Sarah is a partner in our Real Estate team with a particular focus on the investment into, and development of, non-core real estate assets.
Healthcare and Seniors
Sarah has a particular focus and considerable experience in healthcare acting predominantly for Impact REIT plc. She advised Impact REIT plc in connection with the real estate aspects of its original IPO and £140m seed portfolio acquisition and continues to advise it on its subsequent care home acquisitions and financing now totalling well in excess of 130 homes with multiple operators throughout the UK.
More recently, Sarah's practice has developed into the senior housing and retirement housing space, with a particular focus on such communities with care functionality. Sarah is a member of ARCO, the main body representing the UK Integrated Retirement Community sector, of which the Travers Smith real estate department is a committed partner.
Housing
Sarah routinely advises her clients on the acquisition, disposal, development and financing of a range of housing asset classes but predominantly in the multifamily/PRS/BTR and student/graduate accommodation space. Acting for experienced operator and developers such as Westrock and The University of Oxford, Sarah has particular experience with joint ventures.
Rethinking Investment
Sarah has a genuine and keen interest in the decarbonisation of the built environment through active asset management and, more broadly, impact investing. She is a member of the Sustainability Working Group within Travers Smith and sits on the AREF D&I Working Group Committee focusing on capturing and benchmarking industry standards.
Sarah's experience in the investment work has enabled her to develop a strong alternative practice supporting clients with large leasehold portfolios to restructure their business (whether through consensual or more formal routes, corporate or otherwise) having acted on many of the high profile CVAs since 2018. In 2021, Sarah led the real estate team in the ground breaking Virgin Active restructuring plan.
Memberships and committees
Sarah is a member of the Association of Real Estate Funds (AREF), the leading body for non-listed real estate funds, and currently sits on an AREF D&I Working Group committee. Sarah is also a member of the BPF and Women in Property.
In 2020, Sarah launched a bitesize webinar series relating to key topics in the real estate market.
Sarah is an active member of the Travers Smith community. She has a particular focus and interest in recruitment of the next generation of lawyers and is on the firm's graduate recruitment panel.