Shawbrook provides £18m development finance facility for West Carclaze Garden Village

By Bridging Loan Directory 22nd June 2020

West Carclaze Garden Village on the outskirts of St Austell is a development by new developer Eco-Bos.

With a focus on sustainable community living, the Village will eventually incorporate a new school, village centre with shops, cafes, medical facilities and other amenities, five lakes, around 16 miles of trails within a 350 acre country park along with community allotments, orchards, edible planting and much more.

A new £18m development finance facility from specialist lender Shawbrook Bank will support the first phase of this unique scheme.

The development will benefit from the international experience of Orascom Development Holdings, the majority shareholder in Eco-Bos, which specialises in creating mixed‐use regeneration projects with a focus on sustainable principles.

The Garden Village represents ODH’s first large‐scale project in the UK.

After years of community consultation, The Garden Village has been tailored to meet the needs of local people while appealing to the circa 40,000 people moving to South Devon and Cornwall each year.

Dorian Beresford, Eco Bos Chief Development Officer, said:

“We are creating an inclusive, vibrant community in one of the most beautiful places in the country. A healthy, sustainable and inclusive lakeside community, where everyone is welcome to share the best of West Country life with accessibly priced homes designed to meet the needs of all ages.

John Hughes and the Shawbrook team bought into our plans immediately and could see the potential of the project from the start. Their track record as a specialist funder and supporter of innovative property developments – particularly across the Southwest – is second to none and their commitment to putting this funding in place has demonstrated to us what a difference it can make to have the right funder working with you.”

John Hughes, Relationship Manager at Shawbrook, said:

“This is an exciting development for the region and we are very happy to be involved. Despite the current logistical challenges associated with Covid-19 measures, we have been in discussion with the Eco-Bos team for some time now and have been focussed on delivering this facility to help make the scheme a reality.”

The Eco‐Bos joint venture was originally conceived as part of the UK government’s Eco‐Town competition to promote the growth of sustainable communities. Its vision is to rehabilitate land that was formerly used for mineral extraction and processing. The company has a pipeline of more than 5,000 homes across Cornwall.

Shawbrook Bank was introduced to this project by Sal Privé.