July 5 (Reuters) -

Crest Nicholson has in the past 10 days rejected an

all-share takeover bid from Elliott Advisors-owned Avant Homes,

Sky News reported on Friday, citing City sources.

The bid from Avant, run by former Persimmon chief

Jeff Fairburn, would have seen Elliott become the biggest

shareholder in the combined group, Sky News said.

One of the sources told Sky the combination risked

representing an unattractive prospect for some Crest Nicholson

shareholders.

The report did not say what the offer was worth.

Crest Nicholson, Avant and Elliott did not immediately

respond to Reuters requests for comment.

Avant's approach comes weeks after the FTSE midcap

housebuilder rejected a 650 million pound ($830.4 million) bid

from Bellway ( BLWYF ) saying the all-share proposal undervalued

the group.

Earlier this year, Barratt, one of the biggest

homebuilders in Britain, agreed to buy Redrow ( RDWWF ) in an

all-stock deal, while Vistry bought Countryside in

2022.

($1 = 0.7827 pounds)