Based on a latest survey of local authorities, UK councils are planning to sell social clubs, athletic facilities, and retail spaces as they bet on a fire sale of assets to balance the books.
Growing Fiscal Challenges Drive Asset Sales
A coalition of councils representing major urban areas in England reported that six out of ten of councils are intending to sell assets to cover the rising costs of adult and children’s social care.
Councils have previously faced criticism for selling playing fields and open spaces to shore up their budgets, but they argue they must proceed to raise vital cash from asset sales or declare themselves bankrupt.
The group noted that a high proportion of councils seeking to raise money from a quick sale of holdings marked “a distinct shift from 2024, when the largest share (six in ten) of local leaders stated they would focus on service redesigns and utilising savings to weather growing financial challenges.”
Detailed Examples of Proposed Sales
One local authority in southeast England said its asset disposal plan included the sale of a shopping centre in Rainham and a social club in Rochester to raise £20m over the next half-decade.
- Gillingham golf club and business parks held in two English counties, which all provide rental income for Medway council, will additionally be disposed of under the strategy.
Council Tax Increases and Broader Fiscal Pressures
The survey of councils in the key cities group, which includes Sunderland, Southampton, Gloucester and Salford, further found that more than 70% of councils will have to raise local levies next April to address the growing cost of essential services, higher levels of homelessness, and a longstanding housing shortage.
The authority said it will proceed with property disposals after steep rises in the cost of youth support, support for vulnerable learners, elderly and disability services, and short-term housing.
“We are adopting creative strategies but certain measures require time to achieve both improved services and cost efficiency,” stated a council leader.
He continued: “There are demographic pressures which will continue to add to the pressures we have. As a unitary authority, we had a drastic reduction in our revenue support grant from 2010-24, which is very challenging.”
National Patterns and Projections
A survey of regional authorities this week also found local finances being strained by the increasing figures of young people and adults requiring special educational assistance.
The County Councils Network projected that local shortfalls will hit 4.4 billion pounds a year by 2029, as they grapple to cope with increased demand.
Government officials have delayed scheduled changes to the Send system 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 (the Index of Multiple Deprivation) for English councils, many participating urban areas were included in the most deprived in England.
- “Participating urban centers like Hull, Bradford, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland and Wolverhampton rank in the top 30 nationally under the 2025 IMD measures,” noted the report.
“While only one key city is in the ten most deprived for deprived neighbourhoods nationally, cities are far more likely to be in the most deprived fifth of the nation. The figures highlights the scale of difficulties confronting municipal officials across key cities in the coming year,” the report concluded.
“Local government leaders have been clear about the necessity for a equitable and lasting funding system that reflects and addresses the real levels of disadvantage and need,” said a council leader.
“Without this, councils will continue to face difficult decisions around which vital provisions to allocate spend to, and which to reduce, to the disadvantage of their residents.”
A fifth of councils have cut or compromised care services in the last year, the survey revealed.
