New offices for British Red Cross in Swansea18th September 2013

British Red Cross has purchased Kidwelly House at Charter Court, Phoenix Way, Swansea, after outgrowing its existing offices in nearby Villiers House. The Red Cross, which helps vulnerable people in South Wales, had been looking for suitable replacement offices for expansion for some time. Cooke & Arkwright acted on behalf of the vendor, Faircroft Real Estate in the deal and John Arkwright & Co acted on behalf of the Red Cross.

Ben Bolton, Director with Cooke & Arkwright said: “The market is not easy at the moment and this building, which is just under 5,000 sq ft, was originally in a poor condition. Our clients have put considerable investment in the property and advised by our Building Surveying team, have refurbished it to a high standard, making it an attractive proposition again.”

Janet John, Senior Services Manager with the Red Cross said: “The new building is much bigger than our current offices and includes a large training suite from which we can run first aid courses for members of the public and for Red Cross staff and volunteers. It will be a modern, comfortable and well-equipped base for our staff, and present us as the forward thinking, professional organisation we are to the people that we support. We are delighted.”

John Arkwright & Co has been acting on behalf of the British Red Cross for approximately 21 years and Director, Mark Wordsworth acted on this deal. Coincidentally, its principal, Mr John Arkwright, is the grandson of the original founder of Cooke & Arkwright, and established his niche London practice in 1991.

The Red Cross will base 38 members of staff at Kidwelly House, plus 18 volunteers with enough space for the growth of their Independent Living Services, which is a focus of their work at the moment. The new offices will act as a headquarters for the co-ordination of the work of 380 volunteers in the Swansea, Neath Port Talbot and Bridgend areas. The organisation provides help for people to live independently and to those who need flexible support to maintain a tenancy. It also supports refugees, many of whom may be destitute, and provides humanitarian education for young people, first aid training and fundraising.

The new offices will also act as ‘Silver Command’ for the Red Cross when it is supporting the statutory authorities in emergency responses or during bad weather events like heavy snow and flooding. Volunteering opportunities exist in a number of different Red Cross services and it is also running the ‘Syria Crisis Appeal’ through its website:  http://www.redcross.org.uk