According to a recent study of local authorities, English councils are preparing to sell social clubs, sports centres, and retail spaces as they bet on a fire sale of assets to balance the books.
Increasing Fiscal Challenges Drive Asset Sales
A coalition of councils representing second-tier cities in the UK reported that six out of ten of councils are planning to sell assets to cover the rising costs of social services for vulnerable individuals.
Local governments have previously come under fire for selling playing fields and open spaces to support their finances, but they contend they must proceed to raise vital cash from property disposals or face insolvency.
This coalition noted that a significant number of councils attempting to raise money from a fire sale of assets represented “a clear change from 2024, when the majority (six in ten) of municipal officials stated they would prioritise restructuring services and utilising savings to weather growing financial challenges.”
Specific Cases of Proposed Sales
One local authority in Kent announced its asset disposal plan featured the sale of a shopping centre in a local town and a social club in Rochester to generate £20m over the next half-decade.
- Gillingham golf club and business parks owned in Worcestershire and Suffolk, which all generate rent for the authority, will also be sold under the strategy.
Local Levy Rises and Wider Financial Pressures
This research of local authorities in the key cities group, which covers several urban centers, also found that more than 70% of authorities will have to increase local levies next spring to cover the growing cost of core provisions, increased rates of housing insecurity, and a longstanding housing shortage.
The authority said it will proceed with property disposals after sharp increases in the cost of youth support, support for vulnerable learners, adult social care, and short-term housing.
“We are adopting innovative approaches but certain measures require time to deliver both better provisions and cost efficiency,” stated a council leader.
He continued: “We face population challenges which will continue to add to the strains we have. As a local government body, we had a 91% cut in our revenue support grant from over the past decade, which is extremely difficult.”
Countrywide Trends and Forecasts
Research of county councils recently also found council budgets being stretched by the growing number of children and older individuals needing Send support.
A network of councils said that council deficits will hit £4.4bn a year by the end of the decade, as they struggle to cope with increased demand.
Government officials have delayed scheduled changes to the special educational needs framework until next year after a policy document setting out those reforms has been postponed.
Deprivation and Financial Shortfalls
Based on the latest indices of deprivation (IMD) for English councils, several participating urban areas were included in the most deprived in England.
- “Member cities like several major towns rank in the top 30 nationally under the 2025 deprivation indices,” said the study.
“Although only a single urban area is among the ten most deprived for deprived neighbourhoods countrywide, urban areas are much more prone to be in the most deprived fifth of the nation. The figures highlights the extent of difficulties facing municipal officials across key cities in the coming year,” the analysis concluded.
“Local government leaders have been clear about the necessity for a fair and sustainable financial structure that accounts for and responds to the real levels of deprivation and need,” stated a council leader.
“Without this, local authorities will persist to face impossible choices around which vital provisions to allocate spend to, and which to cut, to the detriment of their residents.”
A fifth of councils have cut or compromised care services in the last year, the study revealed.
