Based on a recent survey of local authorities, UK councils are planning to offload social clubs, athletic facilities, and retail spaces as they bet on a fire sale of properties to balance the books.
Growing Fiscal Pressures Drive Asset Sales
A coalition of councils representing second-tier cities in the UK stated that 60% of local authorities are intending to sell assets to meet the rising costs of adult and children’s social care.
Local governments have in the past come under fire for disposing of public land and open spaces to shore up their budgets, but they argue they must continue to raise vital cash from property disposals or declare themselves bankrupt.
This coalition noted that a significant number of councils attempting to raise money from a quick sale of holdings represented “a clear change from 2024, when the largest share (six in ten) of municipal officials stated they would prioritise service redesigns and using financial reserves to manage growing fiscal pressures.”
Specific Examples of Proposed Sales
One local authority in Kent announced its asset disposal plan included the sale of a retail complex in a local town and a community venue 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 additionally be sold under the strategy.
Council Tax Increases and Wider Fiscal Pressures
This research of local authorities in the coalition, which covers several urban centers, further found that more than 70% of councils will need to raise council taxes next spring to address the rising cost of essential services, increased rates of housing insecurity, and a longstanding accommodation deficit.
Medway council said it will press ahead with property disposals after sharp increases in the cost of children services, support for vulnerable learners, adult social care, and temporary accommodation.
“We are taking innovative approaches but some of these require time to achieve both better provisions and financial savings,” said a council leader.
He continued: “There are population challenges which will continue to increase the strains we have. As a unitary authority, we had a drastic reduction in our central funding from 2010-24, which is extremely difficult.”
National Patterns and Forecasts
A survey of county councils recently also found council budgets being stretched by the increasing figures of children and older individuals needing Send support.
The County Councils Network projected that local shortfalls will reach £4.4bn a year by 2029, as they struggle to manage rising needs.
Government officials have delayed planned reforms to the Send system until next year after a white paper outlining those reforms has been postponed.
Disadvantage and Funding Gaps
According to the most recent deprivation measures (IMD) covering English councils, several key cities members were among the most disadvantaged in England.
- “Member cities like Hull, Bradford, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland and Wolverhampton place in the top 30 across the country under the 2025 deprivation indices,” noted the report.
“While only one key city is among the top 10 for deprived neighbourhoods countrywide, cities are much more prone to be in the worst-off 20% of England. The data highlights the scale of difficulties confronting local leaders across major urban centers in the coming year,” the analysis concluded.
“Local government leaders have been explicit about the necessity for a equitable and lasting financial structure that accounts for and responds to the actual extent of deprivation and need,” stated a council leader.
“Without this, local authorities will persist to face impossible choices around which vital provisions to allocate spend to, and which to cut, to the detriment of their residents.”
A fifth of councils have reduced or weakened social care provision in the past 12 months, the study revealed.
