According to a new poll of local authorities, English councils are preparing to offload community centers, sports centres, and shopping arcades as they rely on a fire sale of assets to stabilize finances.
Increasing Financial Challenges Prompt Asset Sales
The Key Cities Group for second-tier cities in England reported that six out of ten of councils are planning to sell assets to cover the rising costs of adult and children’s social care.
Local governments have previously faced criticism for disposing of playing fields and open spaces to shore up their finances, but they argue they must continue to raise vital cash from asset sales or declare themselves bankrupt.
This coalition noted that a significant number of authorities seeking to raise money from a fire sale of holdings represented “a distinct shift from 2024, when the majority (six in ten) of local leaders stated they would focus on service redesigns and utilising financial reserves to weather growing fiscal pressures.”
Specific Cases of Proposed Sales
One local authority in southeast England said its asset disposal plan included the disposal of a shopping centre in Rainham and a community venue in Rochester to generate £20m over five years.
- Gillingham golf club and commercial properties held in two English counties, which all provide rental income for the authority, will also be disposed of under the strategy.
Council Tax Rises and Broader Financial Pressures
The survey of councils in the key cities group, which includes several urban centers, also found that over seven in ten of authorities will have to increase council taxes next April to address the rising cost of essential services, increased rates of housing insecurity, and a persistent housing shortage.
The authority explained it will proceed with property disposals after steep rises in the cost of youth support, support for vulnerable learners, elderly and disability services, and temporary accommodation.
“We are adopting innovative approaches but certain measures require time to deliver both better provisions and financial savings,” said Vince Maple.
He added: “There are demographic pressures which will continue to add to the pressures we have. As a local government body, we had a drastic reduction in our revenue support grant from 2010-24, which is extremely difficult.”
National Trends and Forecasts
A survey of county councils this week also found local finances being stretched by the increasing figures of children and older individuals requiring special educational assistance.
A network of councils projected that council deficits will reach 4.4 billion pounds a year by 2029, as they struggle to cope with rising needs.
Government officials have delayed scheduled changes to the Send system until the coming year after a policy document outlining those changes was recently delayed.
Disadvantage and Financial Gaps
Based on the most recent deprivation measures (the Index of Multiple Deprivation) covering English councils, many participating urban areas were among the most deprived in the country.
- “Participating urban centers like several major towns place in the most deprived 30 across the country under the 2025 deprivation indices,” said the study.
“While only one key city is among the ten most deprived for disadvantaged communities nationally, cities are much more prone to be in the most deprived fifth of the nation. The figures underscores the scale of difficulties facing municipal officials across major urban centers in the coming year,” the analysis added.
“Local government leaders have been explicit about the need for a fair and sustainable funding system that accounts for and responds to the real levels of disadvantage and demand,” stated Michael Mordey.
“Without this, councils will continue to face difficult decisions around which vital provisions to allocate spend to, and which to reduce, to the detriment of their residents.”
A fifth of councils have cut or compromised care services in the last year, the survey found.
