Just under 5 years ago, Godwin Developments submitted a planning application to develop the tallest residential building in Derby – the so-called “Landmark” building . Planning permission was finally granted in August 2020 following a referral to UNESCO over its possible impact on the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site.

In 2019/20 I wrote a number of articles raising questions about the developer Godwin Developments, the project funding, and the likelihood that it would be delayed / not be built.

All previous articles

Current position

The Phoenix Street Car park was bought by Godwin Developments on 12th October 2020 for £1.65m. It is now an unused car park in February 2023.

When asked about the status, Godwin Developments stated:

“We are working hard behind the scenes on The Landmark and the project remains active. We don’t have any updates to share just now but once we have news, we will be in touch.”

In Godwin Developments’ November 2018 Statement of Benefits, it described the project as having “challenging timescales” and that funding would need to be deployed by 3rd parties, by 1 July 2019, and that work would begin on site in August 2019. Since 2020 it has obtained a lot of very expensive funding (9-12% interest rate) ; in 2020 it had £34m of secured loans which have risen to £79m in 2022 with little evidence of physical security. Very few of Godwin’s projects have actually delivered.

If Godwin Developments don’t start work on site by August 2023 ( just 6 months away) then planning permission will expire.

Comment

Despite Godwin’s own publicity they’ve only delivered a few standard roadside service stations over the last few years. The only other project in Derby was student accommodation on Agard Street; the land with planning permission has been sold to Marbles Homes netting them just £0.6m

Godwins is a “bondholder” with Marketing Derby

The car park on Phoenix Street cost Godwin’s £1.65m; it has incurred a further £0.7m in project costs with zero return in 2.5 years. It’s noticeable that the original Godwin Developments signs have been removed from the area.

Godwin Developments is billed as the “Godwin Group” however the vast majority of the 60+ companies and Special Purpose Vehicles referred to as “Godwins” are not part of a group structure with a holding company and subsidiaries. They are separate companies individually owned by the common shareholders / directors. There are no consolidated accounts; this is not illegal. To see the complete picture; a potential investor/lender needs to search through 60+ different company accounts to piece it together. Derby News has completed that “consolidation” and it shows a very dire financial situation.

The £130m of loans ( at 10-12% interest) and net liabilities of around £28m raises questions as to how they are financing the repayment of the loans as the “Group” is clearly not profitable.

Unless Godwins find a builder who is prepared to convert the Landmark concept into a physical reality then they will continue to be the proud owner of a very expensive unused car park in Derby.