Atelier

Today, we are pleased to share a manifesto putting forward eight urgent calls for planning reform to help get property developers building. As a development finance lender, we see first-hand how planning challenges impact property developers – time delays, onerous conditions and general uncertainty impacts credit risk and the cost of finance for developers. Following on from the recent roundtable discussion we hosted with developers, planning consultants, valuation and legal experts from across the development sector, we identified solutions that are practical and could accelerate the delivery of new housing by unburdening private developers and lowering the risk of planning refusal. From policy fixes such as small scheme exemption from Section 106 payments, to the cultural shift needed within our planning system, our manifesto seeks to address the 'on the ground' obstacles burdening developers when getting projects up and running. With thanks to Akanksha Soni for chairing the roundtable discussion and covering the exclusive in Estates Gazette this week and to our fantastic roundtable attendees: Chris Gardner David Brown David Conboy James Harding Sam Jones Damian Keeling Alex Madden Peter Messenger Head over to our website to read our manifesto in full. https://lnkd.in/gRFRsZKv #Planning #Developer #Manifesto #DevelopmentFinance

What a fantastic morning at the Argyll-hosted breakfast event. We heard from a stellar panel discussing "Labour’s first 100 days: the view from London’s professional services community." Chaired by Claer Barrett, Consumer Editor at the Financial Times, the discussion began with an exercise where each panelist used one word to describe Labour’s first 100 days. The responses varied from “false start” and “lost opportunity” to the more hopeful “cautiously optimistic.” The overall sentiment was a call for the Government to focus on what they can control - domestic, political and economic certainty - to provide the business community much-needed stability. Obviously all eyes are on the much awaited autumn budget next week. Our CEO, Chris Gardner, contributed valuable insights into what’s needed to support property developers, particularly SME developers. Next week, we’ll be publishing the findings of our recent roundtable, which focuses on practical solutions the Government can implement to help SME developers get building. If you’d like a copy, please get in touch. Thanks to the panelists Jon Gerlis Chart.PR; Kathleen Heycock; Majid Hussain and Peter Kellner for sharing your expertise, and to Farrer Kane & Co for co-hosting. #DevelopmentFinance #LaboursFirst100Days #PropertyDevelopment #SMEDevelopers #BusinessStability

The upcoming Future Homes Standard set to come into force by 2025 will have a significant impact on developers. The implementation of the rules will require strict regulations that promote sustainability and reduce carbon emissions. Our Senior Development Monitor, Peter Messenger, recently sat down with Adam Alexander MSc CEng MCIBSE, Energy & Sustainability Director at Harniss Building Services Solutions, to discuss how the Future Homes Standard is set to impact SME developers and the proactive steps that can be implemented ahead of the rules coming into force. Peter commented: “It is clear from our conversations with developers that many are feeling left in the dark about the Future Homes Standard. The regulations are likely to have far-reaching consequences across the domestic sector and I hope that our guidance sheds some light on what developers need to know as the deadline approaches.” Read the full piece here: https://lnkd.in/gU8PJdNb #FutureHomesStandard #SMEdeveloper #FHS #DevelopmentFinance 

Yesterday, the Ateliers baked up a storm, and we held a cake sale to raise funds for a very inspiring individual who is currently fundraising for two important causes - Mind and Scope. Hugh Allum-Pearce, son of our People Director Clare Allum is using his passion for running to good use by taking on the Royal Parks Half Marathon this Sunday (Oct 13th) to raise funds for Mind UK, as well as the London Marathon in 2025 to support the disability charity @Scope. We love supporting charities that are important to our team. Thank you to the Atelier Bake Off team for contributing such a range of delicious treats and to Sam Duffy for organising. #Charity #Fundraiser #MindUK #Scope #Team

We are pleased to welcome Richard Cannings as Senior Credit Manager to the Atelier team. Richard will be working within the Credit and Portfolio Management team, structuring and underwriting new loan facilities as well as focusing closely on existing cases. His in-depth knowledge of credit risk management means he is expert in identifying ways to mitigate risk, and work with borrowers to structure appropriate loan facilities. Our Chief Credit Officer Alan MacLeod commented on the news: “I am delighted to welcome Richard to the team. His wealth of experience in real estate finance will bring real value to Atelier, as he works within the Credit and Portfolio management team and alongside our Originations colleagues to proactively review, structure and underwrite transactions." Welcome to the team Richard! #DevelopmentFinance #NewJoiner #TeamNews

