Aldermore Bank has provided a subsidiary of the Pickard Properties Group with a £47m loan to refinance existing loans from other lenders with additional funds to support the continued development in Leeds of Tetley Hall, the former catering hall of residence at the University of Leeds, into the Spinning Acres private rented sector scheme.

The funding will help acquire additional mixed-use assets, including student housing, residential, industrial and essential retail properties.

Pickard has been a customer with Aldermore since 2021 and is a property investment and development business based in Leeds with over 50 years of experience in purchasing and developing residential, commercial and student properties with strong expertise in managing and enhancing diverse portfolios in the North of England.

The finance package was supported by Newsource Commercial Finance.

Michael Graham, senior lending manager at Aldermore, said: “We’re delighted to continue to support Pickard and further strengthen our relationship with them as a long-standing client.

“Pickard has a wealth of experience in the property sector and with our knowledge of their business and expertise, we were able to work together with them and Newsource to tailor a finance package they needed to make this deal happen. This additional funding helps Pickard in turn support many of their SME business tenants, as well as building sustainable housing and we look forward to continuing to work with Pickard as they go from strength to strength.”

Catherine Coleman, finance director with Pickard Group, added: “This finance from Aldermore will allow us to continue to acquire, manage and grow further in our core areas of expertise across Yorkshire. It’s fantastic to see our relationship with Aldermore continue to flourish and this is due to their ongoing commitment to understand our needs and ambitions.”

Brian Walters, director of Newsource, said: “This was very much a team effort from start to finish between ourselves and Pickard’s commercial finance broker, Tim Wilde whose long standing relationship with these valuable clients goes back many years. This was a complex deal involving a range of commercial and residential investment assets and a significant debt quantum which Aldermore was able to accommodate. I am delighted that we were able to successfully facilitate the completion of such an important refinance for the Group in what was a very challenging economic climate.”