Charmaine Simei
Chief Executive, Tuntum Housing

Charmaine has been working in social housing and related fields for some 30 years.

Currently in role as CEO at Tuntum Housing based in Nottingham, a BME led organisation; Charmaine has enjoyed a varied and successful career working with some of the most marginalised and vulnerable communities within society.

In April 2021, she was voted 'Professional of the Year' at the Women in Housing Awards 2021, primarily for establishing the Community Investment arm at Longhurst Housing Association which had delivered over 18,000 support interventions at the time of her departure. Charmaine became the CEO of Tuntum Housing in October 2023 and has supported the organisation to regain its G1 rating.

A keen advocate for social justice and social mobility, Charmaine has previously been a mentor with the Housing Diversity Network and sat on a number of steering Groups including HACTs Racial Equality Group. She has recently stood down as a board member for Communities that Work and currently serves as an executive member of BME national.

Jo Allen
Head of Member Relations, National Housing Federation

Jo has worked at the NHF since 2015. Prior to joining the NHF, she worked in policy and public affairs roles in local government, the banking sector and the British Embassy in Madrid.

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.

Lee Buss Blair
Director of Operations, Riverside Care and Support

Lee is the Director of Operations for Riverside’s Care & Support function. The Riverside Group are a large national Registered Provider of social housing in England and Scotland, and one of the largest providers of supported housing in England. His role covers a broad range of services, including veterans, homelessness, Ofsted services, Mental Health and learning disability services, older people’s services, CQC registered extra care, and managed agents. This covers 16,000 customers, 12,500 units of accommodation, 1,800 colleagues, and an annual turnover of £191m.

He has also played a key role in advising Government on a range of sector issues, including Covid guidance for supported housing, The Fairer Renting Bill, Regulatory Oversight (Supported Housing) Act and the subsequent Supported Housing Regulations Consultation, The Review of the Experiences of LGBT Veterans who Served During the Ban, and was a member of the Social Housing White Paper Professionalisation Review Working Group.

He is currently a Member of the Veterans Advisory Board, advising the Office for Veteran Affairs, as well as being a member of the Homeless Link National Advisory Council and the Co-Chair of the CIH Homelessness Policy group.

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.

Nick Budlender
Policy Officer, National Housing Federation

Emma Cashin
Standing Together

Found her passion for working in the Domestic Abuse Sector whilst studying her undergraduate degree in Criminology. Began working as an Independent Domestic & Sexual Violence Advisor whilst completing her M.Sc. In Criminology with a focus on female offenders impacted by domestic abuse. Has been an IDSVA across a variety of localities and roles including a number of years based in an A&E and based in a Local Authority in Housing. Also has experience of working with perpetrators of domestic abuse and is a specialist in a variety of training including DA Matters for the police and DASH Train the Trainer. Currently a Regional Lead for DAHA working with housing providers to improve their response to domestic abuse.

David Chaffey
Chief Executive, BHT Sussex

David Chaffey has been the Chief Executive of BHT Sussex since 2023. He has worked in the housing sector for more than 35 years in both local authorities and housing associations and his motivation to do so stems from a strong belief that secure housing is transformational to people’s lives.

David began his working life in disability housing before focusing on housing and asset management and was a Board member of a specialist mental health Housing Association for 15 years from its inception. He has always been passionate about listening to clients and tenants and is a keen advocate of resident involvement as demonstrated in his previous roles as Head of Resident Involvement at a national Housing Association and as Director of Housing and Property Services at BHT Sussex.

He is currently working with his many dedicated and talented colleagues in the organisation to lead BHT Sussex through the next stage of its development as a leading provider of essential services across Sussex.

David is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Housing, holds a degree in Economics and Politics and has a Management Diploma from Roffey Park Institute.

Nicki Clarke
Head of Housing, Standing Together

Rebecca Clarke
Director of Operations, First Priority Housing

Jonathan Cox
Chief Data Officer, Housemark

Jonathan has over 15 years' experience providing data analysis and business support to the social housing sector. He previously worked for two large London housing associations before joining the Housemark data team in 2012. Jonathan has delivered a range of data consultancy projects, and recent clients include Catalyst Group, Trivallis, Solihull Community Housing, Stonewater Group and Aster Group.

