With a population of around 65 million and a land mass of 60 million acres, in theory every person in Britain should have about one acre of land each. But as I’m sure most of us here already know, in real life things are very different – with one recent study claiming that 69% of this nation’s land is in the hands of a tiny 0.6% of the population. Those diligent folk over at the Who Owns England? blog have produced an interactive map showing us who exactly is laying claim to large swathes of the country (or at least the English part of it). This is quite some feat, when you bear in mind the murky and secretive nature of many landowners and investment firms. Looking at the Havering part of the map reveals a few curious things – with a surprising number of overseas-based owners. So here’s a quick rundown on some of our local overlords…
Jardin Smith International Pte Ltd
This Singapore-based property investment firm owns numerous strips of land to the south of Lower Bedfords Road, in that unnamed no-man’s-land between Collier Row and Harold Hill (which many years ago was home to Steve ‘Interesting’ Davis). This includes a large site directly behind St Ursuala’s School in Straight Road, Harold Hill, and another substantial plot of land next to Risebridge Golf course in Rise Park. Exactly what Jardin Smith have in mind for their holdings here is not clear, as this area falls under Greenbelt regulations – and on many occasions in the past Havering Council have refused Planning Permission for even the most modest of developments along here. However, with the Borough under pressure from both the Tory government and the Labour Mayor to comply with housebuilding targets, this is one to keep an eye out for.
The Crown Estate
A massive portion of land on the northwest fringes of Collier Row – and crossing over into the neighbouring boroughs of Barking & Dagenham and Redbridge – belongs to Queen Lizzy. Her gaff, her rules.
Promontoria Holding 74 BV
The parcel of land between the Albion public house and the Dovers Corner roundabout in Rainham belongs to Promontoria Holding 74 BV, an investment firm based in Holland. One of dozens of firms bearing the Promontaria name, the parent firm is Cerberus Global Investments BV – which itself is a subsidiary of the American company Cerberus Capital Management. What possible use would a Yankie private equity firm have for a small parcel of land next to a roundabout on the edge of Greater London? Havering Special doesn’t have a scooby, but The Irish Times sheds some light about the mysterious Promontoria/Cerberus network:
“One area in which it specialises is “distressed assets”. This is a corporate euphemism for loans secured against properties whose value has fallen far below the debt’s original value. Cerberus buys these loans at heavy discounts, giving it the right to seek their repayment or take ownership of the properties themselves if the borrower fails to pay up or agree a settlement.
Cerberus has been mopping up distressed assets in Ireland, Britain and western Europe for the past two years, bringing it some unwanted attention in the process…” (Irish Times, 27th November 2015)
Accalia Limited
The site of the former Decathlon Sports shop, which was demolished several years ago, belongs to the Jersey-based firm Accalia Ltd. A mysterious entity, very little is known about Accalia – or their plans for this site on the edge of Romford’s town centre. Whoever they really are, Accalia do not appear to be in a rush to do anything with the valuable land they own.
The map being a work-in-progress (and with land often changing hands) its creators would greatly welcome any additional information you may have (they can be contacted via their website). As would Havering Special concerning our manor…
HAVERING SPECIAL 