Legal & General starts on site at London BTR scheme

Legal & General has appointed leading regeneration specialist, Galliford Try Partnerships, as contractor on site with a £120 million contract.

Blackhorse Mills overlooks the Walthamstow Wetlands and is located 200m from Blackhorse Road tube station in Walthamstow. Designed by Assael Architecture, it will provide Waltham Forest with around 440 new Studio, 1, 2 and 3-bedroom homes, bringing high quality rental stock that offers a positive choice for elective renters to the local area. The scheme is expected to welcome its first residents between late 2019 and early 2020.

Given its enviable location overlooking 211 hectares of protected wetlands, internationally recognised for its importance to wildlife, the development will look to create a positive and vibrant community for its residents with a focus on health and well-being. The scheme will benefit from a wellness centre, private dining rooms, flexible working space, roof terracing and a resident club room overlooking the impressive wetlands. The scheme will also include 20,000 sq ft of commercial accommodation, providing much needed space to creative and start-up businesses in the area.

Once built, Blackhorse Mills will offer residents favourable all-in costs, through significantly reduced energy costs, no letting fees, and free services such as WiFi and a car club membership. In keeping with the location green initiatives will include solar panels on the roof, which provide the building with communal lighting and power.   Residents will be offered longer and more flexible tenancies to create greater occupational security, with tenancy options ranging from six months to five years.  They can also decorate their own homes and keep pets – options traditionally only linked to home ownership.

Dan Batterton, BTR Fund Manager at LGIM Real Assets, said:  “Blackhorse Lane is a hugely vibrant and rapidly growing area of London.  It needs new quality housing and we are pleased to have appointed Galliford Try Partnerships to help us achieve our vision of creating a vibrant and healthy community. Waltham Forest Council has been a very supportive forward thinking partner and it is only through this joined up, progressive approach that we are able to make such a large investment into the Blackhorse Lane community, supporting residents and businesses.

“For too long renters have found themselves at the mercy of expensive moving fees, unresponsive managers, and private landlords who often want to minimise upkeep costs and maximise rents. Blackhorse Mills will be an exemplar of what future renting could look like, providing UK residents with the housing they deserve.”

Stuart Brodie, Managing Director for Galliford Try Partnerships South East said: “I am delighted that we have been awarded the contract for this prestigious, mixed-use development. Our business recognises that the rental sector has potential for real growth and we are delighted to have our strong track record of providing high-quality housing recognised in this way.

“We are passionate about regenerating areas to create sustainable new neighbourhoods, working in partnership with our clients and local communities. We look forward to cultivating a strong relationship with our client Legal & General, and supporting Waltham Forest Council in the supply of much needed housing within this Borough.”

Cllr Clare Coghill, Leader of Waltham Forest Council, said:  "One of my priorities as Leader of the Council is to ensure all our residents have a roof over their heads and a place to call home. Working with responsible, socially conscious organisations like Legal & General and Galliford Try Partnerships helps us to achieve our aims. It has been a pleasure working with them, and we know that the high-quality Ferry Lane development will bring real benefits to the residents of Waltham Forest.

"I have been very impressed with the plans and when we visited to see how progress was coming along it was great to see the Galliford Try Partnerships team's enthusiasm and dedication as they started work at the site."

L&G’s total investment capability for the Build to Rent (BTR) sector currently stands at circa £1 billion, having raised capital from major pension funds for an open-ended Build to Rent (BTR) fund, as well as a £600 million JV investment by Legal & General Capital and PGGM. Through the creation of a new build to rent asset class, Legal & General is looking to use its long term capital to help address the chronic long term lack of supply of housing and meet the increasing demand for affordable, quality rental accommodation.

As well as Walthamstow, its existing sites in Bristol, Bath and Leeds are progressing well and its Salford Scheme, The Slate Yard, opened its doors to residents in May this year.  Focused on key urban regeneration areas centred around transport hubs, it is targeting schemes of over 150 units, taking advantage of economies of scale to deliver better value and more choice for its residents, whilst building sustainable, vibrant communities

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PGGM

PGGM is a cooperative Dutch pension fund service provider. Institutional clients are offered: asset management, pension fund management, policy advice and management support. On December 31, 2016 PGGM had EUR 205.8 billion in assets under management. The PGGM cooperative has approximately 720,000 members and is helping them to realize a valuable future. Either alone or together with strategic partners, PGGM develops future solutions by linking together pension, care, housing and work.

www.pggm.nl

Galliford Try Partnerships

Galliford Try Partnerships is part of Galliford Try Group, a UK top-10 housebuilding, regeneration and construction company, and constituent member of the FTSE 250. Partnerships is Galliford Try’s specialist regeneration business, working with Registered Providers and Local Authorities to play its part to increase the supply of housing. Galliford Try Partnerships is a major contractor partner for some of the largest developing housing associations; we also act as a developer, bringing together private and public organisations to create award-winning schemes that help build sustainable communities. For the financial year to June 2016, Galliford Try Partnerships was responsible for providing over 2,100 homes across all tenures.