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Based on a latest survey of local authorities, English councils are preparing to sell community centers, athletic facilities, and shopping arcades as they bet on a fire sale of assets to balance the books.

Growing Financial Challenges Drive Asset Sales

A coalition of councils representing second-tier cities in the UK stated that six out of ten of local authorities are intending to sell assets to cover the rising costs of adult and children’s social care.

Councils have in the past faced criticism for selling public land and open spaces to support their finances, but they argue they must proceed to generate essential revenue from property disposals or declare themselves bankrupt.

This coalition said that a significant number of authorities attempting to raise money from a fire sale of assets marked “a distinct shift from 2024, when the majority (60%) of local leaders stated they would focus on restructuring services and using savings to weather growing fiscal pressures.”

Detailed Cases of Planned Sales

Medway Council in Kent said its property management strategy included the disposal of a shopping centre in a local town and a community venue in Rochester to generate £20m over five years.

• Gillingham golf club and business parks held in two English counties, which all generate rent for Medway council, will additionally be sold under the plan.

Council Tax Rises and Broader Financial Pressures

This research of local authorities in the key cities group, which covers Sunderland, Southampton, Gloucester and Salford, further found that over seven in ten of authorities will need to raise local levies next spring to cover the rising cost of essential services, increased rates of housing insecurity, and a longstanding accommodation deficit.

Medway council explained it will press ahead 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 adopting innovative approaches but some of these take time to deliver both better provisions and cost efficiency,” stated Vince Maple.

He continued: “There are demographic pressures which will continue to increase the pressures we have. As a unitary authority, 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 regional authorities recently also found council budgets being stretched by the growing number of young people and older individuals requiring Send support.

A network of councils said that council deficits will hit £4.4bn a year by 2029, as they struggle to cope with rising needs.

Government officials have delayed planned reforms to the special educational needs framework until next year after a policy document outlining those changes was recently delayed.

Deprivation and Financial Gaps

According to the latest indices of deprivation (IMD) covering UK local authorities, several key cities members were included in the most deprived in England.

• “Participating urban centers like Hull, Bradford, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland and Wolverhampton rank in the most deprived 30 nationally under the 2025 deprivation indices,” said the study.

“Although only a single urban area is among the ten most deprived for disadvantaged communities nationally, urban areas are much more prone to be in the most deprived fifth of the nation. The data highlights the extent of challenges facing municipal officials across major urban centers in the next twelve months,” the report added.

“Council officials have been explicit about the need for a fair and sustainable funding system that accounts for and addresses the real levels of deprivation and need,” stated Michael Mordey.

“Lacking this, local authorities will persist to face impossible choices around which essential services to fund, and which to reduce, to the detriment of their communities.”

One in five of local authorities have reduced or weakened care services in the last year, the survey revealed.