among the top 10 for disadvantaged communities nationally, cities are far more likely to be in the most deprived fifth of England. The figures underscores the extent of difficulties confronting local leaders across key cities in the next twelve months,” the analysis added.
“Council officials have been clear about the need for a fair and sustainable financial structure that reflects and addresses the real levels of deprivation and need,” stated a council leader.
“Lacking this, councils will continue to face difficult decisions around which essential services 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 past 12 months, the survey found.
