Churchill opens Bristol office and recruits regional head

Churchill Retirement Living has opened a regional office in Bristol as it expands its coverage into South West England and South Wales.

The Bristol office will support Churchill’s strategy to deliver more than 1,000-unit sales in a single year by 2025, as well as create jobs across all regions and have a countrywide presence by the middle of the decade. It plans to invest £800m in sites, with Bristol and South Wales identified as key areas.

Chris Birakos has been appointed regional head of land and will be responsible for driving the acquisition of land in Bristol and surrounding areas.

Birakos has over a decade of experience in senior land development roles in Bristol and the surrounding area. He will work closely with regional land and development director Duncan Scholes, regional managing director James Barnes, chief operating officer Martin Young and chair and chief executive Spencer J McCarthy.

‘We have clear criteria for the type of brownfield, town centre sites we need to deliver on these plans, and I’m looking forward to getting our new Bristol office up and running to help build on the company’s success to date,’ said Birakos.

Churchill’s Bristol office follows its appointment of Matthias Daly as land director for the West Country, based at its Exeter office, and strengthening of the land buying team at its head office in Ringwood, Hampshire.

McCarthy added: ‘Given the huge benefits retirement housing can generate for individuals and their families, building more of this type of housing will play a key part in our country’s future.

‘We are investing heavily to achieve our growth plans and in turn realise these benefits, enabling many older people to live happier, healthier, more independent lives. By doing this we can also create new jobs, regenerate local high streets, and deliver new communities that give an economic boost to towns and cities across the South West and nationally.’