Hampshire Trust Bank (HTB) has provided a £13.5 million facility to support the repositioning of the Kirkstall Brewery campus in Leeds, refinancing existing debt and partially repaying a previous lender.
The 18-month facility is secured against a 664-bed former student village in Kirkstall. This comprises a 442-bed parcel with full planning consent for conversion into 151 Class C3 apartments, alongside 202 retained Purpose Built Student Accommodation (PBSA) beds, creating a scheme with multiple potential end uses across Private Rented Sector (PRS) and student accommodation.
The structure provides time for asset management and stabilisation, enabling the repositioning of the scheme while maintaining flexibility across a range of exit routes. These include disposal or refinance of the PRS element, sale or long-term leasing of the PBSA accommodation, or a whole-site disposal.
No development is planned during the loan term, with refurbishment of the PBSA element funded by borrower equity.
The transaction builds on progress already achieved at the site, including the disposal of an eastern parcel to an institutional investor and a long-term lease agreed with Leeds City Council across part of the retained accommodation. The lease is expected to deliver approximately £2.5 million per annum of savings to the council over its term.
Full planning consent was granted by Leeds City Council in November 2025 for the conversion of the PRS parcel, providing a clear basis for the next phase of the scheme.
Introduced by Johnny Grassick, Associate Director at GLPG, the deal was led by Alexia Evans, Lending Director at Hampshire Trust Bank, supported by Olivia Emmett.
Alexia Evans, Lending Director at Hampshire Trust Bank, said:
“This was a scheme where the key consideration was how the asset would be managed over time, not just its position today.
“With planning in place and clear progress already made, the focus was on structuring a facility that allows that to continue without forcing an early decision, while remaining aligned to how the site will be worked through in practice.”
Johnny Grassick, Associate Director at GLPG, said:
“There wasn’t a single, defined exit here, but that reflects the strength of the site.
“With planning in place, a number of viable routes forward and progress already achieved on parts of the scheme, including the lease to Leeds City Council, the key was putting a structure in place that didn’t restrict those options too early.
“This gives the borrower the flexibility to build on that momentum and take the right route as the scheme evolves.”
Neil Leitch, Managing Director, Development Finance at Hampshire Trust Bank, said:
“This type of transaction is becoming more common where the focus is on repositioning existing assets rather than moving straight into development.
“Where planning is already in place, the emphasis shifts to how the scheme is managed, how income is stabilised and how the exit is delivered over time.
“That requires a structure which gives the borrower the flexibility to work through those stages properly, rather than forcing a single outcome too early.”
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