Barings Real Estate, part of Barings LLC, one of the world’s largest diversified real estate investment managers, has announced that Landmark Manchester (Landmark), a 180,000 sq. ft. office development that it is undertaking on behalf of an institutional investor, is emerging onto St Peter’s Square with the concrete core now
A unique development in Stafford which saw a former 19th century hospital restored to become a collection of luxurious apartments, has now been completed. Previously named St George’s County Asylum, the grade II listed building on Cooperation Street first opened in 1818 and housed over 1,000 patients with dysentery and
MiiHome project, a pioneering home safety project that uses XBox technology to monitor the welfare of elderly people has been shortlisted for a national award. The project, which is being trialled in Salford, aims to help older people live more safely in their homes for longer by tracking their movements
A new five year framework with UK sports charity, the Football Foundation, has been secured by four firms. The firms appointed to provide services which will improve hundreds of community sports facilities in northern England are industry consultancy Gleeds and specialist sporting architecture firm LK2, along with Couch Perry Wilkes
Proposed new house designs can now be revealed for the aspirational collection of luxury properties that Duchy Homes intends to build in the picturesque Warwickshire village of Tanworth-in-Arden. The premium house builder has now submitted Reserved Matters to Stratford-on-Avon District Council and hopes to be granted planning permission to redevelop
One Housing Group Limited (City Style) has completed a £26 million scheme in Lewisham, South London. Designed by PRP, the development provides 92 new homes, including 64 for older people, 26 homes for sale, and an additional two family houses for social rent on a separate site at Blessington Road.
A new 306-home student accommodation development in Acton, west London, approached completion and it now stands at 7-storeys, offering 306 studio apartments complete with communal spaces including a café, student lounge, arcade and gym. Developed by Tide Construction and its offsite manufacturing company Vision Modular Systems, Chapter White City is
Kier Construction will be continuing to grow its industrial portfolio with the latest appointment to deliver a £39 million regional distribution hub facility in Wixams, Bedford, for developers UK Land and Property. The facility will be occupied by B&M Retail Ltd and will serve as its Southern Distribution Centre. The
CALA Homes, one of the UK’s most upmarket major homebuilders, has agreed a partnership with the nation’s fastest broadband provider. It will offer residents day one access to gigabit broadband speeds across its new housing developments in West Scotland. The partnership will see Hyperoptic, the largest gigabit provider in the UK,
Willmott Dixon will be delivering a £46.5 million new home for the School of Engineering within the University of Birmingham. Construction work for the development, which will accommodate both the School and the UKRRIN Rail Digital Systems Innovation Centre, will begin in August. The building will offer a variety of
Barings Real Estate, part of Barings LLC, one of the world’s largest diversified real estate investment managers, has announced that Landmark Manchester (Landmark), a 180,000 sq. ft. office development that it is undertaking on behalf of an institutional investor, is emerging onto St Peter’s Square with the concrete core now complete. With Castlebrooke Investments retained as development manager, benefiting from their strong track record in project delivery, and having spent over a year in the demolition and basement formation phase, construction work is well underway with the Grade A, BREEAM Excellent office building set to be launched in Summer 2019. Appointed contractor Bowmer & Kirkland has completed the basement levels, which will support 14 floors of virtually column free office space and a double-height reception at ground level. The building’s concrete core is now visible on the Manchester skyline and, when completed, the scheme will add to the vibrancy of one of the North’s most significant public squares. Designed by world-renowned architects Squire & Partners, Landmark has been created with the next generation occupier in mind. The building is being constructed with an offset core to enable large and efficient floorplates to be designed offering maximum flexibility to occupiers. In a market that is currently experiencing strong levels of demand coupled with limited supply, Landmark is one of only two new build office developments due to be completed in Manchester City Centre in 2019. The scheme has received overwhelming support from Manchester City Council and will complete the Council’s vision for St Peter’s Square and the Civic Quarter. Situated in the heart of Manchester’s central business district at St Peter’s Square, Landmark is in a prime location close to St Peter’s Square Metrolink and several train stations. The development also has easy accessibility to the M60 via the M602 with the location being furthered strengthened by the planned High Speed 2 railway project which will connect Manchester with major cities across the U.K. Charles Weeks, Head of Barings Real Estate – Europe, said; “The city of Manchester is thriving. It is consistently one of the strongest, most active city centre office markets outside of London. Landmark will play a pivotal role in enhancing what the city has to offer by providing businesses with a destination that is both modern and flexible as well as providing excellent infrastructure and connectivity. Barings Real Estate has a proven record of accomplishment adding significant value to investments both within the U.K. and globally and we are delighted to oversee this important development project.” Agents on Landmark are CBRE and Colliers International. Barings Alternative Investments (BAI), part of Barings LLC, is a 450+ associate team located across 11 countries that manages $52.3 billion in client capital (as of March 31, 2018). BAI