Deal to identify regeneration sites for East Manchester

Great Places and Manchester Life Development Company have revealed a cooperation agreement to identify viable sites for new affordable housing, and to collaborate on a 10-year residential master planning exercise.

The agreement comes as Manchester Life, the residential development company driving the regeneration of Ancoats and New Islington, evaluates options for further placemaking and development in East Manchester, and Great Places, the affordable and social housing provider, commits to delivering an additional 750 affordable homes by 2023, in partnership with Homes England.

This joint planning exercise will start immediately and seeks to ensure that East Manchester residential development frameworks incorporate affordable housing at a range of tenures and price points.

The collaboration will immediately support the city’s affordable housing priorities by accelerating progress on currently viable sites and serving as a platform for a range of investors and developers to participate in the city’s affordable housing delivery over the next decade.

Matthew Harrison, chief executive for Great Places, said: “Great Places is one of the leading housing associations in the North West, and we are committed to being a major provider of affordable and social housing within Greater Manchester over the next 10 years.

“Effective partnerships are central to affordable housing delivery in today’s complex operating environment, so we are very pleased to be collaborating with Manchester Life given their track record of mobilising quickly and at scale to make a positive impact across a whole neighbourhood.”

Manchester Life was established in 2014 to restart the regeneration of Ancoats and New Islington and address the housing shortfall for the city’s working population by being an investor, developer and landlord of nearly 1,500 new homes.

Marty Edelman, Manchester Life’s executive chairman, said: “From the outset, we set up Manchester Life to be a platform for convening multiple participants to unlock the full potential of Ancoats, New Islington and surrounding communities.

“With the range and scale of housing required over the next 10 years, it’s clear that a collaborative approach to master planning is a critical first step in defining the requirements for current and future residents.

“Given the calibre and track record of Great Places, we have every confidence that our collaboration will quickly shape viable pathways for significant new affordable housing and serve as a platform for new partnerships to form.”

Marty Edelman

Sir Richard Leese, leader of Manchester City Council, said: “Manchester Life has already delivered a significant positive impact on Ancoats and New Islington, and in doing so has rebuilt confidence in the area, so it is hugely encouraging to see this new collaboration with Great Places focusing on sustainable, affordable housing delivery.

“We look forward to participating in the planning exercise and hope that other investors, developers and registered providers follow suit to help deliver a range of housing types and tenures across the city.

“This collective approach is vital to ensuring that Manchester delivers the right mix of housing to help all residents reach their full potential.”

Great Places has been developing a significant programme of affordable housing across North West England and has signed one of the first strategic partnerships with Homes England to deliver an additional 750 homes by 2023.

In total, Great Places expects to invest £400m in new residential development by 2023, the majority of which will be in the North West.

Manchester Life Development Company is a joint venture between the Abu Dhabi United Group and Manchester City Council established in 2014.

Phases one and two of Manchester Life has mobilised eight developments to deliver 1,468 predominately private rental and owner-occupied homes, and 27,000 sq ft of commercial space.

In doing so, the company has developed placemaking and multi-site development capabilities which can now help deliver on the city’s policy ambitions.