Stuart McLaren named MD of Lar Projects

He was previously development director of Lar Projects Ltd and takes up his new position with immediate effect. He will also remain a director of Lar’s other subsidiary, Lar Operations CIC.

McLaren was one of the first senior appointments to the housing charity following its launch 10 years ago.

Lar’s chief executive, Mikko Ramstedt, said: “Stuart’s appointment to his new role is very well deserved. He has been instrumental to Lar’s success and has helped establish us as an increasingly important player in the affordable housing sector. I’m sure his knowledge and experience, allied to his deep understanding of what Lar is looking to achieve on behalf of our tenant group, will help us continue to innovate and make an impact in the sector.

“He has been the driving force behind many of our developments and responsible for the construction of the complex regeneration projects that we have already completed or are currently working on.”

Those projects include the repurposing of a derelict church in Edinburgh and the regeneration of the historic and long-abandoned naval barracks at Port Edgar.

McLaren, a Chartered Planning & Development Surveyor by profession, said: “I am really delighted to take up this position at an important time in Lar’s short history. We have spent or allocated our first funding pipeline and we are now moving on to the next phase with some fascinating projects underway. 

“I’m proud to be leading a talented and dedicated team that will continue to make a significant contribution to Scotland’s housing landscape, as we help tackle the shortage of high-quality affordable homes across the country.”

Lar already has 779 occupied homes across 10 local authority areas in Scotland, with approximately 500 further properties either under construction or in planning.