According to a recent study of local authorities, UK councils are planning to sell community centers, athletic facilities, and shopping arcades as they rely on a fire sale of properties to balance the books.
Growing Financial Pressures Prompt Asset Sales
A coalition of councils representing second-tier cities in England stated that six out of ten of councils are intending to sell assets to cover the rising costs of social services for vulnerable individuals.
Councils have in the past come under fire for selling playing fields and land to support their finances, but they argue they must continue to generate essential revenue from asset sales or face insolvency.
The group said that a significant number of councils seeking to raise money from a fire sale of assets marked “a clear change from 2024, when the majority (60%) of local leaders stated they would focus on restructuring services and utilising financial reserves to manage growing financial challenges.”
Specific Examples of Planned Sales
Medway Council in Kent said its asset disposal plan featured the sale of a retail complex in Rainham and a social club in another town to generate 20 million pounds over the next half-decade.
- Gillingham golf club and commercial properties held in Worcestershire and Suffolk, which all provide rental income for Medway council, will also be sold under the strategy.
Local Levy Increases and Broader Financial Pressures
This research of local authorities in the key cities group, which includes several urban centers, also found that over seven in ten of authorities will need to increase council taxes next spring to address the growing cost of core provisions, higher levels of homelessness, and a longstanding housing shortage.
Medway council said it will press ahead with property disposals after sharp increases in the cost of youth support, special educational needs and disability (Send) provision, elderly and disability services, and short-term housing.
“We are adopting innovative approaches but certain measures require time to deliver both improved services and cost efficiency,” stated a council leader.
He added: “There are demographic pressures which will continue to add to the strains we have. As a local government body, we had a drastic reduction in our revenue support grant from 2010-24, which is very challenging.”
National Trends and Projections
Research of regional authorities this week also found local finances being stretched by the increasing figures of young people and adults needing Send support.
The County Councils Network projected that council deficits will hit £4.4bn a year by 2029, as they grapple to manage rising needs.
Government officials have delayed planned reforms to the Send system until the coming year after a policy document setting out those reforms was recently delayed.
Disadvantage and Funding Gaps
According to the latest indices of deprivation (IMD) for UK local authorities, many participating urban areas were among the most deprived in England.
- “Participating urban centers like several major towns rank in the top 30 across the country under the 2025 deprivation indices,” said the study.
“While only a single urban area is in the ten most deprived for deprived neighbourhoods nationally, cities are far more likely to be in the most deprived fifth of England. The figures highlights the scale of challenges confronting 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 funding system that reflects and responds to the actual extent of deprivation and demand,” said Michael Mordey.
“Without this, councils will continue to face difficult decisions around which essential services to fund, and which to cut, to the disadvantage of their residents.”
A fifth of local authorities have cut or compromised social care provision in the last year, the study found.
