£74M investment for Ebbsfleet Garden City

Homes England has secured an investment deal to accelerate the development of more than 5,000 homes at Ebbsfleet Garden City.

The £74M deal will unlock the next phase of development at the new Garden City in Kent, by funding a range of infrastructure works that include earthworks to fill in a lake to prepare the land for the development.

The infrastructure works will unlock 657 acres of land, allowing almost a third of the total Ebbsfleet Garden City houses to go forward, as well as around 180,000sq ft of commercial development.

Homes England supported the enabling works through a loan deal to Henley Camland, who recently purchased the Eastern Quarry site from Landsec, simultaneously agreeing land deals for 2,900 homes to be developed. Some 2,600 of these homes will be delivered by Countryside Properties and Clarion Housing Group in a new joint venture, with Barratt Homes building the remaining 300 homes, as a direct result of the works funded by Homes England.

The deal is one of the largest made by Homes England’s in the past 12 months, with the funds coming through the Home Building Fund (HBF). The HBF helps unlock or accelerate the delivery of residential and mixed-use housing developments through both development loans and loan funding for the infrastructure needed to prepare land for development.

Nick Walkley, Chief Executive of Homes England, said: “At Homes England we’re using our land, finance and expertise to speed up the delivery of new homes. The vital infrastructure works that we’re funding in Ebbsfleet will bring forward the development of many new homes by around four years overall and, importantly, will mean many more homes can be built in the earlier phases of the development as a result of our support with the significant infrastructure costs.”

The HBF loan will also mean other important services to support the housing development, such as a new secondary school, can be delivered much sooner than would have been. A ‘fast track’ route through the site connecting Bluewater to Ebbsfleet International Station will also be created.

Ian Piper, Chief Executive of Ebbsfleet Development Corporation who oversee Ebbsfleet Garden City, said: “This from Homes England, when combined with the investments already made by Ebbsfleet Development Corporation in key utilities infrastructure, is key to delivering the new homes that are required to create our vision for the Garden City. It is a good example of public bodies working together to deliver great places”.

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