According to a latest poll of local authorities, UK councils are preparing to sell social clubs, athletic facilities, and shopping arcades as they rely on a fire sale of properties to stabilize finances.
Increasing Financial Challenges Drive Asset Sales
A coalition of councils representing major urban areas in the UK reported that 60% of local authorities are planning to sell assets to meet the rising costs of social services for vulnerable individuals.
Councils have in the past faced criticism for disposing of playing fields and land to shore up their budgets, but they argue they must continue to raise vital cash from asset sales 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 distinct shift from 2024, when the largest share (six in ten) of local leaders said they would focus on service redesigns and utilising savings to manage increasing fiscal pressures.”
Detailed Examples of Proposed Disposals
One local authority in southeast England announced its property management strategy featured the sale of a shopping centre in a local town and a community venue in another town to raise £20m over five years.
- Gillingham golf club and commercial properties held in Worcestershire and Suffolk, which all provide rental income for the authority, will also be disposed of under the plan.
Local Levy Rises and Wider Fiscal Pressures
This research of councils in the coalition, which covers Sunderland, Southampton, Gloucester and Salford, also found that over seven in ten of authorities will have to raise local levies next April to cover the growing cost of essential services, higher levels of housing insecurity, and a longstanding accommodation deficit.
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, adult social care, and short-term housing.
“We are adopting innovative approaches but certain measures take time to deliver both improved services and cost efficiency,” stated Vince Maple.
He added: “There are population challenges which will persist to increase the pressures we have. As a local government body, we had a 91% cut in our revenue support grant from over the past decade, which is extremely difficult.”
Countrywide Trends and Forecasts
Research of regional authorities this week further found council budgets being strained by the increasing figures of young people and adults requiring special educational assistance.
The County Councils Network projected that local shortfalls will reach 4.4 billion pounds a year by the end of the decade, as they grapple to manage rising needs.
Ministers have put off scheduled changes to the Send system until next year after a white paper setting out those changes has been postponed.
Deprivation and Financial Gaps
According to the latest deprivation measures (IMD) for English councils, many participating urban areas were among the most disadvantaged in England.
- “Member cities like Hull, Bradford, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland and Wolverhampton place in the most deprived 30 across the country under the 2025 IMD measures,” said the report.
“While only a single urban area is in the ten most deprived for deprived neighbourhoods countrywide, urban areas are much more prone to be in the most deprived fifth of England. The data underscores the extent of challenges facing local leaders across key cities in the next twelve months,” the report added.
“Council officials have been clear about the necessity for a equitable and lasting funding system that reflects and addresses the real levels of deprivation and demand,” stated Michael Mordey.
“Without this, councils will continue to face impossible choices around which essential services to fund, and which to cut, to the disadvantage of their residents.”
A fifth of councils have cut or compromised social care provision in the last year, the study revealed.
