Projects named in deal include Euston station and Smithfield Market in Birmingham
The Crown Estate is buying a 50% share in six Lendlease projects in the UK including the Australian developer’s schemes at Euston station in London and Birmingham’s Smithfield Market.
The joint venture between the King’s property company and the Sydney-based firm, which earlier this year sold its UK construction business to private equity which has since renamed it Bovis, could create up to 26,000 new homes and 900,000 sq m of offices and laboratories across the six sites, which also include Lendlease’s plots at Silvertown Quays in London’s Royal Docks, at Thamesmead Waterside, along the High Road West next to Tottenham Hotspur’s ground and at Stratford Cross.
The deal was announced this morning at the Treasury and chancellor Rachel Reeves said it would “boost home ownership and make Britain a global hub for life sciences”.
She added: “[Our plans] includes creating the right environment for organisations like The Crown Estate and Lendlease to partner, helping us to unlock capital to get Britain building and get Britain growing.”
The Crown Estate, which is head by former Lendlease Europe chief Dan Labbad, who left the firm six years ago after more than 20 years to join the Crown Estate, is one of the UK’s largest landowners and manages £16bn-worth of both rural and urban land and property around England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Its profits are paid to the Treasury and in 2024 it reported making £1.1bn.
The deal is set to have a gross development value of £24bn and is expected to see Lendlease, which has rejigged its business to concentrate on its domestic market, make AUS$300m (£144m) from the sale.
Labbad, who signed the agreement with Lendlease chief executive Tony Lombardo, said: “As a country, we face challenges to unlock growth. To support this, we need to spark investment in sectors like science, technology, and housing, alongside deep collaboration across communities, government, and the private sector.
“This joint venture is an example of how The Crown Estate is harnessing its mandate to act in the UK’s long-term national interest, supported by new investment powers, and stepping up its ambition to support inclusive growth for the nation.”
The deal will see Lendlease act as development manager for the work.
The six developments in the JV
- 60 acres above and around Euston Station in London, with the potential to deliver circa 4.3m sq ft of commercial space and 2,000 new homes
- 60 acres in Silvertown in London, with the potential to deliver circa 1.3m sq ft of commercial and 6,300 new homes
- 40 acres in Smithfield in Birmingham, with the potential to deliver over 2m sq ft of commercial space and 3,400 new homes
- Three land plots in Stratford Cross, London, with the potential to deliver over 1.6m sq ft of commercial space
- 250 acres of residential space in Thamesmead Waterfront, London, with the potential to deliver over 11,000 homes and 880,000 sq ft of commercial space
- 27 acres in High Road West in Haringey, London, with the potential to deliver over 100,000 sq ft commercial space and around 2,800 new homes
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