Thank you for your interest in joining Arhag’s board. Arhag was founded in 1979 as “African refugee housing action group” initially to provide housing and support to migrants and refugees, primarily from Africa. Over the last 43 years Arhag has grown substantially. Today, Arhag manages over 900 homes primarily in east and north London. Operating in fourteen London boroughs Arhag provides homes for residents from a wide range of communities that reflects London’s cultural and ethnic diversity. Alongside the provision of social housing, Arhag continues to champion the rights of all migrants and refugees. We provide a supported housing scheme for refugees and work in partnership with a range of migrant and refugee voluntary organisations, some of which are based in our office in Stratford, East London.
As part of our succession planning, we are now looking for three new board members to join our current board of ten in September 2023 and a further two to join in September 2024 as our Board Members come to the end of their term. We are an active and engaged board which also has two subcommittees; the Operations Committee and Audit and Risk Committee(ARC). As a board member you will be asked to join one of these committees. We are looking for two new members of the Operations Committee and one new member of the ARCfor September 2023. We have an active and engaged residents steering group who work with the staff and the board to ensure that the needs of residents are at the heart of our decision- making process.
We are seeking experienced individuals who have operated at a senior level as an executive or non-executive within a customer-focused organisation. Whilst social housing experience is not essential, we are looking for candidates with experience and knowledge in one or more of the following areas:
- Asset management – strategic & operational/building safety/ property compliance
- Corporate finance and treasury management
- Customer operations/services
- Financial operations, planning and reporting
- Refugee and migrant services
- Risk, corporate governance and internal controls
Arhag has an experienced and effective staff team, led by Chris Harris, our Chief Executive Officer. Over the last year we have made good progress in developing our services further by appointing a new repairs contractor, implementing new policies on equality, diversity and inclusion, complaint handling and people and culture.
However, we are not complacent and recognise that there is more to do to improve and develop our services for residents and migrants and refugees. In May we held our annual board strategy day and agreed four key priorities:
- To engage with our residents and other key stakeholders
- To develop our asset management approach and strategy
- To ensure the integrity of our data
- To achieve operational excellence
Integral to achieving these priorities is our approach to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion and our support for staff. These will form the basis of our corporate strategy for the next three years.
This is an exciting time for Arhag and for you to consider joining our board. We are an ambitious organisation with a strong social purpose and values and are committed to supporting migrants and refugees. We are looking for board members who are passionate about making a contribution for Arhag to continue its progress in delivering excellent social housing services and supporting the rights or migrants and refugees.
Reena Purchase.