The government has secured £550m of impact investment from three funds managed by Schroders, Man Group and Resonance.
Impact investment funds create beneficial social or environmental outcomes, a sector that has grown to £76.8bn in assets under management in the UK.
Schroders has confirmed a £50m allocation from Homes England into its recently launched real estate impact fund. The fund, which has an initial target of raising £200m, with the aim of ultimately delivering 5,000 homes to address social inequality while delivering an appropriate financial return to investors, expects to make its first investments before the end of 2024.
It is focused on helping to deliver more social and affordable housing, regenerating town centres and investing in social infrastructure, with the housing benefiting from public transport, green spaces, schools and GP surgeries.
Man Group has committed a further £100m investment to deliver affordable and environmentally sustainable housing for communities across England, with 90% of homes to be designated as affordable.
The investment will have a particular focus on delivering homes with a low carbon footprint and addressing the housing needs of key and essential workers. This investment programme builds on the £385m that Man has committed to affordable housing since 2021.
Resonance has increased investment into its initiative to tackle homelessness from £79m to £250m. This directly channels investment into residential property to help create pathways out of temporary accommodation for individuals and families.
Resonance has set a target of reaching £1bn of investment in this area in the next five years. It will partner with local authorities and housing partners across the country to help house people at risk of homelessness.
Darren Jones, chief secretary to the Treasury, said: “Investors tell us they want to help in delivering a better Britain. Working in partnership with government, social impact investing can change people’s lives and improve communities across the country.
“We are dedicated to creating the right environment for impact investment, and the announcement of over half a billion pounds’ worth of impact investment building tens of thousands of new homes is a great example of the change that we are delivering on.”
Culture secretary Lisa Nandy said: “These new funds provide a much-needed, fresh opportunity to work in partnership with impact investors, tackling some of the most pressing social and environmental challenges while driving economic growth.
“We want to make the UK a world-leading centre of excellence for the impact economy and look forward to working with the sector to unleash its full potential for our country.”
Schroders said the £50m investment from Homes England would increase the ability of the fund to grow and invest more widely across the UK and secure further allocations from pension funds, insurers and foundations.
Chris Santer, impact fund manager at Schroders, said: “This investment by Homes England is a clear indication of the absolutely vital role this fund is looking to play in the UK by delivering real and tangible change. Our homes, and the built environment around us, impact our daily lives. We believe this allocation from the public sector will be catalytic in unlocking further institutional investments, boosting broader confidence and interest in this key sector, meaning the fund can enable more communities to thrive across the UK.”
Homes England chief executive Peter Denton said the investment was “a brilliant example of how public and private sector organisations can get behind a clear and common aim – namely supporting social justice and thriving communities”.
He added: “Fundamentally, this is about coming together to accelerate regeneration and the creation of affordable, high-quality homes within sustainable, thriving places that people, especially those in more deprived areas, want, need and deserve.”
Photo by Jon Santa Cruz/Shutterstock (12696935d)
Send feedback to Akanksha Soni
Follow Estates Gazette
