Plans to get rid of council-owned buildings to help tackle financial challenges are not a “mass sell-off”, leaders have insisted.

Southampton City Council’s asset disposal and development plan aims to bring in £85million by selling various buildings.

Residents opposed to the plan described it as a “sell out for the people of Southampton”.

Cabinet member for economic development Sarah Bogle said it was an opportunity to manage assets “much more proactively”.

She told full council on March 20 that the local authority was looking to retain, develop or regenerate much of its portfolio, while selling the assets it did not really need any more.

“We are a guardian of the city,” Cllr Bogle said. “We are there to look after the fabric of the city, so these decisions will not be taken lightly and they will be taken on a case-by-case basis.”

She said the programme was part of the council’s transformation plan and it was a different way of working.

The authority has confirmed listed buildings, schools, libraries and housing stock will not be sold.

Money from asset disposals will be used to plug the £39.3million gap in the 2024/25 budget following in-principle approval from government to use capital income to cover revenue costs.

At a cabinet meeting on March 19, Sue Atkins, chair of Southampton Trades Council, said she was opposed to the council pressing ahead with sales.

“This policy of selling off council assets built up over decades is straight out of the playbook of Margaret Thatcher who forced councils to sell off and privatise all our hard-won services and assets,” Ms Atkins said.

“What will it achieve? This sell-off will paper over the gaping hole in the council finances but then what about next year and the year after that because once you have sold the family silver, then that’s it. That’s a one-off and it’s gone and cannot be used again.”

In response, Cllr Bogle said the programme was about how the council managed assets and setting out the overall principles of the approach moving forward.

She said details on assets under consideration were confidential at this stage because decisions had not been made on individual sites.

Deputy leader and cabinet member for finance Cllr Simon Letts said: “This series of proposals isn’t a mass sell-off. It is a strategic decision to dispose of assets that are no longer functioning for the council.”

Councillors approved the overall asset development and disposal programme, and the disposal of assets listed in a confidential paper following debate in a private session at the meeting on March 20.