Birmingham-headquartered urban regeneration specialist Wavensmere Homes enters its second decade with the appointment of Anthony Cakebread as finance director.
Mr Cakebread joins from Equites International: a South African publicly listed REIT. The property firm delivered, owned and managed developments with a total GDV of £1.1bn and managed a further £300m of logistic properties.
Anthony has over a decade of audit experience, most recently as a senior audit manager for the Birmingham office of Evelyn Partners (formerly Smith & Williamson), growing his team from two to 37 during his tenure. Mr Cakebread commenced his professional career in 2012 as an associate for Deloitte and obtained his ACCA qualification in 2018 whilst at Bishop Fleming.
James Dickens, managing director of Wavensmere Homes, said:
“We are really pleased to have Anthony on board to lead our growing in-house finance team. We currently have five major projects under construction, investing around £3.5m per month in brownfield regeneration, so his depth of property experience will be invaluable as we continue to increase and diversify our development portfolio.
“Housebuilding has many additional complexities, such as multiple funding lines, grants and legal obligations, which Anthony has a strong grasp of. The decision to recruit a finance director as Wavensmere enters its second decade will enable us to grow strategically and fully support all operations carried out within our head office, out on site, and via joint venture partnerships.”
In Anthony’s role as head of Equites UK finance, he established and built the UK finance function, including the accounting and reporting for 30 SPVs. He led on corporate transactions, banking and audit compliance, managed joint venture partner financial operations, drove efficiencies, while also analysing risks, assessing opportunities, and making recommendations on potential new structures. He also spearheaded the firm’s use of artificial intelligence to introduce process automation for development management functions.
Anthony Cakebread, finance director for Wavensmere Homes, said
“My qualifications and career to date has focused on property transactions and asset management, so as Wavensmere seeks to expand its development portfolio and residential holdings, this is an amazing opportunity to progress my career.
“Wavensmere is one of the UK’s most high profile SME housebuilding firms and continues to grow at a formidable pace, with a fine legacy of nationally acclaimed projects. This role enables me to direct the financial management of each live development and our held assets, while delivering the smooth running of our finance function.”
Wavensmere Homes has recently concluded construction of the final phase of its £175m Nightingale Quarter development, located off London Road within Derby city centre. The £112m Belgrave Village development was also completed in 2025, delivering 438 energy-efficient houses and apartments in central Birmingham – on a brownfield site that was vacant for 20 years.
Located on the Shotley Peninsula, close to Ipswich, the firm’s £130m Barrelman’s Point scheme is reanimating the former HMS Ganges naval base, delivering 303 premium houses in the process. The £80m Friar Gate Goods Yard in Derby city centre is bringing about the redevelopment of two landmark Grade II listed buildings into over 110,000 sq ft of commercial space, alongside 276 new build homes.
In Wolverhampton city centre, the £150m Wolverhampton Canalside South scheme is delivering over 530 high EPC-rated homes, seven acres of vibrant green space, and a range of commercial amenities, bringing about the transformation of the former 17.5-acre British Steel site and Crane Foundry, which had previously lain derelict for 15 years.
Wavensmere is also 10 months into the £50m redevelopment of the North Place surface car park, located within Cheltenham’s Central Conservation Area. Arkle Court will comprise 147 houses and apartments, designed to sensitively enhance the street scene, including Grade II* listed St Margaret’s Terrace.