The Company specialises in the new build and refurbishment of affordable and social housing, private developments in central London, and the delivery of PPP (Public Private Partnership) and PFI (Private Finance Initiative) schemes. United House has enjoyed impressive growth over the past decade, with a record financial year in 2008, and a growth of turnover for 2009 up to £180 million (£160 million in 2008) and an unaudited profit before tax of £15 million.
LDC has acquired a minority shareholding in the Company and is providing the necessary funding to continue United House’s growth strategy. Additional bank funding has been provided by The Royal Bank of Scotland plc.
Following the retirement of Geoffrey Granter (who founded the company in 1964), the Company remains majority owned by the existing management, with Jeffrey Adams continuing to lead the business as Group Chief Executive. Stephen Halbert, an experienced chairman and board member across a wide range of companies, has joined the Group Board as Non Executive Chairman. Kevan Leggett and Richard Stewart, respectively Managing Director and Investment Director of LDC in the South, will also join the Board.
Jeffrey Adams said: “The partnership with LDC is a tremendous boost for our business and all the people working hard to make it a success. LDC’s backing will help the Company’s continued growth and enable us not only to expand our capabilities and services, but also to work closely with local authorities and RSL’s building more social and immediate housing, and to carry out energy-saving refurbishment works. We will also be expanding the private residential development side of our business, building on our unrivalled expertise to extract maximum value from challenging inner city sites.”
Kevan Leggett said: “Jeff and his team have created one of the UK’s leading inner city urban regeneration businesses. We see the business as innovative and being in an excellent position to continue its growth in London and the south of England.”
United House has just been awarded the UK’s largest single low-carbon retrofit contract for 200 social housing properties on behalf of the London Borough of Islington, which will deliver a direct saving to tenants of up to £300 a year on fuel bills. Other current contracts include a partnership with Cathedral Group, both as investor and contractor, in the £77 million Clapham One regeneration project, Renzo Piano’s Central St Giles scheme in Covent Garden where United House is developing both affordable homes and private apartments with a GDV of £60 million, and Hale Village in North London, where United House is contracted to provide major infrastructure projects.
ENDS 16 April 2010
For further information, please contact:
Martin Currie James Lloyd-Davies
Citypress Citypress
T. 0161 235 0310 T. 0161 235 0308
M. 07976 291532 M. 07782 135828
LDC notes to editors:
1. LDC (Lloyds TSB Development Capital) is part of the Lloyds Banking Group and is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority.
2. LDC has, since 1981, completed over 400 investments and has ongoing interests in over 60 businesses across the UK.
3. LDC back ambitious management teams from UK-based companies seeking between £2m and £100m of equity for management buy-outs, institutional buy-outs or development capital transactions.
United House notes to editors:
The United House Group is one of the leading specialist housing construction companies operating across London and the South East, offering an unrivalled combination of construction, refurbishment, regeneration, private finance and development projects.
The Group, which has enjoyed considerable growth since it was founded in 1964, comprises:
- United House Limited, which specialises in social housing construction, including new build, refurbishment and community regeneration.
- United House Solutions, the investment arm of the Group which is responsible for providing funding for the Group’s activities, including its PPP/PFI regeneration projects.
- United House Developments, the Group’s specialist residential division and one of the industry’s leading niche developers.
Current market position:
- Industry leaders in housing refurbishment, contracted to deliver more than 80,000 Decent Homes by 2010.
- Pioneering affordable eco-retrofit solutions to reduce energy bills and carbon emissions.
- The UK’s leading housing PFI contractor, working across four projects in London and Kent, and managing over 7,000 homes with a combined contract value of £975m.
- One of the South East’s foremost niche private developers, with design-led projects in prime locations that rank among the most architecturally innovative in the market.