Based on a new poll of local authorities, English councils are planning to sell social clubs, sports centres, and retail spaces as they rely on a rapid disposal of assets to balance the books.
Increasing Fiscal Pressures Prompt Asset Sales
A coalition of councils for second-tier cities in England stated that six out of ten of local authorities are planning to dispose of properties to meet the escalating costs of adult and children’s social care.
Councils have in the past come under fire for disposing of playing fields and land to support their budgets, but they argue they must proceed to generate essential revenue from property disposals or declare themselves bankrupt.
The group said that a high proportion of councils seeking to generate funds from a quick sale of assets represented “a clear change from 2024, when the majority (six in ten) of local leaders stated they would focus on restructuring services and using savings to manage growing fiscal pressures.”
Detailed Cases of Planned Sales
Medway Council in Kent said its asset disposal plan included the disposal of a shopping centre in a local town and a community venue in another town to generate 20 million pounds over five years.
- A local golf course and commercial properties held in two English counties, which all generate rent for Medway council, will also be sold under the plan.
Local Levy Rises and Wider Fiscal Strains
This research of councils in the key cities group, which includes Sunderland, Southampton, Gloucester and Salford, also found that more than 70% of councils will have to increase council taxes next April to address the growing cost of core provisions, increased rates of housing insecurity, and a persistent accommodation deficit.
The authority explained it will proceed with property disposals after steep rises in the cost of youth support, special educational needs and disability (Send) provision, elderly and disability services, and temporary accommodation.
“We are taking creative strategies but certain measures require time to deliver both better provisions and financial savings,” stated a council leader.
He continued: “There are population challenges which will persist to increase the pressures we have. As a local government body, we had a drastic reduction in our central funding from over the past decade, which is very challenging.”
National Trends and Projections
A survey of regional authorities this week also found local finances being stretched by the growing number of young people and adults needing special educational assistance.
The County Councils Network said that council deficits will reach £4.4bn a year by the end of the decade, as they grapple to cope with increased demand.
Government officials have delayed planned reforms to the Send system until the coming year after a white paper setting out those reforms was recently delayed.
Deprivation and Funding Shortfalls
According to the most recent indices of deprivation (IMD) for English councils, several participating urban areas were included in the most deprived in England.
- “Participating urban centers like Hull, Bradford, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland and Wolverhampton rank in the top 30 nationally under the latest deprivation indices,” said the report.
“Although only a single urban area is among the ten most deprived for deprived neighbourhoods nationally, urban areas are far more likely to be in the worst-off 20% of the nation. The figures highlights the extent of difficulties confronting local leaders across major urban centers in the next twelve months,” the analysis added.
“Council officials have been clear about the necessity for a fair and sustainable funding system that accounts for and responds to the actual extent of disadvantage and demand,” said Michael Mordey.
“Lacking this, councils will persist to face impossible choices around which essential services to fund, and which to cut, to the detriment of their communities.”
One in five of local authorities have cut or compromised social care provision in the last year, the survey found.
