Paul Dolan
Chief Executive, Riverside

Paul Dolan took up his post as Group Chief Executive of Riverside in 2024, following seven years as Chief Executive at Accent Group. Paul has a successful track record in delivering transformational business and culture change. He is experienced in organisational turnarounds, taking businesses from positions of serious regulatory failure to full compliance. Paul has led both not for profit and commercial businesses, and managed stakeholders through complex organisational change. In 2019, he successfully led Accent to a record-breaking deal with the UK social housing sector’s lowest ever price on a long-dated public bond. Prior to his time with Accent, Paul was a former chief executive of Johnnie Johnson Housing Trust(JJHT) from February 2014 to April2017, where he steered the organisation to financial stability, regulatory compliance and through a comprehensive reform of governance. He delivered JJHT’s new vision and provided the organisation with a clear purpose and a national voice for retirement living.

Peter Akers
Director of Asset and Sustainability, Gentoo

As Director of Asset & Sustainability at Gentoo Group, Peter leads the organisation’s strategic approach to property investment, sustainability, and long‑term asset planning, ensuring the delivery of safe, modern, and energy‑efficient homes for current and future customers. With accountability across Strategic Asset Management, Planned Investment, Asset Sustainability, Facilities Management and Commercial functions, he drives the implementation of Gentoo’s Property Strategy and oversees the integrity of vital stock condition, compliance, and energy‑efficiency data

Kate Atherton
Policy Officer, National Housing Federation

Kate is a Policy Officer at the National Housing Federation, working on decarbonisation, energy efficiency, and supporting work more broadly on the quality of homes. She has previously worked in the New Zealand civil service across housing and public health, with a focus on financing for social housing and the relationship between social housing and health, as well as working more broadly on infrastructure funding and financing arrangements.

Tom Arey
Director, PfP Thrive, Places for People

Tom Arey is the Managing Director of PfP Thrive an organisation delivering comprehensive, bespoke training programmes for the UK housing and construction sectors. PfP Thrive provides compliance training, apprenticeships, and leadership development to meet the sector’s evolving workforce needs. Part of Places for People, PfP Thrive is equipping the housing sector with the skills and expertise required for a sustainable future. Having started his career as an apprentice, Tom has spent nearly a decade focused on developing training solutions for the housing industry, and in 2025, he established PfP Thrive to bring that vision to life.

Sam Asamoah
Project Manager Housing, Redbridge Council and Peabody resident

Matt Bellamy
Director of Asset Strategy & Delivery, VIVID

Matt Bellamy is Director of Asset Strategy and Delivery, leading the long‑term planning and investment that ensures every home provided is well maintained, safe, sustainable, and ready for the future. With nearly 20 years of experience in the housing sector, and a career focused on turning strategic ambitions into practical, deliverable outcomes that improve customers’ homes and lived experience. Matt has a strong track record in shaping asset strategies, transforming data into insight, and driving programmes that make a tangible difference. His work centres on balancing future focused planning with the realities of day‑to‑day delivery, ensuring we invest wisely and act responsibly as custodians of our customers’ homes.

Christine Blackett
Former Chair, Watford Community Housing Gateway Membership Team (resident)

Chris went from volunteering in a school helping children to read, to becoming Chair of the Stock Transfer Advisory Group in a very short space of time. She went from having no business qualifications to being a part of negotiations with Barclays in the Board Room when the council transferred its housing stock to Watford Community Housing in 2007. It was during this transfer that Chris successfully championed the ‘community gateway’ model to her fellow tenants. Her influence ensured that Watford Community Housing was formed as a community gateway housing association, making it one of a very small number of housing providers that gives tenants more power to influence how the organisation is run.

Richard Blakeway
Housing Ombudsman, Housing Ombudsman Service

Richard was appointed as Housing Ombudsman from 1 September 2019. He has extensive experience in the housing sector, with previous roles including Deputy Mayor of London for Housing, chair of the Homes for London board, and a non-executive director of Homes England. During his eight years at the Greater London Authority, Richard was responsible for housing investment and land regeneration programmes. He also led the creation of the first team at City Hall to address rough sleeping, commissioning around £10 million of services each year, as well as the first Social Impact Bond on homelessness.

Richard is a former board member of the Chartered Institute of Housing and has been an election observer in Somaliland and the Ukraine.  He is a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and sits on the Administrative Justice Council. Richard is also a former chair of the Ombudsman Association and is a board member of the British Library.