seeks differentiated sources of returns by incorporating decades of investment experience in alternative assets offering investors access to a diverse range of opportunities across private equity, real assets, asset-based investments and the four quadrants of real estate. We serve as a trusted partner to clients, leveraging our global presence and robust origination capabilities to identify the most attractive risk-adjusted return opportunities. The Barings Real Estate team offers a broad range of investment opportunities globally across the public and private debt and equity markets. The team invests across all major property sectors with a focus on global relative value and trend-backed preferred strategies. Barings Barings is a $306+ billion* global financial services firm dedicated to meeting the evolving investment and capital needs of our clients. We build lasting partnerships that leverage our distinctive expertise across traditional and alternative asset classes to deliver innovative solutions and exceptional service. Part of MassMutual, Barings maintains a strong global presence with over 1,800 professionals and offices in 16 countries. Learn more at www.barings.com
A unique development in Stafford which saw a former 19th century hospital restored to become a collection of luxurious apartments, has now been completed. Previously named St George’s County Asylum, the grade II listed building on Cooperation Street first opened in 1818 and housed over 1,000 patients with dysentery and syphilis, before it closed in 1995. When work began to transform the structure, floors and walls were crumbling and some parts of the building had to be demolished, following 20 years of neglect. However, today the building is unrecognisable. What was once a decaying and uninhabitable building, is now a collection of beautiful one, two and three-bedroom apartments and has been renamed St George’s Mansions. Behind the incredible transformation is housebuilder, Shropshire Homes who has been working on the development since 2015. The team was keen to preserve the history of the hospital and maintain the Georgian architecture. In order to achieve this, Shropshire Homes worked closely together with leading roof tile manufacturer Russell Roof Tiles, who has extensive experience in re-roofing and restoration projects. The manufacturer supplied 20,000 of its Lothian tiles in Slate Grey. The cost-effective tiles were able to replicate the look of other natural slate tiles on the building, whilst providing the sustainable benefits of concrete. The Lothian tiles form part of Russell Roof Tiles’ Natural Range – an expanding selection of thinner leading edge interlocking concrete tiles. When laid, the tile gives the appearance of a small format tile with the commercial benefit of a larger format tile. “This is the first project that we worked with Shropshire Homes on and we are proud to have been part of such a fantastic transformation. With significant experience in re-roofing, the Russell Roof Tiles team is equipped to provide suitable roofing solutions which not only meet the current building requirements but which also provides sustainable benefits for many years to come,” said Andrew Hayward, Managing Director at Russell Roof Tiles. Managing Director for Shropshire Homes, Howard Thorne added: “These magnificent old buildings deserve some TLC invested back into them. The original architecture is captivating and we enjoy the challenge and are motivated by the outcomes we can achieve – characterful, luxurious homes with attractive period features. “We work with the best of the original features and combine innovation and vision with craftsmanship to transform the old and unloved into something new and desirable. “It’s been a privilege to deliver this project and give Stafford a truly wonderful building that will stand with dignity for many years to come.” Russell Roof Tiles is a leading independent roof tile manufacturer providing products for leading UK house builders and high-profile social housing and commercial projects, where sustainability and eco-credentials are of the utmost priority.
MiiHome project, a pioneering home safety project that uses XBox technology to monitor the welfare of elderly people has been shortlisted for a national award. The project, which is being trialled in Salford, aims to help older people live more safely in their homes for longer by tracking their movements using artificial intelligence. A collaboration between housing association Salix Homes, working alongside Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust, The University of Manchester, and The University of Salford, MiiHome project has been shortlisted in the Innovation of the Year category in the prestigious 24 Housing Awards, which recognises excellence in the housing sector. As part of the trial, X-Box Kinect sensors, which detect movement, were fitted into a number of properties at Salix Homes’ sheltered living schemes, which provide accommodation for older people. “The idea of MiiHome is that it acts as a sort of ‘digital guardian angel’ which is able to detect changes in behaviour that could mean something is wrong, for example someone’s gait may have slowed down, or they may be getting up more than usual in the night,” said Jonathan Drake, service director at Salix Homes. “Its aim is to provide an early warning system to enable a health professional to step in and provide the right sort of care before the situation escalates, and hopefully reduce hospital admissions and pressure on our already overstretched NHS,” he continued. The nomination for the prestigious award represents a double reason for celebration for Salix Homes, as its new affordable housing development – Alexander Gardens in Broughton – has also been shortlisted in the Affordable Housing Scheme of the Year Category. “It’s a real honour for Salix Homes to have two of our projects named as finalists in the 24 Housing Awards, and it’s testament to the hard work and dedication of everyone involved,” said Lee Sugden, chief executive at Salix Homes. The winners of the 24 Housing Awards will be announced at an awards ceremony in October.
