Event chair
Jo Barrett
Executive Director of Operations, Thrive HomesJo Barrett is Executive Director of Operations at Thrive Homes and chair of the NHF’s Quality of Existing Homes Group.
With a career spanning over 30 years in housing, Jo has extensive experience of strategic asset management, day-to-day repairs and maintenance and refining customer experience. Jo has developed Thrive’s Active Asset Management Strategy, bringing together asset, finance and development to ensure investment in homes maintains quality, improves energy efficiency whilst achieving value for money.
This experience has helped Jo deliver acquisitions and contracts to manage on behalf of others whilst managing Thrive Places – homes for market rent.
Speakers
Rose Bean
Director of Assets and Sustainability, AbriRose Bean is the Director of Asset Management and Regeneration at Abri a large provider in the South and South West of England, with over 15 years' experience within the social housing sector, Rose currently leads on the delivery of Abri's Asset Management Strategy maximising the value derived from a diverse portfolio and delivering low carbon projects. Within her current role Rose leads on Building Safety for the group, overseeing Landlord H&S compliance and implementing required changes in line with the emerging fire safety legislative environment.
She is also a Board member for 1625 Independent People who support 16-25 year olds who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.
John Butler
Policy Leader, National Housing FederationJohn Butler is the Finance Policy Leader at the National Housing Federation. Having preciously spent three and a half years at PriceWaterhouse Coopers John worked for a marketing company for a year before joining the Federation
Lord Martin Callanan
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Minister for Energy Efficiency and Green Finance), Department for Energy Security and Net ZeroLord Callanan was appointed Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Minister for Energy Efficiency and Green Finance) at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero on 7 February 2023. He was previously Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy from 14 February 2020 to 7 February 2023, and Minister of State at the Department for Exiting the European Union from 27 October 2017 to 31 January 2020.
Iain Carr
Director of Sales, Kensa ContractingIain has a wealth of renewables experience in both technology and technical application. He is a long-standing ambassador of heat pump technology, with experience in supply chain, manufacturing and contracting.
Sam Collier
HomeLINK Ethics and Sustainability Lead, AicoSam is Sustainability & Ethics Lead at Aico HomeLINK and a PhD Researcher at the University of Bristol. His work focuses on improving the data we have on UK homes for decarbonisation and improving their condition using IoT technology, to make them healthier, safer and more sustainable. He has also conducted research to understand how landlords and residents engage with, and their expectations of, digital technologies, to identify wider ethical considerations to contribute to the use of tech for good.
Anne Costain
Chief Financial Officer, StonewaterAnne is a qualified Chartered Accountant and Corporate Treasurer. She has worked in housing for over 10 years at a senior level. Before working in housing, Anne worked in manufacturing for a number of organisations, from SME to Fortune 500 and FTSE 250 – latterly as Finance Director for De la Rue in its Currency and Supply Chain division.
Rebecca Craig
Director of Sustainability and Climate Change, SanctuaryAs Director for Sustainability and Climate Change, Rebecca leads on Sanctuary’s environmental sustainability strategy and policy development and implementation. She also sits on the Greener Futures Partnership consortium Executive Committee.
Rebecca joined Sanctuary after nearly four years with the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, and has experience across local government and academia.
Rebecca completed an MSc in Transport and City Planning at UCL in 2021, where she focused on sustainability and accessibility.
Luke Cross
Director, SocialLuke Driscoll
Asset Management and Sustainability Director, HydeAJ Eaton
Director of Decarbonisation and Energy Solutions, Bell Group, Green Construction Advisory PanelStephen Edwards
Head of Sustainability, Platform HousingStephen is Head of Sustainability within Platform Housing’s Property directorate and is responsible for the development and delivery of Platform’s new Sustainability Strategy. With over 25 years experience in Sustainability and the built environment and eight years in social housing Stephen provides his expertise to all parts of the organisation. He is keenly focussed on identifying opportunities for the decarbonisation of Platforms’s assets through whole house retrofit and renewable technologies. Stephen has been instrumental in securing for Platform £1.2million of government funding for the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF) Wave 1 to retrofit 100 homes, and £12.2million from SHDF Wave 2 to retrofit a further 995 homes.
