Based on a new survey of municipal councils, UK councils are planning to sell social clubs, sports centres, and shopping arcades as they rely on a rapid disposal of properties to balance the books.
Growing Fiscal Pressures Prompt Asset Sales
A coalition of councils representing second-tier cities in England reported that 60% of local authorities are intending to dispose of properties to meet the escalating costs of social services for vulnerable individuals.
Councils have previously faced criticism for selling public land and open spaces to shore up their finances, but they argue they must continue to raise vital cash from asset sales or face insolvency.
The group noted that a significant number of authorities seeking to raise money from a quick sale of assets represented “a distinct shift from 2024, when the largest share (six in ten) of local leaders said they would focus on restructuring services and utilising savings to weather increasing fiscal pressures.”
Detailed Examples of Proposed Disposals
Medway Council in Kent announced its property management strategy featured the disposal of a shopping centre in a local town and a community venue in Rochester to generate 20 million pounds over the next half-decade.
- Gillingham golf club and business parks owned in Worcestershire and Suffolk, which all provide rental income for Medway council, will also be sold under the strategy.
Local Levy Rises and Broader Financial Strains
The survey of local authorities in the coalition, which covers several urban centers, also found that more than 70% of authorities will need to raise council taxes next spring to cover the growing cost of essential services, increased rates of homelessness, and a persistent accommodation deficit.
The authority 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 taking creative strategies but some of these require time to deliver both better provisions and financial savings,” stated Vince Maple.
He continued: “There are population challenges which will persist to add to the strains we have. As a unitary authority, we had a drastic reduction in our revenue support grant from over the past decade, which is very challenging.”
National Trends and Forecasts
A survey of regional authorities recently also found council budgets being stretched by the growing number of children and adults needing special educational assistance.
A network of councils projected that local shortfalls will reach £4.4bn a year by the end of the decade, as they struggle to cope with increased demand.
Government officials have put off scheduled changes to the special educational needs framework 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) for English councils, many key cities members were among the most disadvantaged in the country.
- “Participating urban centers like several major towns rank in the most deprived 30 across the country under the 2025 deprivation indices,” said the report.
“While only one key city is among the ten most deprived for disadvantaged communities nationally, urban areas are much more prone to be in the most deprived fifth of England. The data underscores the extent of challenges confronting local leaders across major urban centers in the next twelve months,” the analysis concluded.
“Local government leaders have been clear about the necessity for a fair and sustainable financial structure that accounts for and addresses the real levels of disadvantage and demand,” said Michael Mordey.
“Lacking this, local authorities will continue to face impossible choices around which vital provisions to fund, and which to cut, to the disadvantage of their residents.”
One in five of councils have reduced or weakened care services in the past 12 months, the study revealed.
