Based on a latest study of local authorities, English councils are preparing to sell social clubs, athletic facilities, and shopping arcades as they rely on a fire sale of properties to balance the books.
Increasing Financial Pressures Prompt Asset Sales
A coalition of councils representing second-tier cities in England reported that 60% of local authorities are planning to sell assets to meet the rising costs of social services for vulnerable individuals.
Local governments have previously faced criticism for selling public land and open spaces to shore up their budgets, but they argue they must continue to generate essential revenue from asset sales or face insolvency.
The group noted that a high proportion of councils seeking to raise money from a fire sale of assets represented “a clear change from 2024, when the largest share (60%) of municipal officials said they would prioritise service redesigns and utilising financial reserves to weather increasing fiscal pressures.”
Specific Examples of Proposed Disposals
One local authority in southeast England said its asset disposal plan included the sale of a retail complex in Rainham and a community venue in another town to raise 20 million pounds over five years.
- A local golf course and business parks owned in Worcestershire and Suffolk, which all provide rental income for the authority, will additionally be disposed of under the strategy.
Council Tax Rises and Wider Financial Pressures
This research of councils in the key cities group, which covers Sunderland, Southampton, Gloucester and Salford, further found that over seven in ten of councils will need to raise council taxes next April to address the growing cost of core provisions, higher levels of homelessness, and a longstanding accommodation deficit.
The authority explained it will proceed 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 creative strategies but certain measures require time to achieve both better provisions and cost efficiency,” stated Vince Maple.
He continued: “There are demographic pressures which will continue to add to the pressures 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 Projections
Research of regional authorities this week also found council budgets being stretched by the growing number of children and older individuals needing Send support.
The County Councils Network said that council deficits will reach 4.4 billion pounds a year by the end of the decade, as they grapple to cope with increased demand.
Ministers have delayed planned reforms to the Send system until the coming year after a policy document setting out those reforms was recently delayed.
Deprivation and Financial Shortfalls
Based on the latest deprivation measures (the Index of Multiple Deprivation) covering English councils, many 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,” said the study.
“While only one key city is among the top 10 for deprived neighbourhoods nationally, cities are far more likely to be in the most deprived fifth of the nation. The data highlights the scale of difficulties facing local leaders across major urban centers in the next twelve months,” the analysis added.
“Council officials have been clear about the need for a fair and sustainable funding system that reflects and responds to the real levels of disadvantage and need,” said a council leader.
“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.”
A fifth of councils have cut or compromised care services in the past 12 months, the study found.