Janette Evans-Turner
UK Head of Commercial and Sustainable Operations, ZurichJanette is a Procurement professional with over 20 years’ experience in sourcing, contractual and supply chain management roles.
She joined Zurich in 2004, where she initially worked on large scale market reviews for Claims, and then led the Property Vendor Management Team.
In 2015, Janette joined Group Procurement as the Head of Procurement for the UK & IOM. She was heavily involved in the Procurement Transformation journey which consisted of bringing Procurement back in house, transferring the contracting and sourcing activity from Claims Vendor Management to Procurement, and implementing Coupa into the UK.
More recently, Janette has added to her portfolio by taking on Supplier Management and Corporate Real Estate and Workplace Solutions.
Janette is passionate about sustainability and leads a Group Sustainable Sourcing initiative and is responsible for operational sustainability metrics and reporting.
Helen Fielding
Development and Investment Director, BroadacresHelen is Director of Development and Investment at Broadacres, a North Yorkshire based Housing Association with a vision to be the best rural housing association in the country. Helen leads the Development programme, and the ambitious plans for decarbonising the housing stock.
Helen joined Broadacres in August 2022, after 9 years with Homes England specialising in affordable housing investment across the North of England. Prior to that Helen’s housing career spans over 30 years and has taken her from the South Coast to North Yorkshire where she has held roles in community engagement, housing strategy and delivery. She is passionate about delivering rural and sustainable homes and developing great partnerships to make that happen.
Elizabeth Froude
Chief Executive, Platform Housing GroupElizabeth is Group Chief Executive for Platform Housing Group, which have 47,000 homes coast to coast across the Midlands.
Elizabeth came into the sector 16 years ago when she joined Radian to work on their formation merger and has since worked across the South Coast , Home Counties, central London where she spent eight years working for Notting Hill Genesis.
Prior to that she worked for various listed plc companies in varying sectors from retail and film to finance and leisure, across the UK, Europe and USA. Usually in change, process improvement or merger roles with an operational efficiency focus.
Julie Gallagher
Net Zero & Energy Solutions Consultant, ZenergiI am proud to work for Zenergi as an energy and environmental consultant, been in the industry for over 10 years working across the UK housing sector. Offering a practical and complete Net Zero solution. Supporting and sharing best practise around the increasing number of environmental and legal obligations including Scope 1,2 & 3 emission reporting along with EPC – MEES. Delivering sustainable energy efficient / retrofit projects throughout the UK and supporting the housing sector, to help reduce their energy bills, carbon reporting. Along with design and technical specifications for renewable technologies to support your decarbonisation journey.
Mark Gardiner
Business Development Manager (Renewables), Raven RenewablesMark Gardiner is Business Development Manager at Raven Housing Trust’s renewable technologies company, Raven Renewables. Mark joined the organisation in August 2021 to help the organisation develop its expertise in the design and installation of energy saving solutions to help reduce energy bills and decarbonise social housing.
Since graduating from the University of Southampton with a first class honours degree in physics in 2014 Mark has worked in renewable energy sector. Mark is passionate about the role energy efficiency solutions can play in not only meeting the UK’s zero carbon targets but also in providing warm and comfortable homes that are affordable to heat.
Mark combines his scientific and technical knowledge with in depth knowledge of the challenges that decarbonisation of social housing presents to advise on the design and installation of a wide spectrum of energy efficiency solutions.
Emma Gilbank
Service Manager for Sustainability and Climate Change, Connect HousingEmma joined the sector three years ago after graduating from the University of Leeds, and currently works for Connect Housing. She is passionate about driving positive change through collaboration, with a particular focus on justice and inclusion. She was a finalist for Young Achiever at the Women in Housing Awards and was named in the Climate Champions Power List by Unlock Net Zero. Emma is also a board member at CIH Futures, representing young housing professionals at a national level.
Trevor Graham
Asset Management Consultant, Helix AssistTrevor has 40 years experience operating in the social housing and local authority sectors in a client role, as a contractor, and a consultant.
Trevor’s early years were spent at Birmingham City Housing Department where he worked as a Building Surveyor and Manager whilst also gaining his Degree in Building Surveying.
