UK real estate investor Fore Partnership has formed a joint venture (JV) with 'extra care' operator Amicala to deliver a new generation of sustainable later living developments in southern and central England.
The JV is actively seeking opportunities to develop as much as £300 mln in sustainable net zero extra care communities, in aggregate as many as 1,000 units. Target projects have a minimum potential of 100 units, and will be located in strong regional centres like Bristol, Brighton, Birmingham, Cambridge, and within the M25.
The partnership’s first extra care scheme will be in Bristol, after the JV completed the acquisition of a five-acre (20,230 m2) site in the Westbury Park area to the north of the city centre.
The site, purchased from Aurora, is on the grounds of the former St Christopher’s School, which closed in 2020, and comprises around 93,000 ft2 (8,640 m2) of existing buildings including the Grade-II listed Grace House. The scheme, which could see an investment of up to £80 mln, will involve the sympathetic and sustainable refurbishment of the existing buildings as well as new development.
Basil Demeroutis, managing partner, Fore, said: 'It has been made abundantly clear as the UK has lived through the Covid pandemic that the quality of our homes has a huge impact on our health and wellbeing.
'This is true for seniors as much as anyone and we want to bring our experience in developing ultra-sustainable, thoughtfully-designed buildings to bare in creating a new generation of net zero carbon later living developments around the UK.
'With Amicala, we have a real alignment of values, sharing a commitment to sustainability and social impact, and see huge potential in this partnership to create communities that produce positive outcomes for their residents in terms of health, wellbeing, and quality of life, while also being good for their local community and the planet.'
The Bristol extra care community will be designed with sustainability in mind and will be net zero carbon in operation. To promote principles of sustainable living and the circular economy, with a particular focus on on-site food production in partnership with local social enterprises.
The move marks Fore’s first foray into extra care after developing a range of commercial and residential assets.
Extra care is a relatively new model of senior living in the UK, that enables seniors who remain relatively independent to move into the community, with a minimum base line of care, which can then be increased as they age, ultimately providing full wrap around care.
According to trade body ARCO, in the UK just 0.6% of over 65s currently reside in extra care communities compared to 5% to 6% in Australia, New Zealand and the US.
The JV has appointed First Base as development manager to deliver the project given its strong reputation in Bristol, where it is currently working on the Soapworks scheme.
Squire Patton Boggs acted as legal advisor to FORE Partnership & Amicala. Cushman & Wakefield and Shoosmith’s acted for the vendor.
