Essential Living hires Lend Lease manager

Residential developer Essential Living has hired Quentin Keeble from Lend Lease to become its new development director.

Keeble will co-ordinate Essential Living’s development pipeline, which currently includes 2,000 homes across eight sites in the South-east, with plans to build a further 5,000 homes to rent.

Keeble spent five years at Lend Lease, working on schemes including the 2012 Athletes’ Village and Elephant and Castle.

Scott Hammond, managing director of Essential Living, said: “Having made great progress acquiring sites we are now switching our focus to construction and development.

“Quentin is a development heavyweight who brings a rich mix of experience, expertise and innovative thinking that will be crucial in underpinning our success.”

Quentin Keeble, development director, said: “This is a pivotal time for Britain’s housing sector, so to be working for a business that is truly leading the industry, and to be helping develop the UK’s first genuine institutionally backed rental brand, designed from the ground up, is a great privilege and a real opportunity to raise the bar on renting.”