Based on a latest poll of local authorities, English councils are planning to sell community centers, sports centres, and shopping arcades as they bet on a rapid disposal of assets to stabilize finances.
Growing Financial Pressures Prompt Asset Sales
The Key Cities Group representing second-tier cities in the UK reported that 60% of councils 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 finances, but they contend they must proceed to generate essential revenue from asset sales or declare themselves bankrupt.
The group noted that a high proportion of councils attempting to raise money from a fire sale of assets marked “a distinct shift from 2024, when the majority (six in ten) of local leaders stated they would focus on service redesigns and utilising savings to manage growing financial challenges.”
Specific Examples of Planned Disposals
One local authority in southeast England said its asset disposal plan featured the disposal of a shopping centre in Rainham and a community venue in another town to generate 20 million pounds over the next half-decade.
- A local golf course and business parks held in two English counties, which all provide rental income for Medway council, will additionally be disposed of under the strategy.
Local Levy Increases and Wider Fiscal Pressures
This research of local authorities in the key cities group, which includes Sunderland, Southampton, Gloucester and Salford, also found that more than 70% of authorities will have to raise council taxes next spring to address the rising cost of core provisions, increased rates of housing insecurity, and a longstanding accommodation deficit.
The authority said it will proceed with asset sales after sharp increases in the cost of children services, support for vulnerable learners, elderly and disability services, and short-term housing.
“We are adopting innovative approaches but certain measures take time to achieve both better provisions and financial savings,” said Vince Maple.
He continued: “There are demographic pressures which will continue to add to the strains we have. As a local government body, we had a 91% cut in our central funding from 2010-24, which is very challenging.”
National Patterns and Forecasts
A survey of regional authorities recently also found council budgets being stretched by the increasing figures of young people and older individuals needing Send support.
The County Councils Network projected that council deficits will hit 4.4 billion pounds a year by the end of the decade, as they struggle to cope with rising needs.
Government officials have delayed scheduled changes to the Send system until next year after a white paper outlining those changes has been postponed.
Deprivation and Funding Shortfalls
Based on the latest indices of deprivation (IMD) for UK local authorities, several key cities members were among the most disadvantaged in the country.
- “Member cities like Hull, Bradford, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland and Wolverhampton rank in the top 30 nationally under the 2025 deprivation indices,” noted the report.
“Although only one key city is among the top 10 for deprived neighbourhoods countrywide, urban areas are far more likely to be in the worst-off 20% of the nation. The figures highlights the extent of difficulties facing local leaders across key cities in the coming year,” the report concluded.
“Local government leaders have been explicit about the necessity for a equitable and lasting funding system that reflects and addresses the actual extent of deprivation and need,” stated Michael Mordey.
“Lacking this, local authorities will continue to face impossible choices around which vital provisions to allocate spend to, and which to cut, to the disadvantage of their communities.”
A fifth of local authorities have cut or compromised care services in the past 12 months, the survey found.