In 2003 he joined a small West Midlands social housing contractor. He spent the next 11 years growing the company and broadening its portfolio of services and its regional coverage. The company was sold to one of the UK’s largest social housing contractors in 2014.
Since then, Trevor has undertaken consultancy work and interim executive roles in asset management to deliver transformation programmes in asset management, building safety and landlord compliance.
Trevor is a Non-Executive Director of a Midlands Housing Association and chairs the organisation’s Investment Committee.
Annabel Gray
Project Director, Sustainability, AltairAnnabel heads up Altair’s Sustainability team, working with organisations in the housing sector to support them to understand and rise to the key challenges in becoming a sustainable business. Annabel works with Boards, Executive Teams, and delivery teams to provide proactive, practical, and expert advice on the full range of climate conscious initiatives, relevant to the housing sector. This includes working to ensure that a ‘Sustainability Golden Thread’ runs right through the organisation – linking strategy with the operational delivery of programmes and specific activities.
Annabel has 12 years’ experience in delivering a variety of projects and programmes across the public and private sector. Prior to Altair Ltd, Annabel has worked at Mace, PA Consulting and Capita Symonds providing a range of environmental consultancy, business transformation and development management services to clients.
Annabel is also a Board member at Barnsbury Housing Association.
Kalwant Grewal
Board Member, Sapphire Independent Housing & Grand Union Housing GroupKalwant is currently in a senior leadership role for one of the largest NHS Trusts in England where he contributes to shaping, designing and influencing healthcare outcomes for the local population including for children and young people and adults. He operates at strategic, operational, and financial leadership levels and has considerable sector specific and relevant cross sector Board and Committee Chair experience. Kalwant has project led transformation programmes including Population Health Management and Inequalities for an Integrated Care System with a resident population of c. 2.5m people and reviewed a seven-day consultant led service in Integrated Medicine. Prior to this he was part of the senior leadership team for a well-known national charity for Older People
Earlier in his career Kalwant spent several years as an elected school governor in primary and secondary schools and local authority settings, including as Parent Governor Representative, Vice Chair of the Schools Forum, the School Standards Committee and Member of the Schools Admissions and Appeals Panels. He worked closely with Head Teachers, Ofsted Inspectors, Local Authority Leaders, and elected Councillors and helped to shape education strategy and address inequality outcomes for his local community.
Zoe Guijarro
Principal Policy Manager - Net Zero Homes, Citizens AdviceZoe Guijarro has led the Net Zero Homes team since November 2021. The focus of the team’s work is to use evidence and insight from our work with consumers to facilitate greater involvement, inclusion and outcomes for consumers in the net zero transition. Zoe joined Citizens Advice in February 2015 to lead policy work on renewable and low carbon heat, microgeneration and community energy. Zoe has a wide range of strategic policy experience on energy and climate change having previously worked in both the public and NGO sectors on these issues. Before joining Citizens Advice Zoe worked as a Climate & Energy Specialist at WWF-UK leading their advocacy on energy efficiency, zero carbon homes and low-carbon heat.
Kate Henderson
@KateNHF
Chief Executive, National Housing FederationKate Henderson 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.
Ad Hereijgers
Director Business Development, RitterwaldAd Hereijgers is Business Development Director at RITTERWALD and works at the Amsterdam location. He has many years of experience in the areas of home renovation and affordable housing finance and has supported numerous customer projects in The Netherlands, Western Europe and the USA.
Ad Hereijgers has been a consultant and real estate expert for over 35 years. Before joining RITTERWALD, he was a partner in a consulting boutique for housing and urban planning in Amsterdam, Rotterdam and New York. He serves as trusted board room advisor, project manager of public private partnerships and advises on joint ventures of housing companies. Ad Hereijgers leads master classes in residential and urban development strategies for professionals and is the author of several books and articles.
Ali Imam
Head of Strategic Asset Management, Phoenix Community HousingAli has worked in the housing sector for over 15 years with registered providers including One Housing Group, L&Q, Town & Country and East Thames. Throughout this time, he has gained a wealth of experience in Housing Asset Management. Currently he is now leading Environmental Sustainability and delivering Net zero to existing and future homes at Phoenix Community Housing. Ali has experience of working at a senior level as Board member and Head of business to deliver strategic planning, operations and transformational services. He is also passionate about the improving access and management of building data and measures towards sustainability.
