Lloyds Bank backs Wirral Waters resi

The lender has agreed to provide an initial £5m green development loan to a joint venture between Urban Splash’s modular housing arm and Peel L&P.

Lloyds Bank’s loan is to fund the delivery of 30 modular homes – the first phase of 347 homes within the East Float neighbourhood, which sits within the Northbank development area of Wirral Waters. The intention is to provide further support as the larger scheme advances.

The docklands project, delivered by Urban Splash’s residential arm, House by Urban Splash, forms part of plans to deliver thousands of new homes, public space, education facilities and amenities in the area.

Lloyds also provided Urban Splash with a £20m loan package at its long-running redevelopment of the Sheffield’s Park Hill estate.

Peel L&P’s Wirral Waters is a 30-year, £4.5bn strategy to regenerate a 1.8m sq ft brownfield site into a sustainable location for business, housing and leisure.

Including the modular scheme, the developer said that 1,000-plus new homes would be built along Northbank within the next three to four years. Eric Wright Civil Engineering was selected as the main contractor for public realm works in the area this January.

Lloyds Bank said that following the success of its £1bn Green Lending initiative, it has broadened the discounted loan products available to commercial banking clients from £3bn to £5bn, including new propositions such as green development loans.

Ben Thatcher, head of finance at House by Urban Splash, said: “This funding represents yet another positive step forward for East Float, which will bring hundreds of new design-led homes to Birkenhead.

“Our distinctive homes are as ambitious in terms of sustainability as they are in design, with offsite modular construction ensuring we’re able to minimise their environmental impact and promote green, waterside living.”

House y Urban Splash also secured consent earlier this month for a 228-home scheme in Grappenhall.

Richard Butterfield, relationship director at Lloyds Bank, said: “East Float and the wider Wirral Waters project represent strategic regeneration at its best and will no doubt set the standard for future residential and mixed-use redevelopment as the UK’s green recovery continues to materialise.

“Both Urban Splash and Peel L&P will be key drivers of the levelling up agenda in the years to come.”

The JV intends to deliver 347 modular homes in total