A new five year framework with UK sports charity, the Football Foundation, has been secured by four firms. The firms appointed to provide services which will improve hundreds of community sports facilities in northern England are industry consultancy Gleeds and specialist sporting architecture firm LK2, along with Couch Perry Wilkes and engineers BSP Consulting. “We are delighted to take a place on this framework with LK2. Football is the national game and the biggest team sport in England. The Football Foundation has already overseen investment of over £1 billion in improving facilities since 2000, and Sport England has invested more than £70 million into sports facilities over the past four years,” said Gleeds Director, Anthony Cork. “The sports sector is a key focus for Gleeds, and we are rapidly growing our expertise in this area so we are pleased to be part of an ongoing programme of works which will improve community sporting facilities across the north,” he continued. The work will vary depending on individual project requirements, with features including the design, supply and installation of modular buildings to provide new changing rooms and clubhouse facilities. The programme is part of a wider Government strategy to 2021 to improve ‘grassroots’ sporting facilities to encourage more community involvement. Dale Lui, Managing Director of LK2, also commented on the news: “We were keen to support Gleeds with this framework bid acting as a sub-consultant on the framework. Our firms have huge combined expertise in the sporting facilities sector. Together we will provide design and construction consultancy support and help improve large numbers of facilities in the north of England.” “We are very proud to join our peers LK2, Gleeds and BSP on this framework, which is an outstanding example of industry-wide collaboration and will no doubt deliver some truly excellent projects. Grassroots football is one of the key cornerstones of our national sport and improving the facilities local clubs have access to will go a long way to enrich the lives of aspiring sportsmen and sportswomen across the UK,” added Nilesh Mistry, director at Couch Perry Wilkes.
Proposed new house designs can now be revealed for the aspirational collection of luxury properties that Duchy Homes intends to build in the picturesque Warwickshire village of Tanworth-in-Arden. The premium house builder has now submitted Reserved Matters to Stratford-on-Avon District Council and hopes to be granted planning permission to redevelop Cank Farm’s four-acre site with a prestigious housing scheme. Situated on Well Lane, Duchy Homes’ vision is to deliver 18 new homes with a perfect blend of period charm and manor house opulence. Inspired by a farm and village theme, the award-winning developer has incorporated delightful architectural features such as traditional timber boarding, front gables and glass atriums set amongst impressive Georgian symmetry and the stately grandeur of columned entrances and deep statement windows. Buyers would be able to choose from seven unique house designs ranging from distinctive 4-bed and 5-bed traditional style detached homes to a stately 6-bedroom house design with a games room, triple garage and the option to include a private paddock. Focused on combining the idealism of country living with modern luxuries, each house would boast a high-quality specification for which Duchy Homes is renowned, including stylish open-plan living spaces, designer kitchens, indulgent bathrooms and luxury bedrooms with walk-in wardrobes. Its beautiful village location surrounded by picturesque Warwickshire countryside will make it ideal for home buyers to enjoy a relaxed lifestyle whilst also being easily-accessible from Birmingham and Stratford-upon-Avon via the M42. If planning permission is granted, demolition of the existing commercial buildings is anticipated for September with construction work expected to begin early next year.