Liz Blackwell
Group Head of Sustainability, L&Q Group

Liz is Group Head of Sustainability at L&Q, a not-for-profit housing association with around 110,000 homes in London and Manchester. She heads up strategy development and planning for Environment & Climate Change, responsible for sustainability reporting and risk disclosures, as well as being co-chair of the sector-wide Sustainable Housing Strategy Group.

Gemma Brookes
Head of Asset Optimisation, Orbit

Selvin Brown MBE
Director, Net Zero Buildings, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero

“Selvin Brown joined the Cabinet Office 35 years ago and since then held a number of policy, strategic and corporate roles in government. From 2015 to 2020 he was on the board of the Health and Safety Executive as Director for Engagement and Policy, and he spent six months as Director for Policy and Engagement for PPE at the Department of Health and Social Care before taking his current role. He is the Director of Net Zero Buildings: Domestic at DESNZ, having been in the role since September 2020. He has held a number of charity positions, most recently as a NED for the Charity for Civil Servants. He is passionate about the Civil Service, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion; and is the Civil Service Deputy Race Champion.”

Bethan Buck
External Affairs Manager, National Housing Federation

Bethan has worked for the NHF for eight years, having previously worked for a social enterprise specialising in community development and placemaking for areas undergoing regeneration. As External Affairs Manager for London, Bethan works closely with housing associations across the capital and is responsible for the NHFs offer for smaller housing associations. With significant programme management experience, Bethan is currently working across various specialisms at the NHF including supply and regeneration, building confidence and trust, the Better Social Housing Review, and community cohesion. Bethan also sits on the Advisory Board for the LGBTQ+ Housing Pledge.

Rebecca Clarke
Head of Operations, First Priority Housing

Rebecca is Operations Director for First Priority Housing Association, who are a small, specialist supported housing provider delivering accommodation for people with learning disabilities and mental ill health across England. This role covers all housing management, repairs, Compliance and wider frontline services. Outside of her day job, Rebecca sits on two Housing Association Boards and the Housing Assurance Board of Dudley Metropolitan Council.

Jonathan Cowie
Chief Executive, Plymouth Community Homes

Jonathan joined PCH as Chief Executive in September 2023, and is responsible for providing strategic and operational leadership of the organisation, working with the Board and Executive Management Team.

Before moving to Devon, Jonathan worked as Chief Operating Officer for Vivid Housing in Portsmouth, and was previously the Chief Executive of City West Homes in London and Chief Operating Officer for Sovereign Housing in Newbury. Jonathan’s earlier career included senior management roles in the telecommunications and customer service sectors, and championing the voice of the customer remains a key focus today, as well as ensuring PCH delivers excellent services for residents and works to improve lives within the communities it serves. Alongside his role as CEO at PCH, Jonathan serves as a Non-Executive Director for Magna Housing in Dorset and a Non-Executive Director of the UK Institute of Customer Service.

Jenny Danson
Chief Executive, Healthy Homes Hub

With over 30 years of leadership experience, Jenny has held prominent roles including CEO, COO, Executive Director, and Programme Manager. Jenny's impressive career spans various sectors, working with giants like BAA plc, Boots Opticians, Lovell, Ilke Homes, Kier, and Fortem, as well as numerous Councils and Housing Associations. Her strategic and operational prowess has consistently driven growth and innovation in every organisation she’s touched. In 2017, Jenny founded Danery to provide executive coaching and consultancy to the housing sector and tech start-ups. Her passion for property innovation led to the launch of the Proptech Innovation Network in 2021, a groundbreaking initiative in social housing. Jenny has worked with and supported over 130 housing associations, local authorities and combined authorities over the last 20 years. Now, with the establishment of Healthy Homes Hub in 2024, Jenny aims to create a collaborative platform to promote healthier, more sustainable living environments. With her extensive expertise and industry connections, Jenny is set to make Healthy Homes Hub a beacon of change in social housing.

Philippe Demougin
Property Innovation Manager, Bromford Flagship

Ruth Dent
Chief Experience Officer, RE:GEN Group

Executive Director of Asset & Customer, RE:GEN Group

As Exec Director of Customer at RE:GEN Group, Ruth leads the organisation’s people-first approach, redefining customer experience across colleagues, clients, and communities. With a strong background in social housing and customer strategy, Ruth drives cultural change, service excellence, and long-term partnerships. A passionate advocate for sustainability, Ruth brings extensive experience in delivering retrofit at scale—ensuring that environmental impact and customer experience go hand in hand. Her leadership spans People, Culture, Partnerships, and Customer Experience, ensuring that customer value is embedded at every level of the business.