Francesca Crisante
Research Officer, National Housing Federation

Chris D’Arcy
Director of Client Relationships, Chirpy Heat

Chris D’Arcy is Director of Client Relationships at Chirpy Heat, the UK’s leading independent heat network specialists in the social housing sector - passionate about affordable, sustainable heating and making homes and communities the very best they can be. He’s driven by ensuring clients get the best possible service to effectively manage their heat networks. Prior to Chirpy, Chris was responsible for the heat network portfolio at Southern Housing where he learnt on-the job how (and how not!) to manage heat networks and about the challenges the social housing sector faces.

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. Kate was an external examiner for Westminster University until 2019 and a co-founder of the charity, Leadership2025, which aims to increase representation of black housing professionals in senior roles and address structural inequality.

Tracey Downie
Chief Executive, Women’s Pioneer Housing

Tracey has worked in the social housing sector for over 30 years, primarily in London-based Housing Associations and with a significant commitment to housing services, resident engagement and challenging inequality. Over the last 15 years Tracey has held senior, executive and non-executive roles and is currently Chief Executive of Women’s Pioneer Housing. Chair of Ekaya Housing Association and Co-Chair of Women’s Housing Forum

Throughout her years in housing, Tracey has been an advocate for inclusivity and diversity. This has included championing the need for better services for single women seeking affordable, safe housing as well as supporting and mentoring BME and young housing professionals.

Sarah Finnegan
Head of Policy, National Housing Federation

Sarah has been at the NHF since 2017 as part of the member relations team, before becoming Head of Policy last year. She previously held different policy and strategy roles in local government in London.

Rachael Fullwood
Chief Executive, Lincolnshire Rural Housing Partnership

With over 16 years’ experience at senior/executive level I am responsible for leading, shaping and developing the organisation, ensuring organisational effectiveness, resident satisfaction, and regulatory compliance . As a leader I need to ensure that we are adaptable to change, embrace innovations and are continuously improving our systems and our processes. We are building a collaborative culture bringing colleagues together to strengthen relationships across the organisation, ensuring colleagues feel aligned around our common purpose irrespective of our individual roles. We have developed a shared articulation of the outcomes and impacts we want to secure for our residents and communities. The culture we seek is kind and considerate, appreciating our own and others’ needs and seeking to bring out the best in each other; where we are each accountable and take ownership of what we do.

Martyn Gamber
Chief Executive, North Devon Homes

Martyn was appointed as Chief Executive in August 2007. He has been instrumental in driving the organisation's mission to provide quality, affordable housing and support services to the local community. With four decades of experience in the social housing sector, Martyn has a deep understanding of the challenges and opportunities within the industry. Under his leadership, North Devon Homes has embraced innovative approaches to housing development and community engagement, including successful joint ventures with for-profit providers and local authorities. Martyn is passionate about creating sustainable housing solutions that not only meet the immediate needs of residents but also contribute to the long-term prosperity of the region through building communities where people want to live.

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.

Glynis Gatenby
Operations Director, Sutton Housing Society

With a career in social housing dating back to 1985, Glynis achieved a professional qualification in the early 1990s. Her experience spans a wide range of roles, from working on a local authority housing reception desk to serving as Managing Director at Circle Housing. She is currently the Operations Director at Sutton Housing Society, which owns and manages 509 homes, primarily for older people. Glynis is committed to delivering high-quality homes and excellent services to residents.

Cara Green
External Affairs Manager, National Housing Federation

Cara Green is External Affairs Manager at the National Housing Federation. With a background in communications, strategy and digital innovations, she works closely with members to drive meaningful change with a powerful mission: ensuring everyone has access to a safe, affordable home.

Sam Grix
Partner, Devonshires

Samantha advises Private Registered Providers and Local Authorities across a spectrum of matters across the sector, specialising in rent and consumer regulation. Samantha regularly advises her clients on how to achieve and maintain compliance with the regulatory framework and how to remedy issues that have been identified. She provides strategic and pragmatic advice on regulatory considerations and implications for new developments, complex lease structures, acquisitions and disposals.

