By Local Democracy Reporter Simon Finlay
The county’s largest local authority has raised £84m by selling property in the past five years, it was revealed today (May 6).
Kent County Council (KCC) made £27m in 2025-26, Reform UK’s first year in charge, and is on course to achieve another £17m in the next 12 months.
The details were revealed in papers before the KCC influential policy and resources committee at County Hall this morning.
The Green Party argued that suitable sites should be set aside for social housing rather than fall into the hands of property developers.
Papers before members said: “Since financial year 2021/22 to 2024/25 KCC has raised over £57m in disposing of surplus property assets, including nearly £22m in the last year, almost doubling previous years’ annual outturn.
Assets sold in Thanet in the last year include the Sarah Thorne Theatre site and Pie Factory Music’s HQ at Ramsgate Youth Centre – both sites were eventually bought by those already in situ.
“Whilst 2025/26 was a challenging year for local government, the property market and Kent County Council, an outturn of £27m was achieved with a pipeline of disposals in the next 12 months estimated to achieve in the region of £17m.”
The council now favours a “whole programme” rather than a “piecemeal” approach to disposals which gives “greater transparency and strategic oversight”.
A KCC asset is deemed suitable for disposal where it is no longer needed for operational purposes and KCC has a “fiduciary duty to minimise holding costs and realise value to support its priorities”.
The primary legislation to be considered in every disposal proposition is section 123 Local Government Act 1972, where Local Authorities are required to obtain “best consideration”.
Members went into closed session to discuss the individual sites which may be sold.
Earlier Rebecca Spore, the council’s director of infrastructure, said that KCC would discuss disposals with the 12 district and borough councils to see “what might be possible around those sites”.
Several councillors warned that decisions must be made with the forthcoming reforms to local government in mind. KCC along with 13 other councils could cease to exist inside three years and be replaced with a small number of larger unitary authorities.
The government is expected to announce which format the new make-up of Kent’s local authorities will take in July.
Ms Spore said: “It’s not for us to make decisions for future authorities.”
Green Party group leader Mark Hood said the need for sites set aside for social housing rather than sale.
Remarking that social housing has been a “failure” in Kent, he added: “By continuing with disposals we are going to deprive successive councils the ability to provide social housing. My fear is that we will sell it all and it will be land-banked (by developers).”
KCC’s constitution provides delegation for disposal to Ms Spore if the value of the disposal transaction is under £1m.
Assets above £1m would require sign-off from the relevant cabinet member.
I’m sure that TDC’s Labour administration will be the first to congratulate Reform for having a very similar approach.
As you know perfectly well TDC under various administrations has sold off assets over the years.
A policy that Labour has been happy to continue… yet STILL, there’s a closed and literally collapsing old toilet block just down the road from me at Beresford Gap.
I don’t know about the toilet you mention but is it on the list for improvement under the programme of those being refurbished by TDC?
Nope. Most places west of Margate tend to not only be ignored, but not even known to many at TDC (and indeed, KCC).
Looks like it was sold by in 2019 (admittedly under the Conservatives). Not that anything has been done to it since, and it was allowed to fall into disrepair for decades beforehand.
https://theisleofthanetnews.com/2019/09/11/toilet-block-in-birchington-sold-for-52000/
More nonsense about “social housing”. What we actually need is COUNCIL HOUSING but the uber-Tories are selling the family silver as Harold MacMillan once described it! Sooner we get the Unitary authorities in place the better!
They’re all just as bad.
https://theisleofthanetnews.com/2026/01/27/council-considers-sale-of-properties-including-margate-media-centre-retort-house-and-marina-car-park-in-ramsgate/
That means selling off our communities assets to private proprietors and rentiers
Of course-Nigel wants to sell the NHS off to the highest bidders/those who give him 5 million alleged gifts. Reform is one big grift for former Conservative MP’s who jumped-hence why his crummy football tops sell at 40 quid a head, 100 for a signed one & then a ‘special offer’ of 350 quid for a signed one-if you entered a draw to have dinner with him.
Sell all the silver, sell all the gold…
Selling assets that are no longer needed. As long as they do this at market rates. I can’t see the problem.
Depends WHY “they are no longer needed”. All too often it’s because they’ve allowed things to fall into dis-repair.
Seeing as two named have been bought by the current occupiers, it would appear they are needed.
When KCC & TDC have sold off all of the residents investments at what stage will both declare bankruptcy. ?