Samantha Dixon MBE MP
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Minister for Building Safety, Fire and Democracy

Kate Dodsworth
Chief of Regulatory Engagement, Regulator of Social Housing

Kate started her career in housing 30 years ago in homelessness, working with rough sleepers in Birmingham and later managing homeless hostels in Brighton. After completing a Masters degree in Housing, she worked at the National Housing Federation for 10 years; latterly as Assistant Director covering London, the South East and East of England. She was Executive Director of People and Communications at Amicus Horizon and, post-merger, as Optivo. Kate was Chief Executive of Gateway Housing Association for three years until starting as Director of Consumer Regulation at the Regulator for Social Housing in July 2021. In 2023, she was appointed Chief of Regulatory Engagement at RSH

Kevin Garvey
Head of Member Relations, National Housing Federation

Prior to joining NHF Kevin worked in roles in public affairs, Parliament, Shelter and local government.

Lucy Hancock
Head of Social Housing Redress, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Lucy is Head of Redress in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, focusing on Awaab’s Law and wider redress including the Housing Ombudsman. Lucy’s career in the Civil Service has focused on housing and the environment, including roles in planning, environmental legislation, council housing policy and housing strategy.

Lizzie Hearn
External Affairs Manager, National Housing Federation

Suzanne Horsley
Executive Director of Property Services, MTVH

John Hughes
Head of Assets & Sustainability, Ongo

Head of Assets and Sustainability at Ongo Homes. Responsible for all Asset Management activities from Stock Surveys, Asset data and Planned Works as well as Decarbonising the Assets and the Business. Over 20 year’s experience in Social Housing, starting as an apprentice bricklayer and undertaking various key roles within in both Client and Contractor teams across both local authority and Housing Associations. Ongo Homes have around 11500 properties predominantly in the north Lincolnshire area.

Jade Lewis
Chief Executive, Jade Advocacy

Jade is a high-profile advocate for a more energy-efficient, healthy, and sustainable built environment. With extensive experience in policy and regulatory affairs, she has collaborated with the Government, Parliament, and industry to tackle some of the biggest challenges in sustainable energy and construction. Witnessing the ups and downs of political interventions over the past decade, Jade understands the critical need to unite industry and policymakers to craft effective policies. Her dedication focuses on enhancing building performance to improve occupants' wellbeing and reduce the environmental impact of our built environment. Jade’s previous roles include Chief Executive of the Sustainable Energy Association and Director of Advocacy for the world-leading construction product manufacturer, Saint-Gobain.

Currently, Jade chairs the West Midlands Combined Authority Energy Capital Board and Board of Trustees of the National Energy Foundation. Jade also provides secretariat services for the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Healthy Homes and Buildings and British Energy Efficiency Federation. Her leadership and commitment are pivotal in driving forward a sustainable and healthier future for our built environments.

Dr Kate Morland
Architect and Research Fellow, Leeds Sustainability Institute

Kate is an Architect and Research Fellow at the Leeds Sustainability Institute at Leeds Beckett University. She specialises in the social, behavioural and real‑world performance aspects of housing retrofit, focusing on how relationships between designers, contractors and occupants influence how homes perform in use. Her work uses monitoring methods, post‑occupancy evaluation and occupant insights to understand lived experiences of retrofit and low‑carbon heating. Drawing on experience in both practice and applied research, she works with occupants, practitioners, housing providers and local authorities to provide evidence that supports more effective, equitable and durable transitions to low‑carbon, high‑quality housing.

Sonji Nurse
Resident Board Member, Hexagon Housing Association

Sonji is a Resident Board Member for Hexagon Housing Association and an elected member of the Performance Review, Repairs and Strategic Core Groups.  These groups hold the housing association to account, analyse performance metrics, statistical data, and benchmarking performance against other similar sized housing providers.

Sonji is an experienced strategic, transformational, change management, quality assurance professional whose aptitude has consistently driven performance enhancement, delivering tangible results over more than two decades across private, legal, non-profit, and public sectors.

