Cromwood Housing has formally established its board of directors with highly experienced local government professional Nigel Davies appointed as chair.
He is joined by social banking professional Glenn Arradon, who becomes vice chair, housing expert Samuel Scharf, and Tim West, who specialises in PR and media consultancy. Together they bring a wealth of experience, from finance and social housing to governance and communications.
Completing the board of Cromwood’s registered provider of social housing are executive directors Moses Hirschler, Moses Lorincz and Mendy Stern.
After retiring from a career in local government spanning more than 40 years, Nigel said he had been looking for a non-executive board opportunity with a housing organisation and it was Cromwood’s ‘let’s get it done’ philosophy that appealed to him.
‘I’ve had an involvement in housing in much of my career and in a voluntary capacity, helping a local homeless charity and raising money. The ethos of Cromwood is about supporting some of the most vulnerable people in society, including those who are homeless, and so that resonated with me.
‘There can be quite a lot of frustration and bureaucracy in housing provision and it’s really refreshing to be involved with an organisation where things happen quickly and do so with the right level of scrutiny and governance.
‘Cromwood’s growth over the last few years has been really positive and I’m excited about the future. As a board, we’re here to work in tandem with the senior management team to ensure good governance, help with checks and balances and provide that strategic view. It’s important to get different skill sets and the board has a really good blend.’
Nigel spent the majority of his career at Bromley Council where, prior to retirement, he was executive director of environment and community services. Glenn brings expertise in helping organisations to deliver social impact via investment and is currently investment director at Big Issue Invest.
Samuel is director of housing and customer services at C&C Housing Trust and has spent much of his career working in the social housing sector. Tim began his career as a journalist, including stints writing about social housing, before moving into media and PR consultancy and he advises a wide variety of organisations across business and social sectors.
An interim board was set up in early 2022 and the transition to formalising the board has been supported by partners Campbell Tickell.
Chief executive Moses Hirschler said: ‘We’re a fast-growing organisation and it’s vital that we have a strong board to provide advice and guidance. We now have a wealth of experience and skills to draw upon and I’m very much looking forward to working with Nigel, Glenn, Samuel and Tim as we continue to grow and provide much-needed housing.’