Greater Manchester Pension Fund (GMPF) has committed £30m (€35m) to a core-plus UK social infrastructure strategy managed by Newcore Capital.
The UK local government pension scheme (LGPS) has allocated £15m to the Newcore Social Infrastructure Income Fund (NSIIF) and £15m to a dedicated regional sidecar, the NSIIF North West Co-investment Partnership (NNCP).
As previously reported, NSIIF is backed by several cornerstone investors, including LGPS funds, the Parliamentary Contributory Pension Fund and an institutional client of Aberdeen Investments.
The £375m semi-open-ended fund focuses exclusively on social infrastructure sectors, targeting functional and affordable assets across healthcare, education, childcare, transport, waste management, and civic and public sector uses. To date, NSIIF has made 20 investments across these core sectors.
The NNCP sidecar vehicle will target similar assets across the North West of England and the broader Northern LGPS region.
Hugo Llewelyn, CEO at Newcore Capital, said: “Securing GMPF, the largest local government pension scheme, as a client is a huge vote of confidence in Newcore and we are deeply grateful for their trust and partnership. They join other like-minded LGPS investors in our main income fund, while seeding the NNCP, a dedicated side-car exclusively for the North West.
“Our aim is to work with LGPS and other investors who are interested in deploying capital nationally and into their own regions to deliver both attractive returns and positive impact from the responsible management of social infrastructure.
“The UK’s physical social infrastructure has faced years of underinvestment, leaving it poorly suited to providing modern services where they are needed most. With public finances under pressure, there is a clear role for conscientious private capital to play in modernising existing assets, helping keep pace with societal and environmental goals while delivering consistent financial returns.”
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