RBWM total asset value will not close borrowing gap, meeting hears

The Royal Borough’s strategy for selling off assets came under scrutiny at a meeting last week – despite warnings it will not solve the council’s financial crisis.

The cash-strapped authority owns a portfolio of land and property across the borough, including industrial areas and commercial buildings.

But some of these properties may be sold off ‘where there is a strategic and economic reason’ to do so.

For example, the Royal Borough agreed to accept a £9million bid for council-owned land in Reform Road, Maidenhead, last year, generating a ‘significant capital receipt’.

But borough chief executive Stephen Evans warned councillors to temper their expectations about the impact asset sales could have on overall finances during a discussion at Maidenhead Town Hall on Wednesday, January 21.

Addressing a corporate overview and scrutiny panel, he said: “The overall position is we don’t hold a huge amount of assets in terms of commercial assets.

“The administration has come in and said that they will dispose of assets where there is a strategic and economic reason to do so and that’s led to a kind of targeted programme of asset sales.

“We are doing [an] asset strategy, now that we brought the property services back into the council.

“We are working through our wider assets list…. but the total value of the assets we hold will not close our borrowing gap.”

Much of the borough’s property portfolio was previously managed by the controversial RBWM Property Company, but a decision was made to bring these services back in-house last year.

Cabinet member for finance, Cllr Lynne Jones, who was also at the meeting for the discussion on the draft budget for 2026/27, said the priority was to focus on assets that were costing the council money or would generate ‘the biggest savings’.

But Cllr Mark Howard (Lib Dem, Cookham and Bisham) questioned how quickly this work was being done.

“I’m sympathetic to the idea it takes time but I’m also less sympathetic to the fact that we’re not pushing it forward,” Cllr Howard said.

“You don’t wait for the lifeboat to fill up with water before you start bailing. You can move things through as they become aware of what they are.

“You’re quite right, it will not solve the problem, but it gets rid of an asset which we might get money for.”

Cllr Jones said the need to focus on asset management was recognised and added she is ‘hoping’ that having a cabinet member specifically covering this area will help.

Earlier in the meeting, councillors had heard the borough will continue to need to borrow from the Government through Exceptional Financial Support (EFS) to balance the books.

The draft budget for the next financial year shows a budget gap ‘totalling over £50million’ – and EFS will be needed to plug the hole.

Councillor Jones (Ind, Old Windsor) said that even if council tax is increased above the normal 4.99 per cent limit, the borough would still need EFS, but this would be ‘at a significantly lower level’.

Rachel Howard, the council’s executive director of resources, said: “There is no way to balance the budget next year without EFS.”

But she added the Royal Borough has shown an ‘improving track record’ in delivering savings.

Demand-led services such as adults’ and children’s services are putting pressure on the council, but the draft budget includes total savings of £5.8million.