A Birmingham conference next week will look at how councils can make better use of property assets to release up to £5bn in current land holdings.

The event follows the publication in April of a joint report between accountants Deloittes and the Urban Land Institute, which claimed councils were sitting on a massive bank of underused property. Pressure on authorities to reduce council tax and a looming Comprehensive Spending Review next year could put pressure on councils to undertake a review of land they hold, and property they occupy.