Based on a new study of local authorities, English councils are preparing to offload community centers, sports centres, and retail spaces as they bet on a fire sale of properties to stabilize finances.
Increasing Fiscal Challenges Prompt Asset Sales
A coalition of councils for second-tier cities in England stated that six out of ten of local authorities are intending to sell assets to cover the rising costs of social services for vulnerable individuals.
Local governments have previously faced criticism for selling public land and land to shore up their finances, but they contend they must continue to generate essential revenue from asset sales or declare themselves bankrupt.
This coalition said that a significant number of authorities attempting to raise money from a quick sale of assets represented “a distinct shift from 2024, when the largest share (six in ten) of municipal officials stated they would focus on restructuring services and utilising savings to manage growing financial challenges.”
Specific Cases of Proposed Disposals
One local authority in Kent said its asset disposal plan featured the disposal of a retail complex in Rainham and a community venue in Rochester to generate £20m over five years.
- A local golf course and business parks held in two English counties, which all generate rent for the authority, will additionally be sold under the plan.
Council Tax Rises and Broader Fiscal Strains
This research of councils in the key cities group, which covers several urban centers, further found that over seven in ten of councils will have to raise local levies next April to address the rising cost of essential services, higher levels of homelessness, and a persistent accommodation deficit.
Medway council explained it will press ahead with asset sales after sharp increases in the cost of children services, support for vulnerable learners, adult social care, and temporary accommodation.
“We are taking creative strategies but some of these take time to achieve both improved services and cost efficiency,” said Vince Maple.
He continued: “There are 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 Patterns and Projections
Research of county councils this week further found council budgets being strained by the increasing figures of children and older individuals requiring Send support.
The County Councils Network said that local shortfalls will reach 4.4 billion pounds a year by the end of the decade, as they struggle to cope with increased demand.
Ministers have put off planned reforms to the Send system until next year after a white paper setting out those reforms was recently delayed.
Disadvantage and Funding Gaps
According to the most recent indices of deprivation (IMD) for UK local authorities, several participating urban areas were among the most deprived in England.
- “Participating urban centers like several major towns place in the most deprived 30 across the country under the 2025 deprivation indices,” noted the study.
“Although only one key city is among the ten most deprived for disadvantaged communities countrywide, cities are far more likely to be in the most deprived fifth of England. The data underscores the scale of challenges facing municipal officials across key cities in the coming year,” the analysis added.
“Local government leaders have been explicit about the need for a fair and sustainable financial structure that reflects and responds to the real levels of disadvantage and need,” stated a council leader.
“Lacking this, local authorities will persist to face difficult decisions around which vital provisions to allocate spend to, and which to reduce, to the detriment of their communities.”
A fifth of councils have cut or compromised social care provision in the last year, the survey found.
