North West landlord secures funding package worth over £200m

The £62.6m figure from NatWest was arrived at through two new £50m loans and the refinance of £37.4m in existing funding. The new loans are a seven-year term, forward fixed loan and an eight-year fixed-term loan, respectively. 

Onward also extended an existing £100m RCF with HSBC from its maturity date of September 2027 to October 2028.

The landlord said that as part of the refinance it has secured an alignment of covenants across the three banks, in which the most restrictive covenants were removed.

The housing association said the funding will unlock further capacity as it delivers its 2030 corporate plan.

According to its 2024-25 annual report, the housing association invested £87.7m in repairs and maintenance of its existing homes during that year and completed the development of 434 new homes, its highest annual total.

Danielle James, executive director of finance at Onward, said: “As we look to the future, this funding adds further strength and capacity as we deliver the vision set out in our corporate plan.

“It will support continued investment in customers’ homes and our plans to build more quality, affordable housing across the region.  

“These partnerships are critical in enabling our ambitions to make a positive difference in our communities.”

David Whelan, relationship director for social housing at HSBC UK, said the bank was “delighted” to extend its funding to Onward Homes with a new £90m term loan facility.

“Onward continues to provide much-needed affordable housing across the North West, and our new facility will support planned investment in existing homes alongside delivery of new homes from their affordable development programme,” he said.

“We look forward to continuing our strong existing relationship with the Onward team into the future.”

Martin Skinner, director for housing finance (commercial mid-market) at NatWest, said the bank is “proud to deepen its relationship” with Onward.

“This collaboration reflects NatWest’s ongoing commitment to the social housing sector and its sustainability agenda,” he said.

“With the bank on track to deliver its pledge of £7.5bn in new funding to the sector by 2026, we are not only delighted to be supporting the fantastic team at Onward Homes but are also committed to playing our part in developing sustainable housing and the communities of the future.”

Michelle Murray, relationship director in Barclays’ social housing team, said: “We’re proud to support Onward Homes with this £100m RCF, reinforcing our long-standing relationship with one of the North West’s most important affordable housing providers.

“The team’s ability to deliver a tailored solution at pace reflects our commitment to enabling strategic growth and financial liquidity for our clients.”

Savills Financial Consultants advised Onward on the funding package and Devonshires served as the landlord’s lawyers, while Pinsent Masons acted for the banks.

Onward has a credit rating of A1 (stable) from Moody’s.

According to its results, the group saw its pre-tax surplus rise from £11.6m in 2023-24 to £13.3m last year. It reported a pre-tax surplus of £14.2m in 2024-25, a drop from £15.1m.