Based on a new study of local authorities, English councils are preparing to sell community centers, sports centres, and retail spaces as they rely on a rapid disposal of assets to stabilize finances.
Increasing Financial Pressures Prompt Asset Sales
A coalition of councils for major urban areas in the UK stated that six out of ten of councils are planning to dispose of properties to cover the escalating costs of adult and children’s social care.
Councils have previously come under fire for selling public land and land to support their finances, but they argue they must proceed to generate essential revenue from property disposals or declare themselves bankrupt.
The group said that a significant number of authorities attempting to generate funds from a quick sale of holdings marked “a distinct shift from 2024, when the majority (60%) of municipal officials said they would prioritise service redesigns and utilising financial reserves to weather increasing fiscal pressures.”
Specific Cases of Proposed Sales
Medway Council in southeast England said its property management strategy included the sale of a shopping centre in Rainham and a social club in another town to raise £20m over five years.
- Gillingham golf club and business parks held in Worcestershire and Suffolk, which all generate rent for Medway council, will additionally be sold under the strategy.
Local Levy Rises and Broader Fiscal Strains
This research of local authorities in the coalition, which covers Sunderland, Southampton, Gloucester and Salford, further found that over seven in ten of authorities will need to raise local levies next April to cover the rising cost of core provisions, increased rates of housing insecurity, and a longstanding housing shortage.
Medway council explained it will proceed with property disposals after sharp increases in the cost of youth support, special educational needs and disability (Send) provision, elderly and disability services, and temporary accommodation.
“We are adopting innovative approaches but certain measures take time to deliver both better provisions and financial savings,” said Vince Maple.
He added: “We face demographic pressures which will persist to add to the strains we have. As a local government body, we had a 91% cut in our revenue support grant from 2010-24, which is extremely difficult.”
Countrywide Trends and Forecasts
A survey of regional authorities this week also found local finances being stretched by the growing number of children and adults requiring Send support.
The County Councils Network projected that local shortfalls will hit 4.4 billion pounds a year by the end of the decade, as they struggle to manage increased demand.
Government officials have delayed scheduled changes to the Send system until the coming year after a policy document setting out those reforms has been postponed.
Deprivation and Financial Gaps
According to the latest deprivation measures (IMD) for UK local authorities, several participating urban areas were among the most disadvantaged in the country.
- “Participating urban centers like Hull, Bradford, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland and Wolverhampton place in the top 30 nationally under the 2025 deprivation indices,” said the study.
“While only one key city is in the ten most deprived for disadvantaged communities countrywide, cities are much more prone to be in the most deprived fifth of England. The data underscores the extent of challenges facing municipal officials across major urban centers in the coming year,” the report added.
“Council officials have been clear about the need for a fair and sustainable financial structure that reflects and responds to the actual extent of disadvantage and demand,” said Michael Mordey.
“Without this, local authorities will continue to face impossible choices around which vital provisions to fund, and which to reduce, to the disadvantage of their residents.”
One in five of councils have cut or compromised care services in the past 12 months, the survey revealed.
