Former HCA boss becomes Homes England’s interim chair

Pat Ritchie CBE, former ceo of Homes England’s predecessor the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA), is to become Homes England’s interim chair.

Ritchie, who was the previous housing agency’s boss - also on an interim basis - from 2010 to 2013, has been appointed by Angela Rayner, deputy prime minister and housing secretary, to lead the government’s housing and regeneration agency for “up to” 18 months.

The appointment follows the upcoming departure of current chair Peter Freeman, who will step down from the agency at the end of April to focus on his role as chair of the Cambridge Growth Company.

Homes England said that in his post of driving forward the delivery of new housing and infrastructure in Greater Cambridge, Freeman would continue to play “a vital role in supporting the government’s ambitions”.

Ritchie’s experience also includes being chair of the Government Property Agency since 2020 and ceo of Newcastle City Council. She left the HCA to pursue the latter role, which she departed in 2021.

Ritchie currently sits on Homes England’s board where she helps implement the agency’s key priorities.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) said Ritchie’s appointment would give Homes …