Earth Day. An annual celebration of our amazing planet, but also a time to demonstrate support for environmental protection. The occasion takes place on 22^nd April every year and has been recognised across the world since 1970. At its inception, the day centred around spreading peace but has now shifted to spreading awareness of all environmental issues the world faces, and how we can reduce or improve on them.

At Manchester Apartments we take our environmental impact seriously all year round, but we figured Earth Day was the perfect time to go into more detail about how these considerations are woven into every area of our business. We know sustainability is a cause close to the hearts of our residents, as well as our employees.

Manchester Apartments are part of an ‘end-to-end’ development company, called Beech Holdings, who have been part of the residential market for an impressive 20 years; so you could say we know our stuff when it comes to property. To date, Beech Holdings have invested over £62 million into the renovation and restoration of disused and derelict buildings – bringing over 480 new homes to the people of Greater Manchester. Both the team at Beech Holdings and our team at Manchester Apartments are passionate about preserving heritage wherever possible, instead of demolishing perfectly usable buildings that are full of character and Manchester’s vibrant history.

It’s great to see our sustainability efforts being rewarded, as this week our highly sought-after development, Westpoint, received an honourable mention at the first-ever European Coliving Awards. We are proud to say that it was on this development, that we became the first Private Rented Sector developer to roll out sustainability features across the whole building, rather than treating the apartments as isolated units. Westpoint, situated in Old Trafford, is not only in an area of regeneration but also stays true to our commitment to sustainability, by implementing several innovative eco-friendly features.

Let us talk you through them…

Renewable technology is harnessed by utilising Airsource heat pumps with underfloor heating, as well as heat recovery systems. The air circulating the building is then recycled to regulate the temperature, this ensures low energy bills for the building and also a low carbon output. We know we’re verging on blowing our own trumpet here, but with good reason! As Westpoint’s high insulation values are a massive 50% higher than UK building regulations dictate. When it comes to heat recovery, we waste… NOTHING, which results in Westpoint being virtually passive in its heat emissions. Even the heat generated by the water tank is reused and recirculated. Cool right?

Speaking of the water tank, you might notice we used the singular ‘tank’. That’s because, instead of fitting every apartment with its own water tank, like your average developer, we decided to install one giant tank to service the whole building. This limits the waste that occurs when each individual resident heats up their own tank unnecessarily, often not using much from it. We were therefore able to make this environmentally friendly decision, whilst guaranteeing our residents have a constant hot supply of water – no cold showers here (unless that’s your jam!).

Finally, we’ve used super high-quality fixtures and fittings that will stand the test of time. The Amtico luxury vinyl flooring has a 35-year guarantee and the uber-efficient, A-rated 5* appliances similarly have a 5-year guarantee. We know that by having a high initial outlay of these materials, they really will last (as well as look great!) and we can reduce replacement rates and subsequently what waste we send to landfill.

Considering Westpoint was our first venture into the coliving space, we are super excited to see what the future holds and if we scoop a few awards for the trophy cabinet in the process, then bonus!

If you’d like to know more about any of our buildings or need a hand apartment hunting, we’d love to speak to you, just hit us up here.