Pugh Raises Over £1m for National Highways in Online Land Auction

Manchester-based property auctioneer Pugh, which is part of Eddisons, has raised more than £1m for the Government roads agency National Highways in its September online auction, by successfully selling around 50 plots of land that were surplus to requirements.

The National Highways assets were largely made up of small pieces of land and roadside strips, left over from road building or improvement schemes, and since deemed surplus to requirements. They were among over 160 properties and pieces of land in last week’s auction.

Pugh director Will Thompson said: “Selling these surplus assets at auction means that National Highways has been able to generate capital that can now be reinvested in the upkeep and improvement of the country’s road network. It also enables disused land that has outlived its purpose to be returned to positive use, for housing or another type of development.”

He added: “Public sector organisations are increasingly recognising the value of auction as a swift, transparent and highly effective route to market for property and land that are no longer needed. Our ongoing work with National Highways is part of a much broader partnership with the public sector, where we are trusted to handle complex disposals and deliver strong results.

“As a firm we’re proud to play a part in enabling vital funds to flow back into the public coffers, and ultimately benefiting taxpayers. In our work for National Highways, that means releasing more capital to help fund essential infrastructure projects on our roads.”

One of the UK’s leading property auction houses, Pugh has established a growing reputation for working with government agencies, local authorities, the NHS and other public-private organisations such as Network Rail and the Canal and River Trust to manage the disposal of land and property assets.

The firm’s September auction, held last week, raised over £9.5m with more than 2,800 bids placed. Pugh’s next online sale will take place on 29 October.