Mia Jeannot
Project Director, Wave 2 Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund, Department for Energy Security and Net ZeroMia Jeannot is the Project Director for Wave 2 of the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund (SHDF), responsible for the delivery of Wave 2 of the programme. She joined the team in Summer 2020 initially as the Senior Policy Advisor in the SHDF, overseeing the strategy and coherence of the scheme with cross government and sector policy, progressing from Scheme design to its now delivery. Through her career in the civil service, Mia has worked in DLUHC, DEFRA, DfT and Counter Terrorism policing and has a wider background in strategy, policy and programme management within the wider public infrastructure and investment space.
Ulrike Maccariello
Development Director, Hastoe GroupUlrike, Hastoe’s Development Director has worked in development for almost 20 years and at Hastoe for the past 13 years. She is passionate about rural and sustainable housing.
Lindsay Macguire
Deputy Director for Procurement Reform Implementation, Cabinet OfficeLindsay is the Deputy Director for Procurement Reform Implementation at the Cabinet Office, responsible for ensuring the new Procurement Bill is implemented effectively across the whole of the public sector. Previously, she was head of Engagement for the Procurement Bill and had a role in shaping elements of reform policy. She joined the Government Commercial Organisation in 2016, initially working as Senior Category Leader for the employment and labour market in DWP and subsequently as Head of Small Business Policy at Cabinet Office, working with all central government departments and SMEs to break down barriers to entry. Prior to joining the civil service, she gained 10+ commercial experience from the private sector, working in the aerospace, construction and FMCG sectors for both large multinationals and SMEs, including spending 5 years abroad in Germany, Netherlands and Canada working on complex projects.
Steve Mackenzie
Member, Heartwarming Homes Tenant Advisory GroupSteve is retired and a tenant of Yorkshire Housing, living in South Yorkshire. He is member of Yorkshire Housing’s Customer Voice and Review Committeeand is their Climate Change Champion and Chair of a tenants’ group that work with YH on their Energy Efficiency and Sustainable Homes strategy. Steve is also a member of the Heartwarming Homes tenant advisory group. Previously, Steve was a member of the Northern Housing Consortium’s Social Housing Tenants’ Climate Change Jury.
Simon Mansfield
Sustainability Manager, Liverpool City CouncilSimon joined Liverpool City Council in August 2022 with a 34 year track record in delivering Environmental Protection, Compliance and Carbon Management for Jaguar Land Rover, Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service and Environment Agency including:
- Delivering the first blueprint for net zero motor manufacture by designing an approach adopted by all JLR plants, sealing Net Zero 2030 for Halewood with a hydrogen partnership.
- Devising an integrated Environmental Management System at JLR to identify and mitigate the extreme risks of chemical hazards, massive energy use and emissions and impact.
- Delivering a 23% reduction of CO2 emissions at Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service –in collaboration with NW Fire Services from 2009-2015.
Simon started as an Environmental Campaigner at University of Liverpool in 1988, whilst studying for a Marine Chemistry degree, setting up the first University sustainability system to reduce energy and waste and campaigning.
Simon had his first professional employment opportunity in 1994 as a consultant with Peak Associates to help small NW industry resolve pollution and contaminated land problems as well as media research which exposed the environmental and public health problems of ICI at Runcorn, for BBC’s Panorama and Channel 4’s Dispatches.
Simon then spent 11 years in various Environment Agency locations, initially starting in Environment Protection (Waste industry regulation and water pollution) and Enforcement (significant Waste Crime), before moving onto Internal Environmental Management, energy reduction and carbon management.
Simon then continued to excel in reduction of organisational risk and carbon management both at Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service and then at Jaguar Land Rover – being responsible for net zero plans from a baseline of 5,000 tonnes CO2/ year (MFRS) and 80,000 tonnes CO2/ yr (JLR).
Simon joined LCC in the middle of the Energy Price Crisis, where our energy costs soared by over 6 times, costing us an additional £16M per year through no fault of our own. Simon, his Team, Assistant Director Lee Kinder, Procurement and Finance have worked hard to ensure new contracts were put in place to halve energy costs & deliver more financial certainty in a turbulent energy market.
