Overview
- In interviews published Monday, the Duchy set out a 10‑year plan to offload about one‑fifth of its assets to raise roughly £500m for housing, nature recovery and renewable energy.
- The estate will concentrate operations in five priority areas known as “heartlands”: the Isles of Scilly, Cornwall, Dartmoor, the Bath area and Kennington in south London.
- Chief executive Will Bax said the funding will come from land sales, development income, partnerships and borrowing, with a target to unlock about 10,000–12,000 homes by 2040.
- An early project is on the Isles of Scilly, where the Duchy has committed around £11m for about 30 affordable eco‑homes and a school conversion for 12 rentals, alongside partner schemes that aim to deliver about 60 homes by 2029.
- Large property disposals need government approval and the estate’s board must protect long‑term value, while recent farm sale plans in Bradninch prompted tenant concerns that the Duchy says it is addressing through talks for tenants to buy their farms.