Topping out completed at cornerstone project of the UK’s largest urban regeneration development

Wirral, 08 June 2023 – Pension Insurance Corporation plc (‘PIC’), a specialist insurer of defined benefit pension funds, has completed the topping out of the construction of 500 sustainable waterfront apartments at Miller's Quay, the cornerstone scheme at Wirral Waters, the UK’s largest urban regeneration project. The £130m development, which includes 100 affordable homes, has been funded by PIC. Once complete, the cashflows from Miller’s Quay will help to pay the pensions of PIC’s policyholders over the next 50 years.

The project will transform the existing brownfield site into a sustainable location for local and international businesses, creating more than 20,000 permanent jobs for the Liverpool City region, as well as offering a breadth of new housing opportunities. Wirral Waters was designated Enterprise Zone status in 2011.

The Miller’s Quay development has been funded through a long-term, regeneration lease structure which operates like a fully amortising loan. Upon completion of the development, Wirral Council will lease the building for 50 years, with annual rent increases linked to inflation. The Build-to-Rent development will provide funding for Wirral Council which would not have been available from traditional sources, supporting wider service delivery and future investment in the Borough. This collaborative, mutually beneficial structure benefits one of the poorest areas in the North of England.

Miller’s Quay is a highly sustainable development and delivers significant social value through the provision of 100 affordable new homes. Its construction has created cutting-edge opportunities for the local community and improved employment prospects for local students. Since the start of construction, 319 students from Wirral Met College have benefitted from the ‘live’ classroom on its doorstep where students are taking part in a number of activities and learning a wide range of skills.

The topping out ceremony marks reaching the highest point in the construction of the transformational residential development. The event was attended by PIC policyholders, and senior representatives from PIC, Peel L&P who are developing the site, construction firm GRAHAM, Homes England, Wirral Council, and staff and students from Wirral Met College. Local political leaders also attended.

James Agar, Head of Long Income at Pension Insurance Corporation, said: “We’re delighted to mark this significant step in the construction of the Miller’s Quay development and are extremely proud of the social value it is delivering. The development is a model for how long-term investors can play a major role in regenerating brownfield sites across the country. We believe that the regeneration lease structure used to unlock Miller’s Quay can be adapted across a range of sectors and projects across the country by local and regional authorities looking to unlock funding for regeneration schemes for their areas.

“Miller’s Quay has seen the creation of considerable social value through jobs and education. It is an outstanding example of what can be achieved by a group of forward thinking, innovative and committed teams working together with a shared vision. PIC has invested £1.5 billion so far in built environment projects around the country, and we look forward to investing considerably more as our business continues to grow and we seek to back the pensions of our policyholders with long-term, secure cashflows.”

Sustainability at Miller’s Quay

The Miller’s Quay development has been designed with sustainability at its core, utilising a wide range of energy-efficient and low-carbon technologies. Key architectural features of the development include:

• all buildings across the Wirral Waters regeneration project are targeting BREEAM Excellent, including Miller’s Quay, as well as significant bio-diversity improvements with the planting of more than 1,600 trees so far
• Miller’s Quay, will use a range of energy efficiency and low carbon technologies to reduce carbon emissions, including solar power systems, and air source heat pumps
• Miller’s Quay will be surrounded by parks, green spaces, dockside walkways and cycle routes, with homes having access to cycling storage and electric vehicle charging points
• Sustainable Urban Drainage to manage surface water from the site into the Docks through the provision of rain gardens, climate tolerant planting and tree pits designed to accommodate a 1 in 100-year storm.

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Note to Editors

For further information please contact:         

PIC
Clive Booth                
+44 (0)7780 599247
booth@pensioncorporation.com  

About PIC
The purpose of PIC is to pay the pensions of its current and future policyholders. PIC provides secure retirement incomes through comprehensive risk management and excellence in asset and liability management, as well as exceptional customer service. At year-end 2022, PIC had insured 302,200 pension scheme members and had £41 billion in financial investments, accumulated through the provision of tailored pension insurance buyouts and buy-ins to the trustees and sponsors of UK defined benefit pension schemes. To date, PIC has made total pension payments of £10.6 billion to its policyholders. Clients include FTSE 100 companies, multinationals and the public sector. PIC is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and Prudential Regulation Authority (FRN 454345). For further information please visit www.pensioncorporation.com

About Wirral Waters
Wirral Waters is a 500-acre site comprising former dockland which Peel L&P inherited following the acquisition of the Mersey Docks and Harbour Company in 2005.

Peel L&P has launched a 30-year strategy which will see Wirral Waters become one of the largest regeneration projects in the UK.

It will transform the derelict site into a sustainable location for local and international businesses, creating more than 20,000 permanent jobs for the Liverpool City Region, as well as offering new housing opportunities.

The Wirral Waters project is supported by central government and was designated Enterprise Zone status in 2011 – one of the first four Enterprise Zones in the UK and known as the Mersey Waters Enterprise Zone.