Our leadership

Yashar is a Fellow of the ICAEW. He has over 35 years’ Board-level experience in executive positions and 20 years’ experience in Non-Executive Director roles across the housing sector. He has experience in neighbourhood regeneration and was a Group Board member of a national housing association, has served on Finance, Audit and Commercial Ventures Committees, and was a trustee of the pension scheme. For nine years, he previously held the position of Chair for a facility services company who delivered responsive and major repairs services to housing associations.

Nicole Kershaw is our Chief Executive Officer and member of the Board, and is passionate about creating thriving places, delivering exceptional customer experiences, and building a culture for people to realise their full potential. She has over 15 years’ experience in social housing, and a proven track record of transformational leadership, innovative service design, and driving business performance. Previously, Nicole was Chief Operating Officer at Halton Housing and has worked across the housing and charity sectors.

Rabnawaz is a Labour Councillor representing the Rusholme ward in Manchester. In May 2022, he was appointed as Executive Member for Finance and Resources and oversees Finance, Procurement and Social Value, Legal, Human Resources and Organisational Development, Internal ICT, Digital Strategy. Rabnawaz has been governor of Birchfields Primary School since 2003, and previously served as Governor of MEA Central from 2017 to 2021. He is also a long-standing member of the Greater Manchester Police Central Division IAG.

As a nominee to the Board by Manchester City Council, Rabnawaz gives his time voluntarily and is not remunerated by One Manchester.

Cath is a qualified solicitor with over 30 years’ experience of working with public and private sector entities across a diverse range of projects. After leaving the legal profession in 1995, she worked as a Director at KPMG Infrastructure Finance until 2003 when she joined EY to head up their Northern Infrastructure team. At the beginning of 2010, Cath set up her independent consulting business where she continues to provide services to public sector institutions and private sector entities on infrastructure and project finance initiatives, reorganisations and operational efficiencies, project feasibility, and appraisal. The sectors she specialises in include HRA and non-HRA housing and social care. 

Dave has worked in housing and development for almost 40 years, for public, voluntary and private sector companies, and has a lot of experience in most aspects of housing associations’ activities and responsibilities. He has a particular interest in the importance of ‘place’, that is that people should feel that where they live is familiar, recognisable, and attractive, with a variety of accessible facilities to support a wide range of local economic, educational, leisure and cultural activities. In his spare time, he volunteers for a local Millennium Green Trust and supports his (non-local) football team.

Sue is an experienced housing professional and leader, having served on the Board for several housing associations and charities since the late 1980s. Sue has served as the Chair and Vice Chair for the CIH (Chartered Institute of Housing) Northwest Regional Committee, and is a nationally elected member of the CIH Board. Currently, Sue is also a Non-Executive Director on three other Boards, including Johnnie Johnson acting as the Chair designate, and is the Chair of the Operations Committee at The Extra Care Charitable Trust, which is a national specialist for an older person’s charitable housing association that provides mixed-tenure retirement villages with an integrated landlord.

Tony has over 25 years’ experience of working in Social Housing, both as an Executive Director and a Board Member with a number of different housing organisations. He has worked across the North West region and is currently a Board Member with Livv Housing Group in Knowsley. Previous Board appointments included Dane Housing in Congleton and Warrington Housing Association.

Tony has lived and studied in Manchester, being an alumni of Manchester University. In addition, he has previously worked for Manchester City Council’s Housing Department as a Manager in their Finance Team.

Gillian has had an extensive career working with consumer led businesses, she was the CEO for IKEA China, where she led the introduction of the brand across the country. Whilst working at IKEA she also led the development of a consumer focused omnichannel experience. Gillian returned to the UK in 2021, she then began working across the North West supporting purpose led consumer focused organisations. Gillian is now the Non-Executive Director for the Trust Alliance Group and a senior advisor to the Greater Manchester Good Employment Charter, as well as a Chair of Back on Track a Manchester based charity.

Guy is a technology leader and AI specialist with over 15 years of experience in retail, defence, gaming, logistics and the built environment. As Chief Technology Officer at PorthouseDean Structural Engineers and Director of Fuza Ltd, he drives digital transformation and implements advanced data solutions to enhance organisational effectiveness. A Chartered Mathematician and Council Member at Manchester Statistical Society, Guy combines strategic leadership with deep technical expertise. He holds a PhD in Artificial Intelligence from the University of Manchester, an MSc in Theoretical Physics from King’s College London, and an MA in Mathematics from the University of Cambridge.