Persimmon and CBRE extend Salisbury housing deal

Persimmon Homes and CBRE Investment Management have expanded their affordable housing partnership at St Peter’s Place in Salisbury, with a new agreement that takes the total number of affordable homes backed at the development to 365. The latest phase adds a further 152 homes, including 78 for affordable rent and 74 for shared ownership, within the wider 1,250-home scheme on the edge of the city.

The agreement builds on earlier phases already delivered through the partnership and gives the Salisbury project a longer-term delivery structure at a point when large mixed-tenure sites are under pressure to maintain programme momentum. Across the full affordable programme at St Peter’s Place, the mix now stands at 220 homes for affordable rent and 145 for shared ownership. Construction on the new phases is already under way, and delivery is expected to continue for the next three years.

St Peter’s Place is already functioning as a live community, with a primary school and sports pitches in place, while a local centre is due to open shortly. The affordable element is being delivered alongside that wider build-out rather than waiting for later-stage completion of the sales-led phases. For the project team, that sequencing supports a steadier pattern of occupation and helps the scheme develop as a settlement rather than a loose collection of parcels.

The Salisbury deal also underlines the role institutional capital is continuing to play in affordable housing delivery. CBRE IM’s UK Affordable Housing Fund has already worked with Persimmon on the site, and the new agreement extends that relationship rather than opening a new route. Repeat partnerships of that kind tend to bring more certainty on programme, tenure requirements, and handover arrangements, particularly on larger sites where affordable delivery can stretch across several phases.

That structure has become more important as housing delivery conditions have tightened. Build-cost inflation, slower private sales in some markets, and continuing pressure on affordable supply have made it harder for many large sites to rely on a purely sales-led model. Agreements that lock in affordable absorption can support output across the wider scheme, reduce exposure to weaker sales periods, and give delivery teams a firmer basis for planning trades, infrastructure, and follow-on phases.

The tenure split is also notable. Affordable rent remains the larger share of the programme, but shared ownership still accounts for a substantial portion of the homes. That reflects a broader pattern across the market, where delivery partners continue to look for a mix that addresses both rental need and the gap between market purchase and full social provision. On larger strategic sites, that flexibility can be critical to maintaining delivery while still responding to local housing pressure.

There is also a wider planning and investment dimension. Institutional interest in affordable housing has been building for several years, but the strongest schemes are still those that combine a credible development platform, active delivery on site, and a structure that can absorb multi-phase funding. Salisbury fits that profile. It is a substantial consented scheme, infrastructure is already advancing, and affordable housing is being delivered into an established programme rather than waiting for a later market upturn.

For developers working on similar sites, the Salisbury agreement points to a route for keeping output moving where affordable demand is clear and long-term capital is prepared to stay in place through multiple phases. In a market that has become less forgiving of delay, certainty on tenure delivery can be as valuable as certainty on sales.