Large landlord appoints new chief executive from merged association

News09.02.2310.30 AM by Stephen Delahunty

BPHA has announced that Richard Hill will join as its next chief executive in May this year following current chief executive Kevin Bolt’s retirement.

Richard Hill will join BPHA as chief executive in May (picture: BPHA)

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BPHA has announced that Richard Hill will join as its next chief executive in May this year following current chief executive Kevin Bolt’s retirement #UKhousing

Mr Hill joins the 19,000-home association from One Housing, where he has been CEO for more than five years. One Housing became a subsidiary of Riverside following a merger deal in 2021.

He will replace Mr Bolt, who originally revealed his plan to retire in April last year but decided to stay on while the landlord’s three-way merger talks were ongoing.

Those talks between BPHA, Flagship Homes and Futures Housing Group came to an end in October.

In a release, BPHA said that Mr Hill will bring to the role more than 20 years’ leadership experience in the sector.
Before his role at One Housing, Mr Hill was chief executive at Spectrum Housing and has held senior leadership roles at the Homes and Communities Agency and the Housing Corporation.

He is also the non-executive chair of drugs and alcohol rehabilitation charity Phoenix Futures, and is currently vice-chair of the G15 group of housing associations.

Mr Hill said: “I am excited and feel privileged to lead BPHA, an excellent organisation that is clearly driven by its core values and social mission.

“I very much look forward to building on the very firm foundations left by Kevin, and working with customers, the BPHA team and our partners, to embrace the opportunities and meet the challenges for BPHA and our sector over the next few years.”

Paul Leinster, chair at BPHA, said: “We are very pleased to welcome Richard to BPHA. He brings extensive knowledge of the sector and is ideally placed to build on the excellent nine-year tenure of our retiring CEO, Kevin Bolt, in leading a successful organisation that is proud to be driven by its social purpose.

“Richard shares the desire of the BPHA team to provide excellent, value-for-money services for our customers, and maintain and develop affordable, energy-efficient, sustainable housing into the future.”

The merger deal between Riverside and One Housing, which completed in December 2021, saw One Housing join as a subsidiary and maintain a distinct identity, with its own executive and board, for two years before being folded into the larger organisation.