05 June 2024
HENRY
BOOT PLC
('Henry
Boot' or 'the Group')
HENRY BOOT TO DELIVER SPARK,
A £110M LOGISTICS AND MANUFACTURING HUB FOLLOWING PLANNING
CONSENT
Henry Boot announces that HBD, the
Group's property investment and development arm, has secured
Reserved Matters planning consent for three units totalling
464,000 sq ft at SPARK, Walsall, its £110m gross
development value ("GDV") industrial and logistical
project.
The wider 620,000 sq ft SPARK
project is being delivered in partnership with Walsall Council,
Homes England, West Midlands Combined Authority and Black Country
LEP. The former James Bridge Copper Works site, once the largest
undeveloped brownfield site in the Black Country, is currently
undergoing specialised remediation works, which HBD is set to
complete in Q3 2024.
With optionality to draw down the
land in phases, HBD is already seeing occupier interest in this
prime scheme and are aiming to begin construction on the first of
the three newly consented units in Q4 2024, with a target of being
ready for occupation in the summer of 2025. The first unit is
expected to add c.£40m to HBD's current
£154m GDV committed programme.
Units at SPARK range from 20,000 sq
ft to 254,000 sq ft, providing sustainable space at the heart of
the Midlands' world-class manufacturing and logistics economy.
Located adjacent to junctions 9 and 10 of the M6, it offers
market-leading infrastructure and power provision, alongside a
strong local skills base. Once the project has been fully
developed, it will also be home to a thriving employment scheme,
creating as many as 1,100 jobs in the local and surrounding
area.
Tim
Roberts, CEO of Henry Boot PLC, commented:
"Industrials and logistics remains one of our high
conviction sectors and carrying out the specialised remediation
works and securing detailed planning for the first three units at
SPARK is testament to HBD's expertise in navigating an increasingly
onerous and complex planning system. We're already seeing good
occupier interest in the project, due to the lack of high-quality
space with strong sustainability credentials in prime Midlands
locations, which gives us confidence that we will have secured an
occupier and started on site developing the first units by the end
of the year. This new logistics and manufacturing hub will add to
our growing industrial portfolio and replenish our committed
development programme."
Philippa Venables, Director of Regeneration and Economy at
Walsall Council said: "We are
thrilled to see HBD progress with the Reserved Matters planning for
the first three units at SPARK, marking a significant milestone in
the development of this landmark logistics and manufacturing hub in
Walsall. The collaboration between HBD, Walsall Council, Homes
England, West Midlands Combined Authority, and Black Country LEP
underscores our commitment to driving economic growth and creating
job opportunities in the region."
Mike Goulding, Development Director Central at Homes
England, said: "This marks an
important step forward and adds further momentum to the SPARK
project. We are pleased to be working collaboratively, to drive
forward a project that will transform this large brownfield site
into a sustainable place that will increase employment
opportunities in the area."
-ENDS-
Enquiries:
FTI
Consulting
Richard Sunderland/Giles
Barrie
Tel: 0789 479 7067 / 0779 892
6814
Email: henryboot@fticonsulting.com
Henry Boot PLC
Tim Roberts, Chief Executive
Officer
Darren Littlewood, Chief Financial
Officer
Daniel Boot, Senior Corporate
Communications Manager
Tel: 0114 255 5444
www.henryboot.co.uk
Deutsche Numis
Joint Corporate Broker
Ben Stoop
Tel: 020 7260 1000
Peel
Hunt LLP
Joint Corporate Broker
Ed Allsopp / Pete Mackie
Tel: 020 7418 8900
About Henry Boot PLC
Henry Boot PLC (BOOT.L) was
established over 135 years ago and is one of the UK's leading
and long-standing property investment and development, land
promotion and construction companies. Based in Sheffield, the Group
is comprised of the following three segments:
Land Promotion:
Hallam Land Management
Limited
Property Investment and
Development:
Henry Boot Developments Limited
(HBD), Stonebridge Homes
Limited
Construction:
Henry Boot Construction
Limited,
Banner Plant Limited, Road Link (A69) Limited
The Group possesses a high-quality
strategic land portfolio, a proven reputation in the property
development market for creating places with purpose, backed by a
substantial investment property portfolio and an expanding, jointly
owned, housebuilding business. It has a construction specialism in
both the public and private sectors, a plant hire business, and
generates strong cash flows from its PFI contract, Road Link (A69)
Limited.
www.henryboot.co.uk