Hilary Gardner

Hilary Gardner

Hilary has nearly 40 years’ experience in the housing sector both at executive and non-executive level.

As a Senior Associate with Campbell Tickell for over 14 years, Hilary has undertaken a wide variety of projects including IDA support, governance reviews, option appraisal, merger advice, mentoring and critical friend support for housing organisations.

Recent assignments

  • Supporting associations prepare for an RSH in-depth assessment (and more recently the first wave of Inspection, including L&Q, Asra Knightstone, Housing Solutions, Hyde, Moat, Platform, Magna, Local Space, Look Ahead, L&G Affordable Homes, Paradigm, Progress, Riverside, Raven, Wandle, Poplar Harca, Westward and Vivid;
  • Reviewing governance and Board effectiveness for associations and ALMOs for a range, in terms of size and complexity, of organisations across the UK
  • Undertaking Group structure and line of sight reviews for complex organisations
  • Supporting associations through options appraisal, partner selection, business case development, due diligence and successful merger
  • A range of mentoring assignments for senior Executives and non-executives

Experience

Hilary spent over 20 years at Sanctuary Group where she covered a wide variety of roles including Regional Director and Development Director for the South West, as well as setting up and running Sanctuary Scotland. During her 10 years as Sanctuary’s Commercial Director, she led and project managed a number of business development opportunities across the country.

  • Hilary was Chair of GreenSquare Group, based across Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and Oxfordshire, from 2010 to 2017. During her time at GreenSquare recruited, developed and lead a high performing board with robust appraisal, team development and succession policies and instigated and established a new culture around the board room table which displays good behaviours, decision making skills and provides effective challenge both to the executive but also to their peers
  • Following the rescue of Cosmopolitan Housing Association by Sanctuary Group in 2013 , Hilary chaired Cosmopolitan between 2013-16 until it’s full transfer into the Group.
  • Following regulatory intervention in 2019, Hilary was a short term co-opted Board member and Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee at Connexus.
  • In February 2023, following the rescue of Swan Housing by Sanctuary Group, Hilary has joined the board of Swan until such time as the formal Transfer of Engagements into Sanctuary is achieved.

Key services

Governance/ Regulation/In Depth Assessments/Mergers/ Development

Insights

CT Brief – Issue 74

Beyond Grenfell

Stock acquisition

CT Brief – Issue 73

CT Brief – Issue 70

Election fever 2024

CT Brief – Issue 69

See my colour, see me

CT Brief – Issue 68

CT Brief – Issue 67

The people’s game?

Crisis point

Financial forecasting

Making mergers happen

Financial forecasting

The tip of an iceberg?

CT Brief – Issue 63

The tip of an iceberg?

CT Brief – Issue 61

Balancing act

CT Brief – Issue 57

CT Brief – Issue 55

Taking the knee

Ageing well

CT Brief – Issue 52

CT Brief – Issue 50

Homes at the Heart

Live Jobs

Space is the place

CT Brief – Issue 40

The Culture Club

CT Brief – Issue 37

New partner at CT

CT Brief – Issue 32

CT Brief – Issue 30

Housing First

One Day Without Us

CT Brief – Issue 27

The future of pay

CT Brief – Issue 26

Reflecting on risk