Urban Splash: Взлеты и падения британского девелопера

British property development company

Urban Splash is a UK based property development business. It was founded in 1993 by chairman Tom Bloxham and creative director Jonathan Falkingham. Headquartered in Castlefield, Manchester, it also has regional bases in Liverpool, Leeds, Bristol, Sheffield, Cambridgeshire and Plymouth. House by Urban Splash, a subsidiary founded in 2016 and spun out in 2019, went into administration in 2022 with 160 staff made redundant and combined debts of over £19 million.

Urban Splash's modular houses were launched in 2016 at New Islington in Manchester, consisting of 43 properties. The modular housing concept evolved further in March 2018 with the launch of 10 Fab Houses, two storey modular homes created in the factory and designed by architect George Clarke. In 2019, the modular operation was demerged from Urban Splash when Japan's biggest house builder Sekisui House and Homes England invested £55m in the business. In 2022, House by Urban Splash went into administration with 160 staff made redundant at its Derbyshire factory and at sites across the country. The collapsed business owed a combined £19.2 million to dozens of companies. Administrators said the business failure was due to "the under performance of its modular facility, which has been loss making for a prolonged period"; the underperformance was due to multiple factors including "design issues resulting in production defects and re working the modular units, the costs of which could not be passed on" while the factory also suffered from "underutilisation and inability to absorb overhead costs." In October 2023, House by Urban Splash was successfully sued by eight former employees as they had been made redundant without a consultation process. An employment tribunal held in Liverpool ruled that at least 20 employees had been dismissed without consultation and so were entitled to compensation.

As well as residential developments, Urban Splash also works on commercial projects, including Ducie House in Manchester, The Matchworks and Ropewalks in Liverpool, Fort Dunlop in Birmingham and Royal William Yard in Plymouth. Notable past occupiers include 808 State, Simply Red, Cream, The Farm and The La's. In 2021, it announced it had completed of commercial deals during the year. In July 2022, Urban Splash completed a deal with Aviva Investors to secure £43.5m to invest in its commercial portfolio in Manchester and Liverpool.

In 2017, the Urban Splash Residential Fund was formed to acquire design led homes in urban regeneration areas across the UK both through the Urban Splash pipeline and through opportunistic acquisitions. The fund owns and manages homes across Manchester, Birmingham, Sheffield, Bradford and Bristol, with average occupancy of 97% and annual investor returns of 9.5%. In August 2022, the Fund's latest results showed it had tripled in value, with net asset value at £90.3m. It also posted a profit of £2.2m, a 70% rise on the £1.3m recorded in 2021. The fund also invested £30m in new acquisitions during the reporting period, taking the portfolio to 252 homes in six UK cities. In late 2022, the Fund acquired Derwent House in Birmingham.

In 2012, the company published a book documenting its relationship with architects and the schemes it had completed. Titled Transformation, the book was reviewed in The Times who said: "When it comes to rescuing the great industrial landmarks of the past, Urban Splash is in a class of its own”. In 2018, celebrating its 25th anniversary, the company published a second book titled It Will Never Work.