Palatine Invests in Award Winning Housing Provider Jessup with Human Capital Planning guidance from The Quinn Partnership
Working with The Quinn Partnership on Human Capital Planning for the investment, Palatine Private Equity has acquired a majority stake in affordable homes developer, Jessup, which has a strong and leading reputation in the Midlands market.
Established for 34 years, Staffordshire-based Jessup is a trusted partner to local authorities and registered providers of social housing, including Birmingham City Council, Dudley Council, Cannock Council, Wrekin Housing Trust, Greensquare Accord, Optivo, Stonewater, whg, EMH and Trent and Dove.
Its 92-strong team provides a full development management service from land acquisition and planning consent, through to the construction of high-quality residential stock, and it has preferred partner status with Homes England.
As part of the transaction, former Westleigh Homes founder Chris Beighton and Director Matt Moore have joined Jessup’s leadership team as Chair and CEO respectively. Jessup founder Clive Jessup retains a stake in the business as Founder Director, and the deal also sees Palatine Partner, Richard Thomas and Investment Director, Tom Hustler join the Board.
Palatine invested in housebuilder Westleigh in 2016 before selling the business to Countryside PLC, generating a 3x return. Beighton and Moore bring a combined 50 years of experience in the housebuilding sector to Jessup’s leadership team and industry-leading expertise in modern methods of construction (MMC), having pioneered the adoption of timber frame construction in the affordable housing sector while part of Westleigh.
The investment from Palatine’s Buyout Fund provides Jessup with a solid platform for growth as it targets expansion into the East Midlands as well as continuing to develop its existing West Midlands operation. The business currently delivers approximately 500 homes per year and has diversified into mixed-use development for customers, including the YMCA.
Richard Thomas, Palatine Partner and head of its Midlands office, said: “Clive and his team have grown Jessup into a trusted, valued and longstanding partner to housing providers in the Midlands with an enviable reputation for quality and delivery.
“With a growing demand for affordable homes, our backing will enable Jessup to support more local authorities and registered providers as they seek to ease the housing crisis, further demonstrating the positive impact private equity can have on the economy and society.”
Chris Beighton, Chair of Jessup, said: “Jessup has an excellent reputation in the Midlands market and unique breadth and depth of knowledge of the funding environment. This investment will enable us to continue to innovate in MMC, unlock new opportunities for Brownfield development and grow our footprint through targeted land-led opportunities in the East Midlands.
I’m excited to join the already strong leadership of the business and to once again be working with Matt Moore and Palatine, who I know first-hand to be a collaborative and supportive growth partner.”
Clive Jessup added: “The addition of Chris and Matt to our leadership team and the backing of an investor with an excellent track record in our market marks the start of an exciting period of growth for Jessup, presenting new opportunities for our fantastic employees, suppliers and customers.
“Palatine have a deep understanding of our market and the expertise to further develop our already strong ESG credentials, at a time when this is of growing importance to our customers across the public and social housing sectors.”
Jessup will also benefit from Palatine’s industry-leading approach to sustainability, which places environmental, social and governance factors at the centre of its value enhancement strategy, and then delivers these through its award-winning ESG framework.
Palatine was advised by Alantra (corporate finance), Browne Jacobson (legals), RSM (FDD) and CIL (CDD). Jessup was advised by Clearwater and Gateley.
Mike Stiles, Director at The Quinn Partnership, added: “Following the success of Palatine’s investment in Westleigh, the firm and the Jessup team are in an excellent position to utilise their experience and expertise in the sector to achieve strong results in developing their offering in the Midlands.”
If you would like further information regarding our Human Capital Planning services, please contact us.
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