Property round-up: Capital&Centric; Stopford Park; Landlord licensing; Blackpool housing; Willohaus; Big Six Report; Russell
Capital&Centric, the Manchester-based social impact developers behind the reboot of Farnworth’s former derelict market precinct, has revealed the first look inside its new homes.
Dubbed Farnworth Green, the new community will consist of 97 rental homes, made up of a super energy-efficient range of townhouses and apartments.
The homes will be a mix of one-, two- and three-beds, with 85 apartments and 12 family homes.
The new townhouses will be the first to be delivered under the developer’s ‘Neighbourhood’ brand, which includes Bolton’s first operationally net zero homes, which will slash energy bills for residents.
Farnworth Green is one of the first communities that will fly under the Ollo flag, a new company by Capital&Centric aimed to raise the bar for rentals. Aimed at staying around for the long term, the on-site team will make life easy for residents, with a raft of services from cleaning to pet sitting.
At a recent pre-launch event all 30 available homes were snapped up on the day.
A raft of independent bars, eateries and shops will complement the ground floor community hub giving locals and residents a place to meet up and enjoy seasonal outdoor events that will be planned once the neighbourhood is up and running.
Residents will also be able to hang out in a new public square at the heart of the community. The square will give Farnworth Green a bold injection of greenery and will also play host to artisan markets, art shows and foodie pop ups.
Tom Wilmot, joint managing director of Capital&Centric, said: “We’re buzzing to see the new homes come to life at Farnworth Green. It’s a mega moment for us with our first ever Neighbourhood-badged homes bringing something fresh and cool to this part of town.
“Farnworth Green is all about creating new and exciting spaces for businesses and the community to spend time in, as well as delivering a pioneering new town centre living experience and giving disused retail areas a new lease of life.”
He added: “We’ve been blown away by the level of interest since the launch and we’re buzzing to say we are now 50% let. We hope to carry on the momentum over the next few weeks.”
Farnworth Green is one of eight live construction sites for the developers.
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Bosden start on-site
Stockport’s ambitious town centre regeneration project has taken a significant step forward as council leader, Mark Hunter, joined the Cityheart development team to celebrate the start of construction at Stopford Park.
The development, which will transform the area, marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter for Stockport, with 62 one- and two-bedroom homes being built as part of the first phase.
Cityheart, in partnership with Oak Construction Projects, is spearheading the development of Bosden, the first of three residential buildings that will collectively deliver 442 new homes on Greek Street and Wellington Road.
The project is a key part of the 130-acre regeneration masterplan for Town Centre West, which is being driven forward by Stockport Mayoral Development Corporation (MDC) as part of Stockport Council’s £1bn town centre regeneration programme.
Cllr Hunter said: “Stockport isn’t just regenerating – it’s rewriting the rulebook for town centre transformation. Stopford Park is a fantastic site for new homes and stands as an anchor asset of cultural heritage and importance.”
Greg Ball, development director for Cityheart, said: “Stopford Park is a great addition to Stockport’s town centre and we’re very proud to welcome Mark to witness the start of works with our partner Oak Construction Projects.
“Not only are we delivering high quality sustainable new homes, we are creating an accessible neighbourhood with an art park as well as landscaped gardens and accessible pathways, designed for the local community to enjoy.”
The three-acre site is being delivered by Cityheart the development team behind Stockport’s award winning Interchange and is supported with a £9m GMCA brownfield development grant.
The new homes at Stopford Park will span three residential buildings including Bosden. Torkington will be converted into 122 apartments, while the former Lyme Centre has been demolished, paving the way for a 16-storey building comprising 258 homes.
Central to the scheme is a Grade II-listed former Metropolitan Girls’ School which will be converted into a flexible workspace for local businesses called Cheers & Smith, named after the two original architects responsible for its design in the early 20th century.
Bosden’s ground remediation and site preparation works have now completed and foundation works have commenced. Bosden is expected to complete in March 2026 and off-plan sales will launch in June 2025.
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Whiteway Street, Harpurhey
Landlord licensing has been extended to more than 1,900 more homes across Manchester.
Selective Licensing is one way that cities can drive up standards in privately rented properties.
Since 2017, more than 3,500 homes across the city have been fully licensed making sure that those homes are safer and better managed for the tenants living in the properties.
Now, from Feburary 24, the owners and managing agents of 1,863 more flats and houses will be required to apply for a landlord licence that will make sure these homes meet the necessary safety requirements, have the correct gas and electrical safety certification, and that they can demonstrate good management standards.
Currently, private sector homes have fewer regulations protecting residents and Selective Licensing provides councils to require landlords of all private rented properties to obtain a license in a particular area and is intended to address the impact of poor quality housing.
