Grand Union and Longhurst Group enter merger talks

Longhurst Group manages more than 24,000 homes, while Grand Union manages almost 13,000 homes.

The new organisation would be one of the largest housing associations in the region, providing “high-quality homes and locally based services across its operational area,” the would-be partners said in an update. 

The proposition is based on the “close alignment of both organisations’ values, future vision and the geographies in which they operate”.

The pair will now enter a period of due diligence and will consult customers about the potential change. 

Aileen Evans, chief executive of Grand Union, said: “Both ourselves and Longhurst Group are well governed and built on solid financial foundations, and we believe that we’d be even stronger together as a larger organisation and have more resilience to respond to a challenging operating environment.   

“We are exploring this from a position of strength, and this presents an exciting opportunity for both organisations to take proactive steps in ensuring we’re well placed for the future.

“As one organisation, we could better realise our aims for the future; specifically, to speed up improvements in our homes, provide enhanced services and build more homes.”

Julie Doyle, chief executive of Longhurst Group, said: “We have a strong existing relationship with Grand Union Housing Group, with whom we share similar visions and values as well as our geographic footprints and growth aspirations. 

“We feel that both organisations have complementing strengths as well as areas that can be further improved by coming together, which would give us the opportunity to learn from each other and, ultimately, deliver the best possible service for our customers.

“There is still a lot of work to be done, however both organisations believe there is a strong case for coming together and we are excited by the potential that this move would represent.”

Grand Union is graded G1/V1 by the Regulator of Social Housing and Longhurst Group is rated G1/V2.

The discussions have emerged at a time when a number of other partnership talks are taking place. 

Bromford and Flagship recently announced that they were in discussions to create a group with around 80,000 homes, while partnership plans are also under way between Midlands landlords Housing Plus Group and The Wrekin Housing Group.