Croudace Homes

Croudace Homes was founded as an Oliver R Croudace Ltd building company in 1946 by Oliver R. Croudace and Jack Brotherton-Ratcliffe, who were friends and neighbours. At the beginning of its history, the company was engaged in repairing property damaged during the Second World War. Then in 1947, Croudace won its first contract to build 200 house developments in Bletchingley, Surrey. After the post-war restrictions on private housing were lifted in 1951, the developer bought some land in Horley and created 22 homes.

In 1957, Jack Brotherton-Ratcliffe became the sole owner of the company, which was renamed to Croudace Ltd. In 1962, the company obtained approval for major construction, a new village of 800 new developments in the village of Vigo, a former military camp near Meofem in Kent. As a result, the project became an autonomous community with a full range of house types separated by forest areas. In addition, the developer built a local shopping centre and a school.

In 1976, the developer bought Maybrook Properties PLC. In 1986, Croudace Ltd surpassed its plan to deliver 1,000 new build homes a year. From now on, the company began to expand significantly to the northern and western regions of the country. In 1988, working with Countryside Properties and the Woolwich Building Society, the company planned to create 3,500 homes and all the necessary local infrastructure.

In 1994, Croudace Ltd received the coveted British Safety Council award for fifteen years of continuous efforts to achieve higher safety standards. In 2001, Jack Brotherton-Ratcliffe resigned, and his son, Tony Brotherton-Ratcliffe, became non-executive chairman. In 2010, the home builder rebranded all Croudace divisions under one identifiable Croudace Homes Group banner, including Croudace Homes, Croudace Partnerships, Croudace Strategic and Croudace Portland. In 2020, Tony Brotherton-Ratcliffe resigned, naming his nephew, Caspar Brotherton, as his successor.