Running parallel with that work, Simon is developing systems to measure environmental performance and impact for all scopes of direct and indirect emissions (Electricity, Gas, Water, Waste, Fuel, Travel), in order to measure and plan our approach to Net Zero 2030, in line with Mayor Joanne Anderson’s 2030 commitment to Net Zero.
Simon is also responsible for delivery of the Liverpool City Net Zero Plan (https://liverpool.gov.uk/communities-and-safety/action-on-climate-change/).
Patrick Merton-Jones
External Affairs Manager, National Housing FederationOliver Mooney
Head of Category, Fusion21Oliver has worked in the wider construction and built environment sector for over 15 years. Originally from a construction project management background, he has spent the past 9 years working in public procurement.
In his current role he leads a team focussed on the procurement of capital works contracts across a range of sectors, scale and complexity. Oliver is responsible for the development and implementation of Fusion21's framework products and ensuring that services meet the needs of members and supply chains.
He has been a chartered member of the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (CIPS) since 2018 and is currently completing a Masters in Public Procurement Law and Policy.
Imran Mubeen
Director of Treasury, BromfordImran leads the treasury team at Bromford Housing Group. Imran has raised over £1.5bn of new funding with UK and overseas investors, issuing the group’s debut public bond and inaugural US private placement. He has pioneered sustainable finance, delivering the first green and governance linked loans in the social housing sector, and expanding Bromford’s trading update to become the first housing association to set out performance against sustainability golden metrics. Imran published Bromford’s accredited sustainable finance framework, and the group’s sustainability impact report which adopts the SRS and is now delivered annually.
Imran continues to drive Bromford’s sector leading dual credit rating platform with Moody’s (A2) and S&P (A+) and is a key driver of thought leadership in the sector on all matters related to finance, treasury and sustainability.
Chris Newman
Affordable Housing Consultancy, SavillsChris works within Savills Affordable Housing Consultancy team on the disposal and acquisition of tenanted portfolios. He has successfully worked on a number of large and complex bilateral sales and swaps on behalf of both vendors and purchasers. His clients include not for profit registered providers as well as institutional funds and investors looking to deploy funding using new models. Before joining Savills he worked for a medium-sized RP where he oversaw asset performance and managed planned investment programmes.
Annie Owens
Policy Leader, National Housing FederationDavid Pierpoint
@retrofitacademy
Chief Executive, Retrofit AcademyDavid has spent over a decade addressing the skills gap in the retrofit sector. He works closely with government, industry and academia to scale up retrofit education. He is driven by The Retrofit Academy’s mission to train over 200,000 competent retrofitters by 2030. David is a regular speaker and facilitator at conferences and events, including for the Local Government Association, the UK Green Building Council, the World Green Building Council. He serves on several key industry committees, working groups and think tanks, and has appeared on BBC Radio 5 Live, ITV News and Channel 5 News.
Glynnis Poole
@WeAreLiveWest
Planning, Technical and Sustainability Director, LiveWestGlynnis is Planning, Technical and Sustainability Director for LiveWest and Board Member for Building Better, an alliance of Housing Associations working together to increase the use of modern methods of construction (MMC) in the social housing sector. She is part of the senior leadership team at LiveWest and the organisational lead for environment and MMC alongside Chairing the LiveWest Environment Group. Glynnis leads a multifunctional team that focus on creating quality, sustainable homes and communities that customers want to live in.
Glynnis is an exceptionally experienced leader with a varied career spanning 22 years which began with the Environment Agency and Local Government followed by 10 years in PLC housebuilding before joining LiveWest (formerly DCH) in 2016. As a well-respected and qualified professional, Glynnis has accumulated significant experience and an enviable skill set in delivering homes from inception to completion.
Bronwen Rapley
Chief Executive, Onward HomesSince 2016, Bronwen has spearheaded the creation of Onward Homes from five separate housing associations, building a united organisation committed to the customers and communities it serves across the North West.
