Our board

Sean McLaughlin,, Chair

Sean is an independent consultant and until 2022 was managing director of Homes for Haringey. He has close links with Islington as a long-term resident and having previously been head of housing and adult services at Islington Council. Appointed 2019.

Janice Walsh,, Resident board member

Janice was one of the first tenants to move into a BHA home. Janice is very active locally as a volunteer and has a wealth of knowledge of both housing and Islington, her home for over 50 years. She is a keen gardener, also volunteering her skills and knowledge locally. Janice was appointed to the board in 2019 and formally joined at the 2020 AGM.

Chris Bell,, Resident board member

Chris has been a tenant with us for a number of years and has a passion for housing, working in the community, and engaging with young people. Chris joined the board in 2019 and was formally appointed at the 2020 AGM.

Micah Gold

Micah is a senior consultant and founder of Mobilise. Micah’s specialism is bringing together new partnerships to improve and make more efficient and motivated services run by council, housing and non-profit organisations. It is complex work that involves getting a broad range of people and interest groups actively devising better ways to run, fund and evaluate services.

Annabel Gray

Annabel leads housing consultant Altair’s sustainability work. As a specialist in environmental, regeneration and housing she most recently worked with the Greener Futures Group devising better methods for measuring home energy efficiency. She also helped Falkirk Council in Scotland come up with a new framework for monitoring and reporting on council activities that gives carbon output equal weight with financial spending.

Matthew Smith

Matthew joined our board in 2023/24 bringing specialist expertise in strategic financial guidance. He is a qualified accountant with a background in corporate finance and working with public and private organisations on development and funding opportunities, particularly in relation to housing.

Kenny Johnson

Kenny is a senior leader in social housing and digital services, and joined our board in 2023/24. Kenny has years of experience in social housing managing a range of services, including housing management, repairs, commercial, digital transformation and IT. Kenny is also our Board member responsible for complaints.

Katri Wilson

Katri is a senior director working for Havering Council's housing service where she has overall responsibility for managing the council's general needs, sheltered and supported housing, for leasehold management and council-run support services. She is actively involved in regeneration, helping to plan and manage new housing estates in the borough. Katri joined Havering five years ago after 19 years with housing association Origin where her responsibilities included care and support and community development.

Ben Kelly

Ben is an experienced housing professional with a background in project management and building surveying. He is currently an assistant director at Altair Ltd, providing technical consultancy services. A key focus of recent work has centered on helping clients at board, executive and operational levels adapt to new regulations introduced after the Grenfell Tower fire disaster, helping clients comply with new Building Safety Act requirements designed to keep their residents safe.

Liz Curran

Liz, who also chairs our audit, finance and risk committee, is a chartered accountant and former chief finance officer in the social housing sector. She brings finance, property, risk and governance skills as well as extensive non executive experience from a variety of boards and committees. Liz is a long term Islington resident and joined the board in March 2025.

Richard Hill

Richard joined Barnsbury as Chair in 2025. He is currently Chief Executive at bpha – a regional housing association that operates across the Oxford / Cambridge arc. His passion for housing has seen him hold leadership roles in the sector for nearly 20 years as a housing association chief executive, and at the Homes and Communities Agency and the Housing Corporation. Richard is also the non-executive Chair of drugs and alcohol rehabilitation charity, Phoenix Futures, and is a Trustee of the Crafts Council who are also based in Islington.