Liz Jones
Policy Director, National Care Forum

Liz Jones is the Policy Director of the National Care Forum, joining the organisation in May 2019. At the NCF, Liz leads the policy and research team, working closely with the CEO on influencing and championing our members’ voices, is responsible for membership support and engagement and leads the research work for the organisation. Liz has a strong background in social policy, care and support and health and housing, with over 20 years’ experience across the civil service, local government and the charity sector including Methodist Homes (MHA), Nottingham City Council and Manchester City Council.

Dan Hawthorn
Executive Director, Housing & Social Investment, Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea

Dan has twenty years’ local government experience, for London boroughs and two Mayors of London, and currently leads Kensington and Chelsea’s work on housing and property. This includes building the borough’s first new council homes in a generation; the development of a new ‘social investment’ approach to municipal assets; and the wider transformation of services, strategy and culture following the Grenfell Tower tragedy.

Before that, Dan was Director of Housing, Regeneration and Planning at Haringey Council; Head of the London 2012 team at the Greater London Authority; and former Mayor Ken Livingstone’s senior advisor on planning and development.

Sophie Hayward
Head of Housing, Westmoreland Supported Housing

Sophie is the Head of Housing at Westmoreland, with 13 years of experience in both general needs and supported housing settings. She is passionate about amplifying tenants’ voices, championing fairness, and fostering empowerment. Sophie is dedicated to enabling individuals to lead better, more independent lives by prioritising their needs and advocating for positive change within the housing sector.

"I am thrilled to be a part of the panel again for the Housing Community Summit 2025. This event offers a valuable platform to connect with people, exchange ideas, and work together on innovative solutions to the pressing challenges facing housing today. Last year’s Summit was a tremendous success, marked by a friendly and wholesome atmosphere where housing matters remained at the very core of every conversation. I look forward to building on last year’s momentum and contributing to impactful discussions that inspire positive change and help create more inclusive, sustainable communities for the future."

Lizzie Hearn
External Affairs Manager, National Housing Federation

Kate Henderson
Chief Executive, National Housing Federation

Kate is Chief Executive of the National Housing Federation (NHF), the voice of housing associations in England. Kate is passionate about tackling the housing crisis, inequality and climate change. She is a member of several government panels including the Rough Sleeping Advisory Panel and the Social Housing White Paper Expert Challenge Panel. Kate become a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in 2021. Prior to joining the NHF in 2018, Kate was Chief Executive of the Town and Country Planning Association.

Charlotte Hilliard
Policy Lead - Competence and Conduct Standard, Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government

Sue Hockett
Director of Development, Women’s Pioneer Housing

Sue has over 40 years experience of working in the sector, having worked for Women’s Pioneer her entire career.

Sue delivers the Development Strategy with a focus on identified core objectives. Leads the delivery of Women’s Pioneer development programme ensuring compliance with regulatory and financial requirements with responsibility for the preparation of development bids, acquisition of sites, buildings for development and developing partnerships with other organisations who can support the delivery of Women’s Pioneer’s Development Strategy.

Jenni Howell
Resident, Black Country Housing Group

Jenny Howell is a tenant at Black Country Housing Group, based in the West Midlands. She is also involved and part of the 'Partnership Group' at Black Country Housing Group, which she chairs and is based on customer involvement.

Fiona Humprey
Chief Executive, Providence Row Housing Association

Emma Kafero
Youth and Family Social Prescriber, NHS and Poplar Harca

Rachael Kaminski
Head of Operations and Deputy CEO, Care Housing Association

Rachael has 10 years supported housing experience, mainly at Care Housing Association which provides specialised supported housing to people with learning disabilities and autistic people. Rachael’s role combines strategic, governance and policy work with leading Care’s operations team, keeping her connected to tenants, services and challenges at all levels. She is passionate about continuous improvement and also serves as a Non-Executive Director for a medium sized housing association in Lancashire.

