Vistry subsidiary buys two sites and signs deal to develop 260 homes for Platform Housing Group

Partnerships housebuilder Countryside is to build 550 new homes on two sites in the suburban village of Keresley north of Coventry after buying the sites via land promoter Richborough Estates.

The deal will see Vistry-owned Countryside Partnerships build 260 affordable homes on one of the sites, on Bennetts Road, for registered provider Platform Housing Group. Countryside said it will develop a further 290 homes across a mix of tenures on the second plot, at Bennetts Road and Fivefold Road, for which it is yet to secure a partner.

Countryside Keresley offer pic

Richborough Estates won planning for the schemes in March this year after submitting applications to Coventry City Council as part of the Keresley Village Sustainable Urban Extension. Richborough said the schemes would deliver a mixture of house types alongside pedestrian and cycle access, landscaping, open space and play areas.

Countryside added that the 260-home site would be developed with both affordable rent and shared ownership homes.

The deal comes just over a week after Vistry revealed a major strategic decision to pivot its entire business around partnerships housing, given the greater revenue certainty and faster capital turn provided by working with housing associations and build-to-rent providers.

>> See also Vistry targeting 25,000 homes per year under new partnerships strategy

Adam Sharpe, managing director, Countryside Partnerships South West Midlands, said the scheme was set in beautiful surroundings with good links to Coventry and the M6. He said: “Finalising these deals is a major step forward in bringing 550 much-needed new homes to Keresley, and we’re pleased to be working with Platform Housing Group.”

Platform said the deal with Countryside was part of a plan to have started work on 1,600 homes by March 2024, with this schemes one of its largest to date. Kate Ellison, Director of Land, Partnerships and Business Development at Platform Housing Group, said: “Platform is dedicated to continuing this kind of delivery in what is a challenging environment for the sector”.

Countryside said work will start on the scheme in 2024, subject to securing final consents.

Countryside Artists impression of street scene Keresley 5

Artists’ impression of a street scene at Countryside’s Keresley development