The ceremony was attended by over 30 guests, including a number of residents who have reserved apartments, providing them with the opportunity to meet each other alongside their friends and families for the first time. Honor Barratt, CEO of Birchgrove, was also in attendance alongside John Whelan, CEO of housebuilder Natta.
Having welcomed the guests, Barratt and Whelan spoke about the respective roles their companies have played in Pepperpot House's development, and the significance of the project for the local community. The topping out ceremony then saw Barratt and Whelan insert the final ceremonial roof tile, marking the conclusion of the project's roof construction.
Pepperpot House will offer high-quality one and two-bed self-contained rented apartments to independently minded people over 65. Communal facilities will include a 24-hour concierge service, café/restaurant, licensed bar, wellness suite and a courtyard with a lounge and landscaped roof terrace offering views over Godalming to the Surrey Hills.
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Located on Brighton Road in the heart of Godalming, the 1.02-acre plot has been developed on the site of a former Mole Country Stores that had stood empty since September 2017. As part of the development, the Grade II listed Cowshed at the entrance to the site is also being fully restored to provide two one-bed apartments.
Pepperpot House will be the fourth addition to the Birchgrove portfolio, which currently comprises of communities in Ewell, Woking, and Sidcup, housing more than 170 residents. Construction of a fifth community in Banstead is currently underway, with sites to establish four further communities having also been secured (Leatherhead, Surrey; Chiswick, west London; Hampton Court, west London; and Mill Hill, north London).
The development of Birchgrove's portfolio comes amid a chronic shortage of high-quality retirement properties for the over-65s in the South-East, and surging demand for senior living rented accommodation: according to the English Housing Survey, the number of pensioners in rented accommodation is set to double to over 1m in the next decade.
Honor Barratt, Chief Executive, Birchgrove said: "I'm hugely proud that Birchgrove is on the cusp of launching its fourth site, but I'm even more inspired by our wonderful residents-to-be who attended the topping out ceremony. They are so excited about this next chapter, and to see them and their families together, interacting and forging a new community, is the real milestone for us. We can't wait for them to move in and to be able to call Pepperpot House home."
