According to a new survey of local authorities, UK councils are planning to offload social clubs, sports centres, and shopping arcades as they rely on a fire sale of properties to balance the books.
Growing Financial Challenges Drive Asset Sales
The Key Cities Group representing second-tier cities in the UK stated that six out of ten of councils are planning to dispose of properties to cover the escalating costs of social services for vulnerable individuals.
Local governments have in the past faced criticism for selling playing fields and land to support their finances, but they contend they must proceed to generate essential revenue from asset sales or face insolvency.
The group said that a high proportion of authorities attempting to generate funds from a quick sale of holdings represented “a distinct shift from 2024, when the majority (six in ten) of local leaders said they would focus on restructuring services and utilising savings to manage growing financial challenges.”
Detailed Cases of Proposed Disposals
One local authority in southeast England announced its asset disposal plan included the sale of a shopping centre in a local town and a community venue in another town to generate 20 million pounds over the next half-decade.
- A local golf course and business parks owned in two English counties, which all provide rental income for Medway council, will also be sold under the strategy.
Local Levy Rises and Wider Financial Pressures
This research of local authorities in the coalition, which covers several urban centers, also found that more than 70% of authorities will need to increase local levies next spring to address the growing cost of essential services, higher levels of housing insecurity, and a persistent housing shortage.
The authority explained it will press ahead with asset sales after sharp increases in the cost of children services, support for vulnerable learners, elderly and disability services, and temporary accommodation.
“We are adopting creative strategies but some of these require time to deliver both improved services and cost efficiency,” said Vince Maple.
He continued: “There are population challenges which will persist to increase the pressures we have. As a unitary authority, we had a drastic reduction in our central funding from 2010-24, which is very challenging.”
Countrywide Patterns and Forecasts
A survey of county councils this week also found council budgets being strained by the increasing figures of young people and adults needing Send support.
The County Councils Network said that council deficits will reach 4.4 billion pounds a year by 2029, as they grapple to manage increased demand.
Ministers have delayed planned reforms to the Send system until the coming year after a policy document setting out those changes was recently delayed.
Disadvantage and Financial Shortfalls
Based on the most recent indices of deprivation (the Index of Multiple Deprivation) for English councils, several key cities members were among the most deprived in the country.
- “Member cities like Hull, Bradford, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland and Wolverhampton place in the top 30 across the country under the 2025 deprivation indices,” noted 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 worst-off 20% of the nation. The figures underscores the extent of difficulties facing local leaders across key cities in the next twelve months,” the analysis added.
“Council officials have been explicit about the need for a fair and sustainable financial structure that reflects and addresses the real levels of deprivation and demand,” stated a council leader.
“Without this, councils will persist to face impossible choices around which vital provisions to allocate spend to, and which to cut, to the disadvantage of their residents.”
A fifth of local authorities have cut or compromised care services in the last year, the study revealed.