One Housing Group Limited (City Style) has completed a £26 million scheme in Lewisham, South London. Designed by PRP, the development provides 92 new homes, including 64 for older people, 26 homes for sale, and an additional two family houses for social rent on a separate site at Blessington Road. Built in 1963, the site was originally home to the Christopher Boone’s Almshouses and has been developed by housing association One Housing in partnership with the Merchant Taylor’s Boone’s Charity. PRP’s design approach revolved around the need to care and protect older people living in Lewisham. It consolidates the existing almshouse accommodation previously situated on two sites and is well located in terms of access to the high street and public transport routes, but also in relation to a residential care/nursing home operated nearby. The building typology is closely aligned with the aspirations and recommendations of the HAPPI report. The older persons accommodation, which has an age restriction of over 57, is configured as a ‘U-shaped’ block that wraps around a central garden courtyard, while the accommodation has been reinvented as dual-aspect apartments, each with its own front door accessed from walkways that overlook the garden. The apartments are generous in size at 10-15% larger than the minimum space standards, and all benefit from bay windows and large balconies. Carefully arranged landscaped areas are at the heart of the development, with a circular, covered walkway that leads to a communal summer lounge, a terraced garden designed as a quieter space for residents, and a garden for those interested in horticulture and vegetable growing. Anne-Marie Nicholson, senior partner at PRP, said: “These state-of-the-art homes have been sympathetically designed by our ‘Later Living’ team with residents in mind, particularly those who are older and desire modern homes with nearby access to care. We have redeveloped the original properties to bring the community together, centred around a beautifully landscaped courtyard that allows for socialising and hobbies. “People spend years building a community for themselves, and this natural bond to one another and to a location should be a key consideration in design terms. Designing with people in mind is at the heart of what we do, and we’re determined to create homes that provide older people with the lifestyle they’ve always had.” PRP’s development consultancy team was appointed alongside the ‘Later Living’ architectural team to provide cost consultancy and project management services as well as planning advice and daylight surveys, enabling PRP to see the project through from conception to completion.
A new 306-home student accommodation development in Acton, west London, approached completion and it now stands at 7-storeys, offering 306 studio apartments complete with communal spaces including a café, student lounge, arcade and gym. Developed by Tide Construction and its offsite manufacturing company Vision Modular Systems, Chapter White City is located on the site of the former Savoy Cinema. “Chapter White City is a fitting tribute to the famous cinema that once stood on the site, and the students that have chosen to make Acton their home will bring a vibrancy to this historic gateway to central London. Our work here with Vision and HTA is testimony to the versatility of modular construction and what it can deliver throughout London and the rest of the country, in both the residential sector, the hotel sector and the student sector,” said Christy Hayes, chief executive officer at Tide Construction. Manufactured by Vision in their purpose-built factory in Bedford, the modules used precision engineering production line techniques designed to streamline the process and deliver a quality end-product at a faster pace of construction. “Chapter White City is a stunning new addition to our growing London student portfolio, completed in time for the start of the 2019 academic year this September. Vision and Tide have perfected the art of modular construction, with Chapter White City standing as proof of the high-quality craftsmanship which can now be achieved by this innovative construction method,” said Troy Tomasik, Managing Director – Investments at Greystar. In addition, Tide and Vision Modular Systems are also onsite in Holloway delivering a 257-home student accommodation scheme for Chapter. Tide Construction Limited is a unique development and contracting company, utilising both traditional and Offsite Manufacturing Methodologies (OSM). The team provides full turnkey building solutions using highly advanced offsite techniques and are market leaders in modular construction.
Kier Construction will be continuing to grow its industrial portfolio with the latest appointment to deliver a £39 million regional distribution hub facility in Wixams, Bedford, for developers UK Land and Property. The facility will be occupied by B&M Retail Ltd and will serve as its Southern Distribution Centre. The equivalent to 12 premier league football pitches, the 21.5 m high, 1 million sq ft warehouse will help meet market demand. The Distribution Centre consists of warehousing and distribution facilities including temperature controlled zones to accommodate chilled and frozen goods, offices, recycling and ancillary areas. There will also be other provisions, including a refuelling area, a maintenance area for vehicles and a gatehouse, surrounding the main building. “First class warehouse space is in real demand and working with UK Land and Property LLP, we are looking forward to delivering this space in a perfectly situated location for deliveries across the country. As the UK is the eighth largest manufacturer in the world, we are proud to be supporting UK businesses and their growth and also help secure thousands of job opportunities in the area,” said Mark Pausey, managing director of Kier Construction Central. “It is an exciting award for Kier and not only is the size of the warehouse going to be impressive, but it also includes 200,000m3 of earthworks and will see us use 4,500 tonnes of steel throughout the build. The finished distribution hub will create around a thousand new jobs and we’ll also be supporting employment growth in the local area throughout the build,” he continued. The news on the Distribution Centre follows on the announcement that Kier will be building a major extension to the Telford-based Müller factory. The £10 million project will see Kier double the size of the existing site and enable Müller to significantly increase its yoghurt production.
