MCS.L Regulatory News (MCS)

25 September 2018

McCarthy & Stone plc

Directorate change

John Tonkiss confirmed as Chief Executive Officer of McCarthy & Stone

McCarthy & Stone (the 'Group'), the UK's leading developer and manager of retirement communities today announces the appointment of John Tonkiss as Chief Executive Officer (CEO). He will take the role with immediate effect. 

The appointment follows a formal search process to appoint a replacement CEO, which has been led by Paul Lester, Chairman of the Group and which considered both internal and external candidates for the role. John has been interim CEO of McCarthy & Stone since 1 September 2018, following Clive Fenton's retirement on 31 August 2018. Prior to this, John was the Group's Chief Operating Officer.

Commenting on the appointment, Paul Lester, Chairman, said:

"Following a full search and selection process, I am pleased to confirm that John will become CEO of McCarthy & Stone. John brings strong financial and operational expertise resulting from his four years at McCarthy & Stone where he was Chief Operating Officer and his ten years at Unite Students, where he held the same role.

"John has led the development of our strategic plan that will establish a strong financial platform for the business and which will be launched today. I look forward to working with John and the rest of the senior management team to deliver this new strategy and to creating more retirement communities that enrich the quality of life of our customers and their families."

The Group is announcing the results of its strategic review and further details will be provided at today's strategy event. The event will be hosted at 10.30am at Deutsche Bank's offices, Winchester House, 75 London Wall, London EC2N 2DB. Management presentations will be webcast live on the Group's website and the presentation materials will be published on the website afterwards.

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For more information, please contact:

Powerscourt, 020 7250 1446 / mccarthy-stone@powerscourt-group.com 

Justin Griffiths / Nick Dibden

Notes to Editors

McCarthy & Stone is the UK's leading developer and manager of retirement communities, with a significant market share. The Group buys land and then builds, sells and manages high-quality retirement developments. It has built and sold more than 56,000 properties across more than 1,200 retirement developments since 1977, and is renowned for its focus on the needs of those in later life.

There is growing demand for retirement communities. There are currently 11.8 million people aged 65 or over, rising to 17.3m by 2037, representing a 47% increase1. For those aged 85 or over, the increase will be larger, from 1.6m to 3.0m, representing an 88% increase. One in four over 60s are interested in retirement living2, yet only c.162,000 units of specialist retirement housing for homeowners have been built3.

McCarthy & Stone has two main product ranges - Retirement Living and Retirement Living Plus - which provide mainly one and two bedroom apartments across the country with varying levels of support and care for older homeowners. Retirement Living developments provide independence in private apartments designed specifically for the over-60s, as well as facilities such as shared lounges and guest suites that support companionship. Retirement Living Plus developments, which are designed specifically for the over-70s, offer all of this plus more on-site facilities such as restaurants, well-being suites and function rooms. Importantly, they also provide flexible care and support packages to assist those needing additional help. 

All developments built since 2010 are managed by the company's in-house management services team, providing peace of mind that it will look after customers and their properties over the long term. This is a key part of how McCarthy & Stone seeks to enrich its customers' lives. This commitment to quality and customer service continues to be recognised by homeowners. In March 2018, the Group received the full Five Star rating for customer satisfaction from the Home Builders Federation for the thirteenth consecutive year - making it the only UK housebuilder, of any size or type, to achieve this accolade.

The Group was also pleased to win 20 awards at the 2018 NHBC Pride in the Job awards, marking a 33% increase in awards from 2017. The scheme recognises construction site managers who achieve the highest standards in housebuilding and has been instrumental in driving up standards in the sector for 38 years.

For further information, please visit www.mccarthyandstone.co.uk.