The English Cities Fund, a development company set up by Homes England, Legal & General and Muse Developments, has announced that it will double its investment in cities and towns in England to €223.2m (£200m). With the initial investment of €111.6m (£100m), the fund is on track to deliver five schemes in England with a total value of €1.8bn (£1.6bn).
To date, the fund has delivered 850,000 ft² of office, retail and leisure space, generating some 5,000 jobs and opening up new urban spaces to the public. It has built 1,300 homes in characterful new neighbourhoods, with a further 2,210 homes still in the pipeline, alongside 820,000 ft² of new commercial development.
The English Cities Fund has a track record of taking challenging, often stalled sites and creating dynamic urban communities where blue-chip companies, ambitious occupiers, entrepreneurs, homeowners and renters locate side by side. Its schemes have secured over €892.7m (£800m) further third-party investment, including from property companies, institutional investors and the public sector.
Sir Michael Lyons, former chair of the BBC Trust and chair of the English Cities Fund, said: “Our cities and towns are the engines of our economy and our cultural and social lives. We must continue to reinvent them in bold and imaginative ways. We want to partner with ambitious local authorities and other public bodies who want to attract investment, build homes and support enterprise. Together we can create exceptional places. We’re a unique partnership. In bringing together Homes England, Legal & General and Muse, we are demonstrating the combined potential of public and private sector regeneration expertise. We’ve shown over 17 years that it’s possible to commit for the long-term while still delivering at pace. It’s an approach that’s allowed us to see potential where others may not and to transform even the most complex sites. As we double the fund, we’re enthusiastic about the opportunities to deliver urban developments which show real imagination and unlock value for our partners and their communities.”
The expanded fund will focus principally on projects which have a gross development value of over €111.6m (£100m).
