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Press release |
Ref:PRHP019 Date: 29th September 2021
Housing hero receives lifetime award
Jan Goode, who recently retired as Executive director of Neighbourhoods at leading social housing and care provider Housing Plus Group, has been presented with a prestigious Lifetime Achievement in Housing award.
The announcement came at the culmination of the Housing Heroes Awards the centrepiece of Housing 2021, a national conference attended by thousands of delegates across the sector.
Joining the Group as customer services manager in 2005, Jan was promoted to assistant director in 2008 and became part of the executive team three years later.
Housing Heroes judges praised her unshakeable focus on customer service, boundless energy and passion for social housing which made her a formidable advocate for vulnerable people in Staffordshire and Shropshire.
As the first member of the executive team to have risen through the ranks, Jan developed a new generation of housing professionals. Championing talent and commitment, she was determined that the Group would ‘grow its own' leaders. Nine current directors and heads of service at Housing Plus Group have been mentored and inspired by Jan, with still more now in senior roles in other housing associations.
Strongly connected to customers, she supported vocational learning projects in the most deprived areas, working with the Prince's Trust and local colleges to reach those furthest from employment.
Jan also had a central role in the delivery of two successful mergers, increasing the number of affordable homes managed by the Group from 6,000 to 18,000 and securing employment for almost 1,000 people.
In the executive team, she ensured that customers were central to every decision. That resulted in new channels for customer involvement and a focus on what became known as the ‘plus' services helping local people to improve their life opportunities, escape poverty and avoid homelessness.
"I believe that the most important thing to any of us is a secure, affordable home. It has been a privilege to have spent so much of my career in an environment where we can make that possible for people and families," she said.
Housing Plus Group Chief executive Sarah Boden congratulated Jan on her prestigious award:
"The Lifetime Achievement Award is a huge honour and very well deserved. Jan has been completely dedicated to making a positive difference and has done so much for homes, lives and communities in Staffordshire and Shropshire. Although I know that she is already enjoying a retirement filled with adventures, she is very much missed by all of us in the Housing Plus Group family and it was a pleasure to see her contribution recognised on the national stage."
Caption for PIC REF: HPG21015PR
Jan Goode, winner of the Lifetime Achievement in Housing award at the 2021 Housing Heroes Awards.
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Background for editors
Housing Plus Group
Housing Plus Group is a Charitable Community Benefit Society providing 18,000 quality, affordable homes and care services that customers can trust across Shropshire and Staffordshire. As one of the largest affordable housing providers in the area, the Group is a major investor in communities and employs more than 900 people.
Housing Plus Group is addressing the housing crisis by starting to build 2,000 new homes for rent, shared ownership and outright sale by 2023. The Group has pledged to deliver one-third more hours of care and support for older people in their own homes and to create apprenticeship opportunities for 100 people in the Group and its supply chain within five years.
Housing Plus Group members include South Staffordshire Housing Association, Severnside Housing, Stafford and Rural Homes, Care Plus and Severn Homes.
Its members are inspired by the CLARITY values which are the foundations of its work: Communication, Learning, Accountable, Respectful, Inclusive, Trust and You.
Further information
Mara Hargreaves
Head of marketing and communications
m:07800 619 863
e:mara.hargreaves@housingplusgroup.co.uk
Clare Chick
Marketing and communications officer
m: 07950 254 279
e:clare.chick@housingplusgroup.co.uk
Martin Farrow
CHANGEWORKS Communications
t: + 44 (0) 1785 247588
m: +44 (0)7771 970025
e: mfarrow@changeworkscom.co.uk