Council anticipates up to £9m from additional property sales

An additional thirteen locations across Birmingham are slated for sale, forming part of an initiative to alleviate financial strain on the city council’s budget. These properties encompass a former school premises, Oscott Manor, alongside various community centres, car parks, depots, and youth centres deemed surplus to the council’s operational requirements. On Wednesday, a cabinet committee is scheduled to consider approving these disposals, which the authority estimates could yield between £6 million and £9 million. Certain properties are intended for sale to current tenants, while others will be offered for sale on the open market. These sales represent a component of the Labour-run Birmingham City Council’s strategy to stabilize its financial situation, following its issuance of a section 114 notice in 2023, which amounted to an effective declaration of bankruptcy. Previously, the council had disclosed asset sales totaling £56 million during the initial part of 2024. Locations such as the Castle Bromwich Waste Depot, Centre of the Earth in Hockley, and Highfield Hall community centre are designated for negotiations with the entities presently managing their operations. However, nine parcels of land are slated for disposal via auction or tender. The Malcolm Locker Youth Centre in Erdington is included among these. Robert Alden and Gareth Moore, Conservative councillors for the area, have requested that the centre be removed from the proposed sales list, aiming to provide local groups with a chance to assume its management. Furthermore, they raised concerns regarding the proposed sale of a car park situated within their ward. Moore stated: “There is high demand for parking around the High Street and so the loss of Machin Road car park would be detrimental, especially if it was to be lost and redeveloped.” Darius Sandhu, the local councillor representing the area of the former Oscott Manor building, advocated for its retention as an educational site, stating: “Given the council’s need for a SEND (special educational needs and disabilities) school, this site would be perfect, rather than the green space at Burford Road Playing Fields.” Nevertheless, the report presented to councillors indicated that the proposed sales would yield advantages extending beyond the financial proceeds, by reducing the expenses associated with operating and maintaining the buildings and by presenting “opportunities for inward investment and development within the city.”