Goldman Sachs-backed retirement living developer gets new chair

The former chair of student property developer iQ Student Accommodation has been appointed to head Goldman Sachs-backed later living developer Riverstone.

Penny Hughes (pictured, left), who also has board level experience from a series of household name brands including The Body Shop, Next, Gap, Superdry, Morrisons, and Aston Martin, will chair Riverstone, which has the stated aim of becoming the pre-eminent retirement living company in London.

At iQ Student, Hughes oversaw the sale of the firm by Goldman Sachs and the Wellcome Trust to Blackstone for £4.66bn, which Riverstone claims is the largest private real estate transaction ever in the UK.

Penny Hughes said she had joined Riverstone to help create “a world-class retirement living sector” similar to those seen in the US, Australasia and Canada. She said: “The strength and experience of the Riverstone team coupled with the expertise and financial backing of Goldman Sachs sets us apart from others and offers a platform to create something significant for all our stakeholders.”

Goldman Sachs, through its 2018 investment in Riverstone, is one of a number of institutional funders, alongside the likes of Axa and Legal & General, to throw their weight behind the expansion of the retirement living market in the UK.

Tavis Cannell, managing director at Goldman Sachs, said: “Penny Hughes’ appointment as chairman at Riverstone, following her successful stewardship of iQ Student Accommodation, demonstrates our confidence and excitement in the Riverstone brand.”

Riverstone has two existing London projects it is building out, in Kensington and Fulham, which are both due for completion in 2022, with ten London sites in total.

Thus far the industry has struggled to meet demand, a situation blamed by many developers on the failure of the planning system to recognise the greater costs of retirement schemes.

Earlier this month a report predicted that without a rapid increase in the number of homes for older people being built, older people would be prevented from downsizing, remaining in houses with 13m spare rooms by 2040.