Under Bronwen’s leadership, Onward has achieved top governance (G1) and financial (V1) ratings from the Regulator and secured a top A1 (Stable) credit rating, ahead of a successful bond issue to support delivery of an ambitious Business Plan. Looking to the future, her priority for Onward is to work with customers to build thriving communities, supported by the security of good quality, green homes and places.
Bronwen has worked in housing and regeneration for 30 years, initially as a solicitor and then by delivering a number of large regeneration projects in the North West. Prior to joining Onward, Bronwen led the investigation and enforcement team at the Regulator of Social Housing.
Gavin Roberts
Head of Environmental, Sustainability and Decarbonisation, Halton HousingGavin Roberts is a prominent leader in the field of sustainability, environment, and decarbonisation. With years of experience and expertise, he has made significant contributions towards promoting sustainable practices and mitigating the impacts of climate change.
As the head of Environmental, Sustainability and Decarbonization, Gavin is responsible for driving the sustainability agenda of Halton Housing. He oversees the development and implementation of policies and programs aimed at reducing the environmental footprint of the company while promoting the businesses key drivers.
Gavin has a deep understanding of the challenges and opportunities in sustainability, and he is committed to finding innovative solutions to complex environmental problems.
Gavin is known for his strategic vision, leadership skills, and ability to inspire others. He is a strong advocate for collaboration and partnerships and believes that working together is the key to achieving a sustainable future.
In his free time, Gavin enjoys sailing, camping, and exploring the great outdoors. He is passionate about nature and believes that everyone has a role to play in protecting the planet for future generations.
Brendan Sarsfield
Chair, Sustainability for HousingBrendan is the Chair of Sustainability for Housing, an organisation promoting and developing the ESG Reporting Standards for social housing. He is also a Trustee of Hestia. Prior to taking on these roles he was Chief Executive of Peabody and was a housing association CEO for over 20 years.
Sarauniya Shehu
@SarauniyaShehu
Public Affairs Manager, National Housing FederationSarauniya Shehu (pronounced suh-ro-knee-ya shay-who) is Public Affairs Manager at the National Housing Federation. Sarauniya is responsible for developing the NHF’s public affairs strategies on the wide range of policy areas that relate to the organisation’s members and their residents. She currently sits on the NHF’s Meeting Housing Need and rents project groups. Sarauniya has worked within the public sector and membership organisations in a number of roles as a communications and influencing professional. Before joining the NHF in 2021, Sarauniya worked in public affairs and programme management at The Law Society.
Orla Shields
Chief Executive, Kamma DataOrla Shields is CEO and Co-Founder of Kamma, a world-leading geospatial technology company. Orla started her career with the banking division of EY and went on to work on the recapitalisation of the banking sector with the Irish Central Bank during the credit crisis, one caused in large part by a lack of clear and accurate data on property value.
She later managed the £650m infrastructure budget for the London 2012 Olympics and has worked as a Commercial Director for a number of top-tier digital agencies and media companies. She returned to the issue of delivering clear and accurate property data in 2016, she co-founded Kamma. Today, Kamma provides market-leading risk solutions to the financial and property sectors, deploying data to solve the biggest threat humanity has ever faced: climate change.
Andy Smith
Head of Housing Impact Services, The Good EconomyAndy leads on housing and real estate at The Good Economy (TGE), working with clients to design impact measurement and management systems and deliver independent impact reports. Andy has developed the TGE Affordable Housing methodology and has created the standardised metrics that are now used across all TGE clients. He also led the development of the Sustainability Reporting Standard criteria – now being used by over 100 housing providers and lenders.
Andy joined The Good Economy from Social Finance, where he was the project manager of an innovative tech product that helped local authorities provide better support to young people leaving the care system. Also while at Social Finance, Andy worked on a range of additional strategy and business development projects.
Paul Smith
@ElimHousing
Chair, Weaver Vale Housing TrustPaul has over 50 years' experience in Housing at all levels of management and is a Qualified Exec Coach. He has held various Governance roles within the Housing sector and has been Chair of Weaver Vale Housing Trust since 2019. Paul also chairs meetings of the NHF North West Chairs’ group.
Anne Southern
Director of Resources, Gloucester City HomesAnne is the Director of Resources at Gloucester City Homes. Prior to joining GCH in 2019, Anne worked in a number of North West based housing associations and has over 25 years‘ experience of working in the sector.
