$500M Raised: Largest forestry fund in Gresham House’s history, backed by UK pension schemes and global institutions.
Climate Strategy: Fund aims to sequester 4.7M tonnes of CO₂ and support UK’s sustainability and biodiversity goals.
Private Markets Access: Offers large-scale entry into forestry for institutional investors, amid growing demand for ESG-aligned, uncorrelated assets.
Gresham House has closed its largest-ever forestry fund, raising $500 million for Forest Fund VI with backing from major institutional investors, including British local government pension schemes and a Japanese investor.
“This is the largest fundraise in a single fund that we’ve raised and a signal of the interest and the momentum that’s building around the sector as a whole,” said Olly Hughes, Managing Director of Gresham House’s forestry division.
The capital—£375 million ($508 million)—will be deployed into planting and managing new and existing forests across the UK. The fund targets returns of around 8% annually, aligning with investor appetite for alternative assets that deliver both performance and environmental impact.
Timber Demand Meets Sustainability
Britain currently imports 80% of its timber and wood fibre. Forest Fund VI aims to localize supply, supporting rural economic growth and timber needs for domestic construction and manufacturing, while doing so sustainably.
According to Hughes, the fund also marks a key inflection point in institutional access to forestry:
“This… has enabled a number of larger-scale UK and international institutional investors to access the market for the first time,” he said.
The fundraise follows the Mansion House Accord, a recent signal from major UK pension providers to increase their exposure to private markets, including natural capital.
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Environmental Performance as a Value Driver
Over the next 25 years, Forest Fund VI is expected to sequester 4.7 million tonnes of carbon dioxide and may generate carbon credits, creating an additional return stream for investors. These credits, alongside direct biodiversity benefits, are increasingly attractive to ESG-focused allocators.
“Forestry offers the compelling combination of uncorrelated financial returns and measurable environmental benefits—from boosting biodiversity to contributing meaningfully to carbon sequestration,” said Elwyn Williams, Chair of the Joint Governance Committee for the Wales Pension Partnership.
Strategic Backing
Key investors include:
London CIV, managing assets for several London boroughs
Wales Pension Partnership, representing regional public schemes
An unidentified Japanese institutional investor
While US forestry markets have historically attracted the lion’s share of capital, Hughes sees the UK catching up fast—especially as domestic policy shifts and institutional mandates converge around sustainability and private market access.
Bottom Line:
Gresham House’s $500M raise signals a shift in UK institutional capital toward scalable, ESG-aligned forestry, offering both resilient returns and long-term environmental value.
