To start the year off, we announced that we’d completed deals on 230,000 sq ft of Urban Splash workspaces in 2021 – a record for our commercial team. Highlights included lettings at Matchworks in Merseyside, the newly restored Melville building at Royal William Yard, and the sale of City Court Trading Estate in Manchester.

The Urban Splash Residential Fund released its annual results, confirming it had received additional equity commitments in excess of £100 million. The Fund also focused on growing its portfolio with homes across Manchester, Sheffield, Birmingham, Bristol and Bradford.

Lister Mills in Bradford became an art canvas in March. The building’s prominent chimney tower was lit up as part of the illuminating “Mills are Alive in Manningham” exhibition which was supported by our Urban Splash Charitable Trust. The year-long project led by Bradford arts company The Brick Box, supported by Bradford's City of Culture bid team, captured stories of the people living and working in Manningham – from pre-Industrial Revolution to the present.

We exchanged on a deal with the Milton Keynes Development Partnership (MKDP) to undertake the regeneration of three phases of work at Campbell Park – one of the most important redevelopment sites in the city.

We completed a second phase of 195 apartments and 20,000 sq ft of commercial space at Park Hill in Sheffield. Determined to give this phase its own identity, we enlisted the design help of Stirling Prize winners Mikhail Riches who helped create a ‘muted’ approach that saw softer colours used on the building’s façade. All homes are sold and occupied.

In June, we signed a 20-year partnership agreement with Swansea Council, paving the way for a £750m redevelopment of several major sites across the city. Early proposals for the 23-acre Civic Centre site are focused on a new city waterfront district for Swansea, with a mixed-use destination anchored by the beach – offering leisure and hospitality amenities, generous civic spaces and plenty of greenery. Swansea Council leader Cllr Rob Stewart called the partnership a “landmark moment”.

Across our Urban Splash places we are cultivating communities, working with likeminded organisations to help bring our neighbourhoods to life. This summer that meant free ice cream at Beehive Mill in Ancoats, free pizzas at Boat Shed in Salford Quays, yoga and Pilate sessions in Liverpool’s Ropewalks, and a whole series of outdoor events at Royal William Yard in Plymouth.

Aviva Investors, the global asset management business of Aviva plc, confirmed a £43.5m deal to refinance 800,000 sq ft of our Urban Splash workspace in the North West of England in August. Gregor Bamert, at Aviva Investors said he was “very pleased to have started a lending relationship with Urban Splash” one which Aviva “looks forward to developing further over time”.

We completed the first phase of our restoration of the Grade I Listed Melville at the heart of Royal William Yard in Plymouth. New businesses have already been moving into the new space including Hubbox restaurant which opened in the spring, as well as customers confirming new deals on workspace – including PKF Francis Clark accountants and BLOCK – a coworking space and gym.

We commenced early works at Plymouth’s Civic Centre, paving the way for the full restoration of the Grade 2* listed building. Our long-term plans are to transform the lower floors into flexible office space, with the upper storeys featuring 144 homes.

Over the past few years, Urban Splash and associated companies have acquired over 25 new sites – including our latest acquisition at New Islington, where we purchased a residential site to further our regeneration work in the area. The Urban Splash Residential Fund also added to its portfolio with the 40-apartment Derwent House in Birmingham.

It was a year of recognition for Urban Splash; our Chairman Tom Bloxham MBE was appointed Visiting Professor at the Manchester School of Architecture; co-founder Jonathan Falkingham was awarded a Doctor of Laws Honorary Degree from the University of Liverpool and Akeel Malik was the 2022 Estates Gazette Rising Star. We also won 16 awards for our work, including British Homes Awards for Park Hill and New Islington.

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