Following public consultation, licensing can be introduced if an area is experiencing significant and persistent problems caused by antisocial behaviour – including environmental and waste management issues – poor property conditions, high levels of migration, high levels of deprivation, high levels of crime, low housing demand, or is likely to become such an area.
For the latest designated licensing areas, the council has specifically targeted homes on the basis of property condition and antisocial behaviour linked to waste management problems.
The new licensing schemes across six Manchester wards, include:
- Cheetham: Flats above shops and Esmond/Avondale – 405 PRS properties
- Crumpsall: Enver Road – 147 PRS properties
- Harpurhey: Whiteway Street – 116 PRS properties
- Longsight: Heathcote/Sanby Road and Northmoor Road – 679 PRS properties
- Miles Platting and Newton Heath: Droylsden Road and Scotland Street – 373 PRS Properties
- Moss Side: Viscount Street and Heald Grove – 143 PRS properties
Cllr Gavin White, Manchester City Council’s executive member for housing and development, said: “We believe that everyone in Manchester deserves a safe and secure home. This is a basic right and through Selective Licensing we can work directly with landlords and their tenants to make sure this is their reality.
“And we are seeing the impact of our interventions, more than 3,550 homes have already been licensed, removing 1,700 hazards from Manchester’s private sector homes that would otherwise still be a blight on tenants in the city.”
Enforcement action has been undertaken where necessary to target landlords who have failed to comply with the licensing scheme and notices to improve property conditions.
So far, these include: 22 Civil Penalty Notices totaling fines of more than £107,500 have been handed out to landlords and property owners that have failed to comply with the terms of Selective Licensing; more than 250 legal notices have been actioned urging landlords to make safety and other improvements within licensed properties; 14 prohibition orders and three suspended prohibition (orders that could close a property if standards don’t improve) have been issued – in the most part relating to overcrowding.
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(VisitBlackpool)
Blackpool Council’s Shareholder Committee is being asked to approve the boundary for the first phase of the central housing regeneration scheme.
Approval will mean detailed engagement with residents and business occupiers within the identified area can begin.
Approval will also enable formal contact with owners of land and property within the designated area to start negotiations to buy land and property by agreement.
Following The Shareholder Committee’s decision the council will also look to prepare a formal consultation on the planning application, due to be submitted in summer 2025.
Blackpool Council was awarded £90m in March 2024 from central government via Homes England. This money is aimed at tackling the significant housing issues in the inner areas of Blackpool.
The vitally needed central housing regeneration scheme will see a mix of modern, new affordable housing and local amenities created. Old, tired and substandard houses will be replaced over a number of years.
The ambition is to create new, high quality and sustainable neighbourhoods that provide a range of housing types that meet local needs. Along with this is the clear ambition for this housing-led regeneration programme to encourage private sector development and investment. This will be a 15-20 year programme of comprehensive regeneration.
The suggested first phase area has been selected as a starting point for activity due to a combination of high levels of deprivation and strategic opportunity. A number of options have been considered based on a range of factors to help identify an area that will bring the most impactful and deliverable change.
Cllr Lynn Williams, leader of Blackpool Council, said: “We have arrived at a really important milestone for the central housing regeneration project that is so vitally needed in our town.
“Whilst we have outlined already the wider area that needs housing regeneration we now need to start narrowing down that area so we can move the project forward and continue to deliver what we have promised to deliver for our town.”
He added: “Whilst I am very proud of our ambition for housing in Blackpool I know and recognise that some people will not welcome this news initially. I understand that and am committed to supporting those who will find this news unsettling as much as we possibly can.
“Housing regeneration in Blackpool must happen, we need to provide modern housing that meets our community’s needs and once we have a decision on the red line we can get on with doing that.”
A number of drop in events are being planned for residents and businesses to attend and ask any questions they may have following the decision being made on the boundary for the first phase of works.
As soon as is possible after the decision is made and prior to a public announcement those directly affected within the boundary will receive hand delivered letters informing them that they are within the boundary, a copy of the plan with a boundary outline and information outlining next steps and direct contact details of a project officer to talk to should they need it.
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Willohaus topping out
Willohaus, a collection of 100 high quality, 100% affordable Passivhaus Classic certified homes, has achieved a significant milestone as the first aspect of the £2.5bn Crescent Salford masterplan to top out.
Located on Peru Street in Salford, Willohaus, comprising highly sustainable one- and two-bedroomed apartments, has reached its highest point, officially topping out at 21 metres.
It forms the first phase of Adelphi Village, which will bring more than 700 new homes to Salford. Situated to the east of the River Irwell, the community is part of the wider 240-acre Crescent Salford masterplan being delivered by the Crescent Partnership, made up of ECF (a joint venture between Homes England, Legal & General and Muse), Salford City Council, and the University of Salford.