Anne is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants and a member of the Chartered Institute of Housing and has held various non-executive Board and Committee roles during her time in housing.
Natalie Turner
Policy Officer, National Housing FederationNatalie has worked as a policy officer for the National Housing Federation since 2022. She has contributed to the Federation’s policy work on decarbonisation and sustainability, working with member housing associations on retrofit of existing stock, energy efficiency, and the energy crisis.
Dhara Vyas
Deputy Chief Executive, Energy UKDhara joined Energy UK in November 2022. She is an expert in energy consumer issues and the energy transition, and was named ‘Executive of the year’ at the 2023 Trade Association Forum Awards. Prior to joining Energy UK Dhara led work on net zero, the future energy system and decarbonisation at Citizens Advice.
Dhara began her career in local government and has worked across a broad range of policy areas from civil society to community building and deliberative democracy. She has been an active member of several Government and academic advisory boards, is on the Board of Green Alliance and is a primary school governor.
Alan Whitehead MP
Shadow Energy MinisterAlan has been the Shadow Minister for Energy and the Green New Deal since April 2020 and served as the Shadow Energy and Climate Change Minister October 2016 – April 2020 and the Shadow DECC Minister for Generation and Transmission September 2015 – June 2016.
During his time in office he has championed the development of a new decarbonised energy landscape. He is frequently lauded by his fellow parliamentarians for his grasp of the complexities of this policy area.
Since becoming the Labour MP for Southampton Test in 1997 Alan has served on the Select Committees for Environment, Transport and the Regions; Energy and Climate Change and Environmental Audit. He has a Ph.D. in Political Science from Southampton University.
Christopher Yau
Director of Origination and Sustainability, Housing and Head of North West, Lloyds Bank Corporate and Institutional BankingWith over 15 years of corporate banking experience, Chris currently heads up the national origination and sustainability activities across the Housing team at Lloyds Bank, Corporate and Institutional Banking. In his current role, Chris helps to drive continued growth across new and existing clients, as well as supporting their continued transition to a low carbon economy and delivering sustainability and ESG finance. In addition, Chris is the Head of North West for Lloyds Bank's regional Corporate Banking team, which supports clients with turnover in excess of £100m across a range of industry sectors. Chris is committed to helping Lloyds Bank deliver its ambitions of shaping finance as a force for good by creating an inclusive and sustainable future for our communities and businesses.
Professor Paola Zerilli
Professor, University of York and SUPER-iDr Paola Zerilli is a lecturer in the Department. Her expertise is in applied financial econometrics with a focus on energy derivatives. She has direct experience with financial markets as she worked for a number of years as a trader on Italian Treasury bonds at Credit Agricole Indosuez, Milan branch. She is currently Director of the MSc in Financial Engineering and Scientific Coordinator of the XPRESS project (Support for Public Procurements to facilitate the collaboration between SMEs and public sector for the development, and adoption in renewables in regions) funded under the EU Commission H2020 programme.
The project involves small and medium enterprises and the public sector to encourage innovations in Renewable Energy Sources technologies (RES). It will also develop financial tools to support the use of green technologies in European regions and municipalities. XPRESS is studying Green Public Procurement (GPP) - a system where public sector organisations use their purchasing power to choose environmentally friendly goods and services - and will investigate how this type of procurement could create new markets and provide financial support for RES innovations.
Dr Zerilli is also Scientific Coordinator of the SUPER-i project funded by the EU Commission H2020 programme. The general objective of SUPER-i is to support the funding of EE (Energy Efficient) refurbishment of social housing stocks across Europe while increasing the share of renewable energy in the final energy consumption. The SUPER-i project will contribute to generate substantial investments in energy efficiency within the social housing sector in two folds: 1) by establishing a direct dialogue, at local government level, between financial institutions, other private investors and social housing managers while also involving ESCOs (Energy Service Companies); and 2) by collecting relevant data on EE investments, helping to develop efficient financial schemes. The direct dialogue and data collection will be pivotal to effectively boost the development of energy efficiency PPPs (Public Private Partnerships).
- Derivative securities
- Energy Economics
- Green Finance