Viktorija Kiselyte
Policy Officer, National Housing Federation

Julie Layton
Chief Executive, Advance

Julie was appointed as Chief Executive of Advance in 2015, having worked for the organisation for a number of years as Director of Resources and Deputy Chief Executive.

Julie is a qualified accountant and a member of the Chartered Institute of Housing. She has extensive experience in the social housing sector. She is a strategic, visionary leader who is passionate about improving the lives of vulnerable people and believes the non-profit sector has a big part to play in delivering change. Her philosophy is to embed a collaborative and open culture within the organisation and to inspire and empower people to perform well.

Julie has developed partnership working initiatives to ensure Advance can work with others to provide more high quality support options to customers to enable them to live the lives they choose.

In 2017 Julie was appointed to the Board of the Association of Mental Health Providers and is keen to take an active role in shaping the future of the Association and the mental health sector.

Dave Lingwood
Governance, Risk and Compliance Practice Lead, Phoenix

Dave has over 15 years’ experience of working in the public sector in various roles, and has spent the last decade advising public sector clients on how they can improve their cyber security posture through implementing robust and effective governance, risk and compliance (GRC) programmes. Both as a Consultant and in his Lead Practice role, he has worked with a diverse portfolio of public sector customers. He is well versed with the housing sector, having previously led on the development of the sector’s first State of Cyber Security Survey, a joint engagement with NHF in 2023. He enjoys working collaboratively with organisations to understand their unique and complex challenges around GRC, and sharing his knowledge of how they can align to best practice and standards.

Cyan Matthews
Homes in Somerset

Kerry McCafferty
Chief People Officer, St Mungos

Lorraine Mealings
Chief Executive Officer  , Bournemouth Churches Housing Association

Lorraine has worked in housing for over 25 years, most recently leading BCHA as their Chief Executive. BCHA is a charitable Housing Association providing 1,400 homes along the south coast, the majority of which are supported housing for customers with multiple and complex needs. BCHA also delivers a wide range of non accommodation based support services in areas such as modern slavery and mental health.

Prior to this, Lorraine was the Director of Housing for Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council, which involved leading the transition of housing services from 4 separate Councils into one new merged Local Authority. The Directorate commissioned and directly delivered homelessness services, managed Council housing, led a new build and acquisition programme, delivered in-house repairs and ran telecare services across the geography. Her career has involved working for a number of Local Authorities from the South to the North East, working for a Registered Provider in Birmingham and working in regeneration and research across the Midlands and Newcastle upon Tyne.

Sarah Mees
Homes in Somerset

Sarah Miller
Chief Executive, Papworth Trust

Sarah has been CEO of Papworth Trust since 2018, a disability charity and Housing Association. Passionate about improving the quality of life for disabled people she has worked supporting vulnerable adults since the late 1980’s.

Andy Nelson
Assistant Director Provider Services, Affordable Housing Grant, Homes England

Andy leads the team in Homes England Affordable Housing Grant responsible for Investment Partner qualification due diligence, grant agreement contracting, grant stewardship and compliance audit for all our partners.

He has worked on many Govt. housing initiatives at Homes England, with a focus on converting high-level policy into practical operational programme delivery that works for a diverse range of housing providers

Clare Norton
Chief Executive, Peter Bedford Housing Association

Carolina Padovezi de Oliveira
Head of Corporate Services, Manningham

Carolina Padovezi De Oliveira is the Head of Corporate Services at Manningham Housing Association and Chair of the Housing AI Group. With a strong background in marketing, communications, and digital transformation, she leads innovative projects that integrate artificial intelligence into housing operations. Carolina holds a Master’s in AI and some more in the oven. Carolina was recently named one of the Top 30 Housing Champions and Inside Housing’s 40 Under 40. She is passionate about leveraging emerging technologies to improve services, empower teams, and create more efficient, inclusive housing systems.

Gill Peckahm
Director of Housing, CESSA

Will Perry
Director of Strategy, Regulator of Social Housing

Will is Director of Strategy at the Regulator of Social Housing, where he is responsible for developing corporate strategy, business intelligence and regulatory policy. He is also responsible for the Regulator’s relationships with the funding markets and the regulation of for-profit providers. Will is a qualified chartered accountant, was until recently a non-executive board member of The Housing Finance Corporation.

