Latest News | 27 September 2021
Derbyshire winners steal the spotlight at property awards
Derby and Derbyshire's commercial property sector swept the board at this year's East Midlands Property Dinner 2021, with Bondholders Rigby & Co, St James Securities, Wavensmere Homes and Rolls-Royce all receiving awards.
The annual awards, organised by Insider Media, recognise the region's top commercial and residential property deals, developments, builders, developers and personalities.
Property Deal of the Year was awarded to St James Securities, Rigby & Co and Allsop for Phase 1 of the £200m Becketwell regeneration scheme in Derby city centre. The deal was recognised by the judging panel as being a game changer in the city on a site which has been vacant for decades and is being brought back into use via a complex deal with leading advisers and operators, including Grainger for a 259-unit BTR residential scheme.
On winning the award, Paul Morris, development director at St James Securities said: “We’re delighted that the Becketwell regeneration scheme has been recognised with this prestigious regional award. The scheme will be transformational for the city of Derby, allowing hundreds of people to live in high-quality homes in the heart of the city and breathing new life into an area which has been neglected for many years.
“Thanks go out to all our team, including our advisors Allsop LLP and Rigby & Co, who we share this award with, along with Derby City Council, who played a key role in assembling the land and securing the D2N2 LEP investment, enabling this collaboration with the private sector.”
Derby-based commercial agency, Rigby & Co, was named Agent of the Year for its dedication to revitalising Derby over a quarter of a century, work with Derby City Council, multinationals and small clients, and involvement in recent major investments in Derby including Becketwell and high-tech food manufacturing and distribution campus SmartParc.
Managing director, Russell Rigby says: “The last 12 months have been a big challenge corporately & privately, with massive time devoted to two huge deals – Grainger’s acquisition of Phase 1 at Becketwell, and selling the 146-acre Celanese site to SmartParc. I’m absolutely over the moon to win!”
The award for Residential Developer of the Year went to Wavensmere Homes, the developer behind Derby's Nightingale Quarter, on the former DRI site, which will bring 800 new homes to the city centre and is restoring the site's iconic Pepper Pots for community use.
Donna Smith, sales director for Wavensmere, was delighted to accept the award alongside managing director, James Dickens, who said: “We were delighted to win the award for Residential Developer of the year at the East Midlands Property Dinner, but more importantly it's great to see that Derby is being recognised as a real powerhouse within the East Midlands, at events such as these.
“The four awards that Derby took away from the dinner was great to see. Everyone at Wavensmere Homes is so proud to be a part of the ‘Derby Success Story’ – and long may that continue.”
Rolls-Royce's Test Bed 80, a £90m project in Derby to create the world’s largest and smartest indoor aerospace test bed facility, was named Project of the Year, with recognition of the global importance of the region's role in the future development of this fast-changing sector. The team from Turner & Townsend, Norder Design Associates, Anderson Green, Aecom, MDS Aero, maber, Buckingham, ImTech accepted the award.
Other Derbyshire winners on the night included Matlock Spa, which was the recipient of the Design Excellence Award. A series of spa villages, the development of 494 new homes will be built alongside a stunning new country park and embraces the ‘Healthy Town’ model, promoting fitness in addition to a firm commitment to working with and protecting the local ecology and famous heritage of the Derbyshire Dales.
Henry Boot was named Developer of the Year; the company's regeneration of the 200-acre former Markham Colliery in Derbyshire into the 200-acre prime logistics and manufacturing hub on the M1, Markham Vale, has been a major success attracting companies such as Great Bear, Daher and Grangers International.
Held at the De Vere East Midlands Conference Centre on 23rd September, the event marked the 21st anniversary of the awards,
Sponsors of the event included: Freeths LLP, Willmott Dixon and Marketing Derby.
John Forkin, managing director of Marketing Derby – the investment promotion agency which attracts and supports capital and business investors in Derby and Derbyshire – said: “The prominence of winners across Derby and Derbyshire in this year's East Midlands Property awards demonstrates the confidence that investors, developers and businesses have in our city and county and reflects the talent and hard work of professionals in the sector to bring forward complex deals and sites which are helping transform our place, create jobs and attract further investment.”
