McCarthy Stone, the UK’s leading developer and manager of retirement communities, has been given strategic partnership status with Homes England and has been successful in its bid for grant funding to deliver 1,500 new affordable shared ownership properties over the next five years. The grant funding will be the first investment in the private retirement sector ever made by Homes England, the Government’s housing delivery agency.
The strategic partnership is with the company’s shared ownership arm, McCarthy Stone (Shared Ownership) Ltd, which has been established by McCarthy Stone and became a Registered Provider earlier this year.
The funding announced today is a significant step forward in McCarthy Stone’s strategy to increase choice and affordability for its products and widen the number of older people who can enjoy the benefits of retirement living. McCarthy Stone launched its multi tenure strategy in 2019 and already around a third of its transactions are for private rent or private shared ownership, and affordable shared ownership will now complement this offering.
The 1,500 units, of which 25 per cent will be delivered via Modern Methods of Constructions (MMC), will be both developed and managed by McCarthy Stone. The units will be delivered nationwide, with the majority located in the Midlands and North of England. By opening access to high-quality retirement communities, McCarthy Stone will help deliver the Government’s ‘levelling up’ agenda, providing more older people with a diverse mix of specialist housing while also helping to create additional employment opportunities for local communities.
Retirement communities are also proven to have significant socio-economic benefits, helping older people feel happier and healthier whilst freeing up the housing market and boosting local economies. McCarthy Stone manages more than 450 retirement communities around the UK and they have seen a significantly lower level of infection from Covid-19 than wider society, helping to keep its customers safe and well.
John Tonkiss, CEO of McCarthy Stone said: “We are delighted to be appointed as a strategic partner by Homes England and this marks another important step in our commitment to address the growing demand for specialist retirement housing in the UK. Affordable retirement housing is essential to meet the Government’s wider levelling up agenda. The 1,500 units this partnership will deliver will improve the lives of more older people across more price points, and bring vital economic activity to the areas that need it most.”
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