Harworth sells almost 1,900 plots in last quarter

The London-listed firm said the milestone brought the total residential plot sales for the full year to 2,385, up from 1,170 in 2023, with a total headline sales value of £104.1m, nearly doubling the prior year’s £52.1m.

It said that record-breaking performance reflected strong demand for its de-risked serviced residential land, and the success of its strategy to accelerate delivery and broaden its range of residential products.

Sales in the final quarter were made to national and regional housebuilders, as well as to providers of affordable housing, with values in line with or ahead of June book values.

For the year, Harworth said its residential sales performance met its strategic target of an average of 2,000 plot sales annually.

Its residential land pipeline now totalled 31,264 plots, of which 4,568 were already consented, providing a strong foundation for future growth.

The board noted that the year’s achievements were complemented by strategic land acquisitions, including a 1,000-plot site at Stewartby and 3,044 plots near Grimsby in partnership with landowners.

In addition to residential plot sales, Harworth completed significant land disposals in 2024, including sales at Skelton Grange of 27 acres, and at Ansty of 278 acres, with a combined headline value of £106.3m.

The proceeds from those transactions would fund investment in the group’s industrial and logistics developments, land acquisitions, and strategic partnerships.

“Throughout the year we continued to see healthy demand for our high quality de-risked serviced land, and notably we also completed two major land sales at our Skelton Grange and Ansty developments in December, for £106.3m,” said chief executive officer Lynda Shillaw.

“The proceeds from these sales will be reinvested into our industrial and logistics development programme to continue creating value for our stakeholders.”

Shillaw said Harworth was committed to delivering sustainable regeneration schemes, creating new communities in its regions, and supporting the delivery of “much-needed” quality housing in the UK by accelerating delivery at its sites and broadening the range of its mixed-tenure products, the latter seeing 582 of the year's plot sales to affordable housing providers.

“Our approach to placemaking and strong collaboration with strategic partners is key to success on these developments, and our extensive consented pipeline of 4,568 plots positions us well to continue supporting growth in the UK.”

At 1133 GMT, shares in Harworth Group were up 3.47% at 164p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.