Housing association Salix Homes is the housing partner for Willohaus, which is being delivered with support from Buttress Architects, engineering consultancy Max Fordham and lead contractor Eric Wright Construction.
Work began on the five- and six-storey building in April 2024, and is expected to complete in 2026. The eco-friendly apartments will feature Juliet balconies to improve residents’ connection between indoor and outdoor spaces. Additionally, there will be storage for 100 bikes to promote sustainable travel and foster a lively, active community.
Designed to stringent Passivhaus standards, Willohaus offers a green, affordable solution that can reduce energy bills by up to 90% compared with traditional housing. It will also provide a healthy, comfortable environment for residents and its highly sustainable features will help them to reduce their carbon footprints.
Speaking on behalf of the Crescent Partnership, Simon Hourihan, project director at ECF, said: “Working as a partnership, we’re on the way to delivering the first of many affordable, environmentally-friendly apartments to the city of Salford.
“The topping out of Willohaus represents a significant milestone as the first residential project within Crescent Salford to reach this stage, and the homes will offer local residents an enhanced standard of living, with reduced energy bills, better air quality and increased comfort.
“By incorporating innovative design and Passivhaus building practices, we aim to create places that not only meet the needs of the city but also contribute to a healthier environment.”
He added: “This commitment to sustainability reduces utility costs but also promotes responsible regeneration that has a lasting impact on the community, as well as helping Salford achieve its goal of reaching net-zero emissions by 2038.”
Willohaus is the second collection of sustainable, affordable apartments that ECF has brought forward with Salix Homes following the success of Greenhaus – another pioneering Passivhaus certified development on Chapel Street in Salford.
ECF has recently submitted plans for a second Passivhaus community in Crescent Salford. Located on Cleminson Street, Farmer Norton phase one will include 42 low-rise, three-bedroomed homes and will form the second phase of Adelphi Village. If plans are approved, work is due to commence in Summer 2025.
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Manchester skyline
The sales and rental price changes for Manchester city centre apartments have hit 25.7% and 45.9%, respectively, over the past five years, according to research from global property advisor JLL.
The ‘Big Six’ research, which tracks residential development activity, prices and rents across Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, Bristol, Edinburgh and Glasgow, showed that the annual price for a new-build apartment in Manchester grew by 1.5% last year. Its five-year sales and rental growth outstrips every other Big Six market.
Smaller one- and two-bed apartments have seen average prices rise 1.6% and 3.3%, respectively, while prices of larger three-bed apartments plateaued in 2024. Price growth of prime new build apartments across the city continue to outperform the mainstream market, with annual growth of 3.7%.
Rental prices have grown by 45.9% over the past five years, though flatlined in 2024 as a whole.
Jonathan Wiedemann, head of the North West at JLL, said: “Manchester’s long term rental and sales growth reflects its increasing attractiveness as a place to work, live and study.
“That won’t change, and we expect demand to remain robust. What’s needed is the political and economic certainty investors need to encourage them to spend money to stimulate supply. The city’s property market will continue to be an attractive investment proposition.”
Marcus Dixon, director of UK residential research at JLL, said: “Sustained demand for city centre living has supported growth in prices and rents for new homes in most markets across the Big Six.
“The UK’s housing market continues to show resilience, that, along with the outlook for 2025 and beyond, should give investors and developers optimism.”
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Village Hotel Ashton-under-Lyne
Russel WBHO has been appointed by Village Hotel Club – a collection of 33 hotels across the UK – to extend its property in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester.
The multimillion-pound project, which is now under construction, will add 48 bedrooms to the hotel located just off junction 23 of the M60. Constructed across four upper storeys, the rooms will be connected to the main building – which will remain open throughout the construction – via a link bridge.
The contract follows Russell WBHO’s development of new hotel and bedroom layouts for Village Hotels. Ashton is the first in a series of projects to implement these improved layouts to make the most efficient use of space.
An additional extension in the Midlands is also in the pipeline with Russell WBHO in a pre-construction services agreement (PCSA) to develop the design and carry out the construction.
Gareth Russell, Russell WBHO managing director, said: “Drawing on our vast experience of the hotel sector, we’re looking forward to working with Village Hotels Ashton to complete their 48-bedroom extension. Our team are delivering a full turnkey service, including the fit-out. All the work will be carried out while the hotel remains open with measures in place to prevent any disruption.”
Andrew Weisz, head of property at Village Hotels, said: “Following the team’s successful development of a new design model, we’re pleased to once again work with Russell WBHO to bring a significant extension to Village Hotel Ashton.”
Over the past decade, Manchester-based Russell WBHO has delivered more than 2,500 hotel rooms for major operators across the UK including Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, Accor, Premier Inn, Motel One, Holiday Inn, Travelodge, Radisson and Dalata Hotel Group.
