Claude Moss Leigh (17 May 1888 – 19 January 1964) was a pioneer of

social housing Public housing is a form of housing tenure in which the property is usually owned by a government authority, either central or local. Although the common goal of public housing is to provide affordable housing, the details, terminology, d ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and the founder of

MEPC plc MEPC is a British-based property investment and development business. It is headquartered in Milton Park, Oxfordshire. It used to be listed on the London Stock Exchange and was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. It is however now owned by ...

, one of the

's largest property companies.

Career

The son of

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

surveyor, Claude Leigh initially joined his father's business before venturing out on his own providing quality housing for

working class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colo ...

people.MEPC plc at Funding Universe
/ref> Leigh was a pioneer of

who in 1929 established the ''Metropolitan Housing Corporation'' to provide rented accommodation in

. By 1937 he was attracting attention because of the large number of blocks of residential accommodation he was buying up. In 1946, following the introduction of rent controls, Leigh focussed on commercial property and merged his business with several others to form the Metropolitan Estates & Property Corporation. He expanded this business into one of the

's largest property concerns. Leigh was also keen on horse racing and owned racehorses: he acquired the famous racecourse, Star Kingdom, in 1949.Star Kingdom at Thoroughbred Heritage
/ref> He died in January 1964 at Montego Bay in

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

.Hanson, Michael, ''A Short History of MEPC'', 1991

Family

He was married three times - in 1913 to Ester Boss, in 1925 to Myrtle Johnson and in 1945 to Gay Laithwaite.

References

1888 births 1964 deaths 20th-century English businesspeople {{UK-business-bio-1880s-stub