Northern Housing Consortium hires new executive director for operations and finance

Northern Housing Consortium (NHC) has appointed Andrea Downey as its new executive director for operations and finance.

Downey will play a key role in the leadership of the NHC’s procurement arm, Consortium Procurement, which serves 400 members nationally.

She has more than 25 years’ experience of working in the public and private sector, at Network Rail and the NHS, as well as in the publishing and media sectors.

Downey was head of financial control and analysis at Network Rail before joining the NHC, a not-for-profit membership organisation which represents social housing providers across the North of England,

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Before this, she held the position of head of value for money at West Coast Partnership Development, which is working to deliver high-speed services across the Avanti West Coast network.

Chief executive at NHC, Tracy Harrison, said: “Andrea will play a central role in making sure we achieve the best possible value for members and make maximum use of our resources across the entire organisation. Andrea’s expertise will be a real added benefit to our members, as we work together to influence policy and change people’s lives for the better.”

On her appointment, Downey said: “I was attracted to Northern Housing Consortium because of its very clear ethos of making a positive impact. The organisation’s focus on levelling up in the north through social housing improvements is close to my heart; I grew up in a council house and it was a positive experience, and I would like that for others too.”

Elsewhere, the West Midlands-based housing association, Platform Housing, has appointed Mandy Clarke as a non-executive director on its board.

Clarke operates a management consultancy providing strategic HR, governance, organisational development, project and bid services to clients in the UK and overseas.

She previously held a non-executive director position at Abri and was also an independent director and deputy chair at GreensquareAccord.

Clarke said: “I was brought up in council housing and strongly believe everyone should be able to live in a good quality and safe home.  I am thrilled to have been appointed to Platform’s Board, the organisation has a strong reputation and it is good to be back in housing again, particularly as there are so many challenges.  I hope I can help the Board and the wider team achieve our strategic objectives and make a positive difference for our customers.”