What has your council sold? – Search interactive map
The local government funding crisis has become so dire that councils are being forced to sell thousands of public spaces – from libraries and community centres to playgrounds and pools – and are using some of the cash to fund further service cuts and redundancy payments.
In a major collaborative investigation with HuffPost UK and regional journalists across the country, the Bureau has compiled data on more than 12,000 public spaces disposed of by councils since 2014/15. We found that councils raised a total of £9.1 billion from selling property during this period.
The findings lay bare the spiralling impact of eight successive years of austerity, leaving services shut and buildings closed. Councils have been forced to take ever more desperate measures to stay in the black as their funding from central government has been cut by about 60% since 2010.
See what your council has sold. You can Enter your postcode into an interactive map.
Visit our media partner at the Bureau of Investigative Journalism HERE