Melissa O’Donnell
Director of Property & sustainability, Golden Lane Housing (GLH)

Melissa O’Donnell is Director of Property & Sustainability at Golden Lane Housing, with 18 years’ experience delivering housing and property services for tenants with a learning disability. She leads property operations, including repairs, compliance, planned maintenance, and sustainability, ensuring high-quality, safe, and efficient homes. A member of the Executive Team, Melissa also champions health and safety and contributes to the wider sector as an Independent Committee Member for Broadacres Housing Association’s Customer Committee.

Annie Owens
Policy Leader, National Housing Federation

Annie Owens is Policy Leader for the quality of existing homes at the National Housing Federation (NHF). She leads on the NHF’s policy work in areas such as the Decent Homes Standard, Awaab’s Law, and broader asset management. Before joining the NHF, Annie worked in the policy team at the Chartered Institute of Housing, and managed the policy and research team in the consultancy Campbell Tickell.

Helen Perry
Clarion

Becky Ritchie
Head of Sustainability, Clarion Housing Group

David Robinson
Assistant Director of Operations (Housing &Support), Riverside

Dave is an experienced leader, having worked in care and support services for almost 20 years in organisations’ across the country. After starting out as a Support Worker for St Mungo’s in London, Dave has worked in a variety of roles, and been involved innovative projects such as the pilots for No Second Night Out and the European Ending Homelessness Campaign. Dave is passionate about service improvement and delivering quality services for customers and has led projects to further embed positive psychological approaches throughout Riverside.

In his current role as Assistant Director of Operations Dave is responsible for all of Riverside’s supported housing, floating support and retirement living services nationally, including those for young people and those experiencing homelessness. Dave has been a trustee for a learning disabilities charity and now sits on the boards of Whitehaven Foyer and Church Homeless Charity.

Charlotte Rogers
Policy Assistant, National Housing Federation

Lynsey Sweeney
Managing Director, Communities that Work

Lynsey Sweeney is the Managing Director of Communities that Work. She has worked across housing, employment and skills for 15 years with Communities that Work and the National Housing Federation. Lynsey was a Director at a central London Further Education College and consulted for KPMG on their World Class Skills programme. Prior to this, she worked for VSO in China, Ethiopia and London.

Matthew Scott
Policy Manager (net zero and sustainability), Chartered Institute of Housing

Matthew Scott is policy manager for net zero, sustainability, and climate resilience at the Chartered Institute of Housing. He holds a PhD from Newcastle University, and has written and spoken widely about the implications of climate change and extreme weather for social housing providers in the UK. He is also a regular contributor to the UK Housing Review and continues to work with academic colleagues to develop new research into the links between housing, energy, and climate policy.

Jas Sidhu
Director of Housing, St Basils

Jas S. Sidhu FCMI, MIoL, MCIH is Director of Housing and designated Health & Safety Lead at St Basils, where he oversees landlord services, asset strategy, statutory compliance and building safety across a youth-focused portfolio. Over three decades, he has delivered major programmes in asset management, capital investment, zero-carbon projects, procurement, and service transformation, with a consistent focus on risk management, quality and regulatory assurance. Before joining St Basils, Jas worked in local government for Local Government, where he led on strategic asset management, statutory compliance, health and safety, procurement, and housing commercial services. He is recognised for translating complex regulation into practical operating models, strengthening resident engagement and supply-chain performance. Alongside his professional role, Jas is a visiting lecturer at the University of Westminster and serves on the Board and Audit & Risk Committee of Westfield Housing Association.

Alistair Smyth
Director of Policy and Research, National Housing Federation

Alistair has worked in the social housing sector for the last 16 years in a wide range of roles and organisations including a previous spell at the NHF from 2014 to 2017. Prior to that, he worked as a consultant on a range of neighbourhood and community empowerment projects. He also spent three years working in a customer-facing role as a Neighbourhood Manager and as Assistant Head of Neighbourhoods for Peabody. He is currently the Vice Chair of the Chartered Institute of Housing’s Policy Advisory Committee.

Karin Stockerl
Executive Director for Assets and Sustainability, Southern Housing

Steve Sze
Real Estate & Housing: Sustainability & ESG Finance, Lloyds Banking Group

Steve leads sustainability finance for the UK social housing sector at Lloyds, deploying Green and Sustainability Linked Loans to Housing Associations to deliver decarbonisation plans. He is a member of UKGBC’s Regenerative Places task group, shaping frameworks for positive development outcomes. Previously, Steve worked at Lloyds’ Housing Growth Partnership, deploying equity into joint ventures developments. He is a chartered development surveyor with an architectural background.