We want a Birchgrove in every town

Honor Barratt, head of retirement living specialist Birchgrove, tells Andy Hillier at Property Week about the success of its rental model, against the odds, and plans for expansion.

Within minutes of meeting Honor Barratt, chief executive of later-living rental specialist Birchgrove, you can tell she isn't the usual property sector careerist. The cautious managerial tone normally adopted by senior sector figures is wilfully abandoned in favour of a volley of expletives and a hearty laugh.

Barratt is a relative latecomer to property development, having only started working in the sector eight years ago after a successful career in TV production. Initially, she worked on a later-living scheme for Octopus Investments after the firm acquired her TV production company and asked her to stay on.

"They said: Will you go down the M4 and have a look at this later-living thing?'" she says. "The idea that out of this pile of mud we were going to create a little ecosystem of old people coming back to life and finding their mojo again made me think: This is what I want.''

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