Acquired on behalf of a US insurance company, the scheme on Kirkstall Road will deliver 618 one-, two- and three-bed apartments set across five buildings sitting in extensive landscape grounds, including new public realm, next to the River Aire. The five-acre site will benefit from over 10,000 sq ft of amenity space including a residents’ lounge, co-working and gym, two private roof terraces and 3,800 sq ft of commercial space. Construction has begun and is expected to complete by the end of 2027.

All apartments will benefit from air source heat pumps, and PV panels will meet a portion of the electrical demand of the buildings.  The scheme overall will achieve HQM 4* and EPC B, enabling the scheme to meet the LETI 2020 target for upfront embodied carbon and a material reduction in carbon emissions in operation. 

The site is located one mile from Leeds city centre and just over half a mile from Wellington Place, a new office quarter and prominent commercial hub. Leeds Central railway station is approximately one mile from Kirkstall Road and is the third busiest railway station in the UK outside of London. Both the University of Leeds and Leeds Beckett University are located one mile away.

This will be the fourth BTR-led development that Barings and Glenbrook have collaborated on following the forward funding of the award-winning Vox, and the acquisition of The Trilogy in Manchester and The Keel in Liverpool, all of which are managed by Allsop Letting and Management (ALM). ALM will also operate the Kirkstall Road site.

Ben Pile, Head of European Residential Investment and Asset Management at Barings Real Estate, said: “Leeds represents a significant opportunity for growth for institutionally developed and operated residential property as the UK’s fourth biggest city, featuring a lively population of young professionals thanks to a strong employment market and significant graduate retention rate. Given the stabilising economic and political environments in the UK and as we enter a new real estate cycle in Europe, we expect the picture for residential property – and indeed our other preferred sector of logistics – to become even more positive and are, therefore, actively seeking further opportunities to deploy capital on behalf of our partners.”

Gunther Deutsch, Managing Director and Head of European Transactions and Country Head Germany at Barings Real Estate, said: “Barings has significantly grown its living sector exposure over the last three years so that it is now our second biggest European real estate sector aside from logistics. This is because we see it as boasting favourable tailwinds in the UK and across Europe, and therefore remains a focus of our capital sources and our teams on-the-ground in all of our core European markets. For 2025 we are currently already working on a secured investment pipeline worth €745m with six transactions in four countries. We continue to seek investment opportunities with partners across our preferred jurisdictions of the UK, the Nordics, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, France, and Spain.”

Ian Sherry, co-founder of Glenbrook, said: “We are thrilled to be partnering again with Barings Real Estate on this impactful project. This development not only addresses the urgent need for housing in Leeds but also contributes to the revitalisation of the Kirkstall Road area. We believe that creating high-quality living spaces is essential for fostering thriving communities.”

For Barings
Ben Monteith/Tom Carnegie (SEC Newgate)
baringsRE@secnewgate.co.uk

Barings Real Estate
Barings Real Estate (BRE) is a part of Barings and offers a broad range of global investment opportunities across the private debt and equity investment markets. BRE invests in all major property sectors and offers an expansive range of financing solutions to real estate borrowers.  Follow us on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/showcase/barings-alternative-investments.

About Barings
Barings is a $421+ billion* global asset management firm that partners with institutional, insurance, and intermediary clients, and supports leading businesses with flexible financing solutions. The firm, a subsidiary of MassMutual, seeks to deliver excess returns by leveraging its global scale and capabilities across public and private markets in fixed income, real assets and capital solutions.

*As of December 31, 2024

About Glenbrook
Glenbrook is a property company specialising in development, investment and asset management.  Focusing on the key cities outside of London it has developed over 2,500 new homes for the build to rent sector across the UK, working with respected funding partners such as LGIM, Barings Real Estate, Moorfield and Clarion.  

Glenbrook has delivered Vox, Trilogy, Duet and The Keel and High Definition in MediaCityUK. Close to the iconic Old Trafford cricket Ground, Glenbrook, Moorfield and Clarion Housing Group are delivering deliver 639 new homes, which will become Lumina Village.

Elsewhere in the UK, Glenbrook is nearing completion of Whitehall Riverside, a £140million BTR scheme in Leeds with L&G and is bringing forward a major residential scheme in Milton Keynes with JV partner, Urban Splash.