Karl Philips
Consultant Development Director, Sapphire Independent Housing

Karl Phillips serves as the Consultant Development Director at Sapphire Independent Housing. He is a strategic development manager with a proven track record of leading teams to successfully deliver high-quality, affordable new homes within the housing association sector. Over the past decade, Karl has overseen development programmes for small housing associations, consistently achieving impactful results. He strongly advocates for the sustainable use of resources by small housing associations to support the development of new homes wherever possible.

Nick Phillips
Chief Executive, The Almhouse Association

Nick is focused on seeing almshouses recognised as the exemplar form of community housing. A chartered surveyor, Nick has worked in the commercial world before changing to the charity sector twenty years ago. Nicks career has blended his passion for historic buildings, access for secure housing for all and charity support.

Edwina Prayogo
Impact Manager, Your Place

Rebecca Pritchard
Director of Client Services, Transform Housing

Rebecca started her career in 1989 volunteering for the Southampton Resettlement Project working alongside people with lived experience. This informed her commitment to ensuring the voices of people using services are heard and influence policy decisions, service design and delivery.

Rebecca is currently Director of Client Services for Transform Housing & Support. She has worked across the homelessness, social care and drug treatment sectors. Her experience includes Director level roles for Centrepoint and Crisis, CEO of Surrey Care Association, and as well as senior roles in the drug and alcohol treatment sector. She has held commissioning roles for local authorities and was embedded within the Department of Communities and Local Government as a specialist advisor on youth homelessness and rough sleeping.

Rebecca is also a Trustee of Hestia and Royal Trinity Hospice and has been a member of two NICE Guideline Development Groups including improving access to health and social care for people experiencing homelessness.

Sue Ramsden
Policy Leader, National Housing Federation

Sue leads the Federation's policy work on housing management and supported housing.  She is a board member of Thamesreach Housing a small specialist homelessness provider in London.

Andrew Redfern
Chief Executive, Framework Housing Associations

Hayley Reeves
Solution Sales Manager for Recruitment Tech, Tribepad

Hayley specialises in supporting the Social Housing sector in modernising recruitment by replacing legacy systems and manual processes with streamlined, technology-driven solutions. Through Tribepad’s Applicant Tracking and Onboarding Solution, she helps organisations recruit fairer, faster, and better, enhancing efficiency, improving hiring outcomes, and delivering a seamless experience for candidates, recruiters, and hiring managers alike.

Malcolm Rogers
Director of Property Services, Agudas Isreal Housing Association

Malcolm joined AIHA in March 2024 and is a Chartered Engineer with over 20 years of experience within building management and project delivery. Prior to joining AIHA, he was Technical Services Director for one of the UK’s largest Property Management companies. As a passionate engineer, he is keen to use technology to improve performance and enhance the resident experience.

Dominic Robson
Senior Associate Solicitor, TLT LLP

Victoria Shannon
External Affairs Manager, National Housing Federation

Vic is the External Affairs Manager for the North East region at the NHF. She also has responsibility for running the NHF’s National Supported Housing Network and specialist member groups with a focus on Homelessness and Domestic Abuse. Before joining the NHF, Vic worked in project management and communications roles in the public and not-for-profit sector.

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.

Paul Smith
Group Chief Executive, Elim Housing

Paul Smith is Chief Executive of Elim Housing and a social historian, whose book Hartcliffe betrayed recently won a national award. Prior to working at Elim Paul was active in politics, as a councillor in Bristol from 1988-1999 and again as Cabinet member for housing from 2016-2020, Paul was also a parliamentary candidate in 2010. Paul is currently a Board member and Trustee of the Chartered Institute of Housing and the Andrews Charitable Trust.

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.

Chaya Spitz
Chief Executive, Agudas Isreal Housing Association

Chaya is the Chief Executive of AIHA since 2021. She joined the social housing sector following a career in community service that won her an OBE in 2018. She has years of experience of the policy-shaping process, and has worked extensively with the care sector and with children and young people’s services. Chaya has served as trustee on a number of charities and has an MBA from the Open University.

