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Large Midlands landlord reveals record-breaking number of starts in last financial year
Platform Housing Group has revealed that it achieved the highest amount of starts it has ever recorded in a single financial year.
The Midlands-based organisation posted starts on 1,534 homes for 2023-24, with completions coming in at 1,202.
The positive news comes at a difficult time for the sector in maintaining development pipelines as landlords balance other financial commitments and face pressure to improve and maintain existing stock.
In 2023, the 50,000-home association spent £24.4m on its existing stock in the previous financial year, an increase of 55.4%.
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Earlier this week, Clarion reported an increase in sales in its latest quarterly trading update, but the “challenging market conditions” led to a drop in the number of homes completed.
Platform acknowledged that the market “remains volatile” but struck a positive note as it revealed that its land and partnerships team has secured contracts for 2,330 homes at 27 different sites across the region it operates in.
In the next year the association plans to develop 113 new homes at Bishops Cleeve in Cheltenham and start on 270 homes at Perrybrook in Gloucester, along with its biggest site to date in Nottingham, where more than 300 units will be built.
Kate Ellison, director of land, partnerships, new business and innovation at Platform, said: “I’m really proud of the team for their ability to get deals done this past year that have led to us being able to deliver more affordable homes.
“The market remains volatile, especially when it comes to securing land, but thanks to some fantastic work by our new business team, solutions were found and spades have gone into the ground on key sites across the region. We’re already working hard on securing even more sites in the next 12 months and continue to seek partners in all aspects of development to join us on this journey.”
Platform highlighted that many of these homes will be gas-free, part of the group’s strategy for dwellings they will develop into 2025.
Gerraint Oakley, executive director of growth and development at Platform, said: “The work that all teams have put in has been nothing short of excellent and these numbers show we are dedicated to keep building homes without compromising on our delivery.
“Partnership working has been and continues to be key to achieving success and building more affordable homes across the Midlands.”
Platform agreed £275m in environmental, social and governance-linked loans with two major international banks in February.
The new funds will be used to help Platform build more homes and boost the energy efficiency of its existing stock, the landlord said.
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