Some pretty exciting news from Atelier today…we are pleased to announce the opening of our new Birmingham office. Rav Kudhail, our Lending Director, will be heading up the new office, drawing on his local knowledge to deliver custom finance solutions to Residential PBSA and Care schemes across the region. Rav commented “I’ve been based in Birmingham for the last three years and I am proud of the relationships we have built up with developers, intermediaries and professional partners. The fact we’ve delivered £150 million of lending in the region so far, is evidence of our commitment to being the lender of choice to finance a range of asset classes across central England and the North.”   Our CEO Chris Gardner commented: “The opening of our Birmingham office underscores our commitment to funding property development in the region. We have already delivered custom finance solutions to a diverse range of residential, PBSA and care projects in the Midlands and our Birmingham office launch only consolidates our plans for growth.” #Birmingham #Birminghamoffice #ColmoreRow #officeopening #newoffice 

What a morning. Today, we hosted a brilliant round-table discussion with developers, planning consultants, valuation and legal experts, and financiers, to tackle one of the biggest challenges in the industry: planning barriers impacting private developers. As a development finance lender, we see first-hand how planning challenges impact property developers – time delays, onerous conditions and general uncertainty impacts credit risk and the cost of finance for developers. Today’s discussion was about capitalising on the practical expertise in the room as we prepare a manifesto for the Government to support its ambition of ‘Getting Britain Building’—and delivering more than 25,000 new homes per month to meet its targets. Key themes explored: * Absence of clear leadership, policy and accountability at national and local levels, leading to a default ‘no’ response in planning departments * Widespread resistance to development, with developers often facing unclear reasons for refusals * Too much bureaucracy and process for the number of planning officers, which results in complex and nuanced decision-making processes – an Appeal used to be a real threat, it isn’t anymore * Lack of transparency around LA’s use of CIL and S106 payments, and no credit given to developers for the contributions they make to local infrastructure and services While we can’t reveal everything just yet, we’ll be sharing detailed solutions in our upcoming manifesto next week. Chris Gardner, CEO of Atelier, concluded: “The stakeholder group completely unrepresented in the planning system are those would-be homeowners, who will be the eventual beneficiary of a new development – the system is geared-up to only respond to objections. Everyone in the room today is committed to playing their part in delivering much-needed new homes, with solutions-based recommendations that foster stronger partnerships between developers, local authorities, and communities.” A huge thank you to Akanksha Soni, Residential Reporter at Estates Gazette for hosting this important discussion and to our expert panel for their valuable insights: David Brown David Conboy Matthew Grundy James Harding Sam Jones Damian Keeling Alex Madden Peter Messenger Bronwen Roberts Charlotte Wright #DevelopmentFinance #PlanningBarriers #PrivateDevelopers #RealEstate #PropertyDevelopment #RoundTable #PlanningReform

Excellent to see our CEO Chris Gardner’s recent letter to the Housing Secretary, the Rt Hon Angela Rayner published in Property Week. The letter highlights the importance of private developers, who between 2021 and 2022 delivered over 60% of the UK's new housing stock, and covers the planning obstacles impacting developers. In particular, the overuse of Section 106 agreements by local authorities and how the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) regime is not working as originally intended. The letter comes ahead of a roundtable discussion we are hosting this week. We’ve invited a select panel of industry experts to discuss the planning barriers facing private developers. We are thoroughly looking forward to the discussion and we will be sharing key themes and outcomes. #Housebuilding #Roundtable #PropertyWeek #DevelopmentFinance #ExpertPanel #Practicalexperience

We are pleased to share that we have provided a £7.14 million finance facility to assist with the ground-up development of 89 build-to-rent houses near Durham. Anthony Dobinson, Senior Credit Manager at Atelier commented "This is our first project with Placefirst, the prominent UK-based build-to-rent developer and regeneration specialist and this development will deliver good quality and affordable rental properties, which will meet growing demand for single family housing in the area." Lukman Sabir, Finance Director at Placefirst said “To deliver on our commitment to increase the number of high quality and secure housing options in the UK, working with a financial partner that truly understands the residential sector is essential. The loan provided by Atelier, along with their extensive experience in this space, partnered with their knowledge of our needs and ambitions, will provide the right kind of financial partnership to progress this development." #DevelopmentFinance #AffordableHousing #Durham #BuildToRent

On Friday some of our team rolled up their sleeves to take part in the River Thames clean up hosted by PlasticBusters. As part of our work with Matchable Volunteering, the team spent the afternoon cleaning up and removing rubbish from the Thames – contributing to making London a cleaner environment for both people and wildlife as part of the #AdoptTheWorld initiative. Well done team Sam Duffy; Reece Lake; Clare Allum; Raj Hothi; Parit H.; Suraj Lakhanpal We awarded Suraj Lakhanpal the 'best dressed' on the day 😉 #RiverThames #AdoptTheWorld #London #Cleanup #Volunteering