Aniekan Umoren
Chief Executive, Christian Action Housing Association

Worked as a public servant for over 40 years, with a career in housing association and local government sector. Aniekan is a qualified barrister with extensive experience in strategic and operational housing services; asset investment and maintenance; development and regeneration; leisure and parks and customer services.

Andrew van Doorn
Chief Executive, HACT

Andrew is the Chief Executive of HACT. HACT partners with organisations across the housing sector to drive value for residents and communities through insight-led products and services which encourage innovation and foster collaboration. HACT helps them measure their social value, better understand the communities they serve, broker collaborations with the NHS, and connect with like-minded organisations.

Andrew has worked for HACT since 2003 and in housing, homelessness, supported housing, community development and wider social policy and practice for over 30 years. He is a Non-Executive Director at Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust. Andrew was awarded an OBE in the King’s New Year Honours List 2023 for services to housing.

Linda Wallace
Chief Executive, PHA Homes

Linda leads a small community based housing association in Hampshire. She has worked in housing for 40 years, in large and small organisations and in the public and private sector. She has a background in asset management, customer service, development and co-operative housing. Linda's passion is for work that empowers people - residents, employees and the wider community - to make the most of their talents and opportunities. She has been a member of several housing association Boards, an Exec member of G320 and sits on her local Community Land Trust Steering Group.

Claire Warren
Chief Executive, Pickering and Ferens Homes

Claire has a career in social housing spanning over 30 years. She is an experienced leader and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Housing. Claire joined PFH in 2013 and since then it has been her mission for PFH to stay true to our values, be more than ‘just a landlord’ and to deliver exceptional homes and services to people living in our local communities, in their later life. They deserve the best. Claire’s role is to support the Charity’s governing board, to support the achievement of PFH’s Corporate and Financial Plans and take overall responsibility for the organisation’s compliance requirements.

Elizabeth Webster
Board member, Arawak Walton Housing Association

Elizabeth Webster became a Tenant Board Member of Arawak Walton Housing Association in Manchester in 2020. The organisation is a small, independent BME Housing Association which made it a real draw for Elizabeth. It allows her to engage with a host of different projects within local BME communities as well as offering lived experiences when deciding on strategic direction for the organisation. As a tenant, Elizabeth offers excellent insight into what customers expect form a housing association landlord and can offer direction and oversight on how to most effectively support their tenants.

With 19 years’ experience of working in film, television, theatre and live music events, Elizabeth has a myriad of experience working with different sections of the community in a professional capacity.

Elizabeth is particularly proud of Arawak Walton’s commitment to tackle all types of homeless linked to the communities it serves. Having been homeless in the past, Elizabeth holds these strategies close to her heart and can support their development at Board level.

Alongside Board duties Elizabeth regularly attends the Tenants’ Quality Panel meetings as well as Renumeration and Appointments Committee meetings. She has assisted with updates of the Association’s Customer Service Charter and has also had input to the Together with Tenants Charter.

She is based in the North West though her work has taken her to locations nationwide. Elizabeth has lived in Manchester for 12 years and been a tenant of Arawak Walton for the last two years.

Emily Wicks
Recruitment and Talent Advisor, Horton Housing

Emily is responsible for the recruitment function at Horton Housing. I manage our end to end recruitment journey, and lead on our transformation and EVP projects.

Dr Simon Williams
Managing Director, Service Insights

Simon’s research interests primarily focus upon service performance improvement, in particular, customer satisfaction feedback, service quality, and improving service experience. He also has a wider interest in how service performance improvement can be supported through technology and innovation. Recent research has included “Data Challenges in Social Housing” (2024) and “Aspirations and Applications of AI in Social Housing” (2025).

Liz Zeidler
Chief Executive, The Centre for Thriving Places

Liz is an internationally recognised leader in sustainable wellbeing with over 30 years of experience in connecting, challenging and supporting change-makers. She has been a key part of the development of all Centre for Thriving Place’s wellbeing measurement tools and approaches. She is a globally in-demand speaker and advisor on community wellbeing and place-based approaches to measuring, understanding and improving wellbeing in all sectors.