CALA Homes, one of the UK’s most upmarket major homebuilders, has agreed a partnership with the nation’s fastest broadband provider. It will offer residents day one access to gigabit broadband speeds across its new housing developments in West Scotland. The partnership will see Hyperoptic, the largest gigabit provider in the UK, install its services across its seventeen new housing sites. The development locations include Strathaven, Newton Mearns, Glasgow, Bearsden, Cumbernauld and Larbert. Hyperoptic’s full fibre cables go all the way to the building, which is why it can offer symmetrical gigabit broadband services – over 22x faster than the average broadband speed in Scotland. Many competitor fibre networks only go as far as a cabinet in the street, relying on slow copper cables from there to the building; this means a lower speed that also varies according to where you live along the street. Hyperoptic is rolling out the largest gigabit network in the UK. Its full fibre network is already live in Glasgow and Edinburgh, passing over 15,000 homes and businesses. This partnership with CALA Homes includes over 1,800 homes. Liana Canavan, Sales and Marketing Director for CALA Homes (West): “We pride ourselves on being renowned as a premium housebuilder. This reputation is built upon our commitment to give our customers the best living experience possible. This partnership addresses and exceeds the digital needs of our future residents. Being able to immediately get online, via the fastest broadband connection in the UK, is just phenomenal. This information will be incredibly well received by our future customers and will positively impact their move-in experience.” Sharon Maybury, National Manager, Hyperoptic, adds: “This partnership with CALA Homes enables us to expedite our Scottish expansion via installing our services at the build stage. Hyperoptic is committed to lead the charge to Gigabit Scotland. We announced our intention to expand our full fibre network to Scotland in 2015. Since then we have been working steadily to expand our footprint, with the aim of connecting hundreds of thousands of Scottish residents in the coming years.” The first development due to be completed is 21 Mansionhouse Road, a magnificent collection of 101 luxury apartments and penthouses in one of south Glasgow’s most sought-after neighbourhoods. For more information, please visit: https://www.cala.co.uk/homes-for-sale/west-of-scotland/21-mansionhouse-road About Hyperoptic Hyperoptic was founded in 2011 to shake up the UK broadband market and is now the country’s largest and fastest-growing gigabit network provider. It delivers the nation’s fastest broadband speeds of up to 1Gbps (1,000 megabits per second), which is over 22x faster than the UK average. Hyperoptic is a leader in “full” fibre optic technology, delivering fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) not just fibre-to-the-cabinet (FTTC). Its future-proofed infrastructure is bringing transformational internet speeds and connection stability to millions of people across the UK. Hyperoptic works with property owners, developers and professionals, designing and installing dedicated fibre infrastructure to new buildings and existing developments. It focuses exclusively on urban areas, often in areas neglected by other providers and network builders. The company has been awarded ‘Best Superfast Broadband’ provider by the Internet Service Providers’ Association for the past six years in a row, and was crowned the ‘Most Innovative Provider’ in the 2017 Broadband Genie home broadband survey. For more information visit: www.hyperoptic.com
Willmott Dixon will be delivering a £46.5 million new home for the School of Engineering within the University of Birmingham. Construction work for the development, which will accommodate both the School and the UKRRIN Rail Digital Systems Innovation Centre, will begin in August. The building will offer a variety of contemporary and flexible design and research spaces, which were designed by Birmingham-based Associated Architects and will act as an incubator for innovation and strengthens teaching and research partnerships. Moreover, office, meeting and lab spaces will be arranged around a generous atrium containing flexible learning environments that will also enable greater collaboration between staff and students. “This new building represents a celebration of engineering and will be a centrepiece of our new engineering hub. The ongoing collaborative relationship that we have with Willmott Dixon, along with the quality of delivery of their completed projects, gives us significant confidence that they will deliver this landmark building,” said Daniel Holmes, University of Birmingham. “The School of Engineering has been designed, and will be delivered, with collaboration between the University and industry at its heart, enabling research and teaching excellence to be celebrated and showcased,” he continued. Featuring exposed structural elements such as supports, pipework and services, the building’s interior will a practical display of its own engineering. On the outside, the facility will feature a half-brick, half-clad facade to provide a strong visual impact, with visual cues taken form railway lines and trackside signalling that connects it to its core specialism. “The new School of Engineering provides a clear visual statement for the University. It will be driving interest in the STEM subjects, something that we will be supporting ourselves through the creation of opportunities for work placements,” said Nick Gibb, Deputy Managing Director for Willmott Dixon in the Midlands. Earlier this year, Willmott Dixon was chosen to to deliver the University’s Teaching and Learning Building, scheduled for completion in 2020. Together with this latest contract, the company is delivering over £90 million worth of work for the University.
