According to a new poll of municipal councils, UK councils are preparing to offload social clubs, athletic facilities, and retail spaces as they rely on a rapid disposal of assets to stabilize finances.
Increasing Financial Pressures Prompt Asset Sales
A coalition of councils for second-tier cities in England reported that 60% of councils are planning to sell assets to cover the escalating costs of adult and children’s social care.
Local governments have previously faced criticism for selling playing fields and open spaces to shore up their finances, but they argue they must proceed to generate essential revenue from asset sales or declare themselves bankrupt.
This coalition noted that a significant number of councils attempting to raise money from a fire sale of assets represented “a distinct shift from 2024, when the majority (six in ten) of municipal officials said they would focus on restructuring services and utilising savings to manage increasing financial challenges.”
Specific Cases of Proposed Sales
Medway Council in southeast England announced its asset disposal plan included the disposal of a shopping centre in a local town and a community venue in another town to generate £20m over five years.
- A local golf course and business parks held in Worcestershire and Suffolk, which all generate rent for the authority, will additionally be sold under the plan.
Local Levy Rises and Wider Fiscal Strains
The survey of councils in the coalition, which includes several urban centers, also found that more than 70% of councils will have to increase council taxes next April to address the growing cost of essential services, increased rates of homelessness, and a longstanding accommodation deficit.
Medway council said it will proceed with asset sales after steep rises in the cost of children services, 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,” said a council leader.
He added: “We face population challenges which will continue to increase 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.”
National Patterns and Forecasts
Research of regional authorities this week also found council budgets being stretched by the growing number of young people and adults needing special educational assistance.
The County Councils Network projected that local shortfalls will reach £4.4bn a year by the end of the decade, as they struggle to manage rising needs.
Government officials have put off scheduled changes to the special educational needs framework until next year after a policy document outlining those reforms has been postponed.
Deprivation and Financial Gaps
Based on the most recent indices of deprivation (IMD) for UK local authorities, many participating urban areas were included in the most deprived in the country.
- “Participating urban centers like Hull, Bradford, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland and Wolverhampton place in the most deprived 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 underscores the extent of difficulties confronting municipal officials across key cities in the coming year,” the report concluded.
“Local government leaders have been explicit about the need for a fair and sustainable financial structure that accounts for and addresses the actual extent of deprivation and need,” stated a council leader.
“Without this, local authorities will continue to face impossible choices around which vital provisions to fund, and which to cut, to the detriment of their residents.”
A fifth of local authorities have reduced or weakened care services in the past 12 months, the survey revealed.
