Sovereign and Network confirm top team for newly merged entity

News30.06.234.30 PM by James Wilmore

The executive team and board that will lead the 82,000-home organisation created through the merger of Sovereign and Network Homes has been confirmed.

Mark Washer has been confirmed as the new group chief executive

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The executive team that will lead the 82,000-home organisation created through the merger of Sovereign and Network Homes has been confirmed #UKhousing

The two landlords announced plans in March for the tie-up, which will create a giant landlord known as Sovereign Network Group (SNG).

The proposed merger remains on track to complete in October, but is subject to final approval from both organisations’ boards.

Mark Washer, the current boss of 60,000-home Sovereign, has been confirmed as group chief executive of the new landlord.

Helen Evans, leader of G15 landlord Network, will be deputy chief executive.

Sovereign currently has an interim chief financial officer, but Peter Benz, currently at Network, will take on this role for SNG on a permanent basis from 1 October.

Peter Benz, chief financial officer (currently Network)
Gerry Doherty, executive director of operations, London and Hertfordshire (currently Network)
David Gooch, executive director of development (currently Network)
Sally Hyndman, chief people and transformation officer (currently Sovereign)
Kevin Ives, chief information officer (currently Sovereign)
Jamie Ratcliff, chief communities and sustainability officer (currently Network)
Nicole Sharp, chief customer officer (currently Sovereign)
Tom Titherington, chief investment and development officer (currently Sovereign)

The new executive board is expected to be in place from 1 October, which is the target date for the merger’s completion.

Paul Massara, current chair of Sovereign, has been confirmed as chair of the SNG board. Network Homes’ chair, Jon Gooding, will be vice-chair.

The rest of SNG’s board will be:

Adeoye Adebayo, vice-chair of the major projects committee
Barbara Brownlee
Jennifer Dykes
Stuart Laird, chair of the major projects committee
Sean West, chair of the audit and risk committee
Angela Williams, chair of the remuneration and nominations committee

The new organisation is also recruiting for a group general counsel.

Mr Washer said: “I’m confident that this talented and committed group of leaders will ensure this merger is a resounding success.”

Ms Evans added: “These appointments will ensure we have the strong and capable leadership that’s needed to respond to the challenges and opportunities of integrating our businesses.”

At the point of merging, the new organisation will initially take the form of a group structure, with Sovereign as the parent, and be renamed Sovereign Network Group.

Network Homes will become a subsidiary known as Sovereign Network Homes, with a full amalgamation expected to happen in April 2025.

The combined group is forecast to have an annual income of around £830m in 2024-25.

It plans to spend £9.2bn over the next 10 years to build 25,000 new homes.

In a joint statement, the landlords said the make up of the new top team "reflects our desire to take the best of both from each organisation, and so there is equal representation from both existing executive teams".

Inside Housing understands the group board went through an appointment process to help ensure an equal representation from both existing boards.

The statement added: "We have also jointly made the commitment to all colleagues that no one will have to leave the organisation as a direct result of the merger until at least April 2025."

Earlier this week, Sovereign’s governance rating returned to G1, after it was downgraded a year ago because of issues regarding its health and safety data. It retained its V2 status for financial viability.

In January last year, Sovereign breached the Home Standard for failing to have clear records of whether a fire risk assessment was required in the communal areas of 2,000 of its blocks.