ŌCHT appoints new board member Philippa Jones

Philippa Jones already knows a lot about social housing.

Our new trustee has been watching our progress from the sidelines, often in roles related to the work we do.

Philippa is currently Executive Director of the Te Waipounamu service of the New Zealand Needle Exchange Programme. Prior to that she was a director in the consulting practice of Deloitte, Lincoln University’s chief operating officer, Ministry of Health change programme lead and a programme director at ACC.

Philippa also spent several years at Housing New Zealand in executive roles including transformation programme lead and acting CEO. This included two years of post-earthquake work.

Having worked at the Christchurch City Council as human resources general manager and performance excellence programme lead, she developed knowledge of the council’s social housing service.

“I’ve followed ŌCHT since its inception and believe the work the organisation does is of tremendous value in our community,” Philippa said.

“Over the past seven years, I’ve seen the great work that’s gone into improving housing standards, the development of new communities and the fantastic services ŌCHT provides to tenants.”

Philippa understands what stable housing means to those in need and as Executive Director at the New Zealand Needle Exchange Programme, she sees first-hand the positive impact housing security has on people’s well-being.

“Everyone has the right to live in a safe and healthy home. It’s a key enabler for people to achieve their potential,” she said.

Philippa is an accomplished executive with experience across health, social and local government. Her work has included designing and implementing organisational strategies and improving business operations and performance in line with organisational vision and values.

Her experience and deep interest in improving health and social outcomes promise a natural fit with the work undertaken by ŌCHT.

She’s excited to make even more of a difference in our community at an organisation that does what it can to support tenants as they sustain their tenancies.

“OCHT is a leader in community housing and others in the sector are watching and learning from the work that’s happening in our city.

“I’m looking forward to drawing on my past work and life experiences and contributing to creating great communities for the people who live in our homes.”