Shortland Horne’s David Shortland celebrates 50 years

A well-known face in the Midlands property scene is celebrating his fiftieth anniversary in professional practice.

Shortland Horne’s chair, David Shortland, started his career on Coventry’s New Union Street as a trainee. To mark the occasion he has returned to his former stomping grounds after his firm opened a new office in the city’s property quarter.

When David left university in 1972, he joined Robinson Osbourne and Moules on New Union Street. In 1980, after qualifying as a surveyor he become a partner in the firm, before it was taken over by Hambro Countrywide PLC in 1987, which saw David become a group director in charge of Countrywide Commercial and Countrywide Surveyors.

In 1995, he started Shortland Horne, with the company since becoming a recognisable name in the area, known for its work on new homes.

It has since grown to encompass four offices in Coventry and Kenilworth, employing approximately 30 staff. Shortland has also been active in strategic land, opening up many sites for new homes to be created for local people around the region and beyond.

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David said: “Property has given me the most amazing career journey – so it is ironic that I have ended up just yards from where my working life kicked off.

“ROM was a great firm to work for and they were very strong in several key disciplines and represented many of the large industrial names that thrived in Coventry in the boom years. It is the natural cycle that since then we have helped in the redevelopment of some of those sites for local homes.

“I really wanted to get back to dealing directly with development opportunities and that is why I started Shortland Horne. The firm has gone from strength to strength, and it is really rewarding to see it thriving today.”

Shortland is a Freeman of Coventry and, in recognition of his services to the city, was awarded an honorary doctorate by Coventry University in 2006 followed by an MBE a decade later.

As a former chair of the city’s Belgrade Theatre, he led its £7 million fundraising campaign which saw the creation of a new theatre space B2. He is also a member of the Coventry and Warwickshire Place Board, a CW Champion and was formerly an Associate Director of Coventry City FC.

Shortland Horne is now managed by his daughter, Laura, and son-in-law, Will Green.

He added: “My family has a long connection with the city both professionally and through sports and culture so it is great to see Laura and Will continuing that going forward.

“Coventry is a very vibrant city which has transformed itself once again in recent years. While my career has returned me close to where it all started – we just need to see the Sky Blues return to the Premier League.”

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