Hexagon is run by a Board of Management made up of 12 Members, one third of whom are Hexagon tenants. The Board leads on all strategic issues and ensures all decisions comply with the values and objectives of the association. Detailed financial work is delegated to the Audit & Risk Committee.
Hexagon also has an Executive Team who are responsible for the day-to-day running of the organisation.
The Board
Mark Allan
Resident Board Member
Mark is Chair of our Customer Services Committee and a member of our Audit & Risk Committee. He has extensive experience of social housing management as a member of ABC Southwark Housing Co-op, which manages 40 properties, most of which are owned by Hexagon. Mark works in the music industry as a band manager, and in IT. He also previously worked in a small housing association as a resident involvement officer. Mark believes in the crucial role of social housing in providing good homes for all people in our society, and in the value of a strong resident voice in Hexagon. Mark joined the Board in September 2016.
Roseann Ayton
Resident Board Member
Roseann is a member of our Customer Services Committee. She has worked in the Social Housing Sector for 30 years and is a member of the UK ‘Housing Ombudsman’ Residents Panel. Roseann has produced Housing Strategies and a range of Corporate Policies for Local Government and is a qualified Leadership and Management Coach and Business Performance Coach. Roseann has provided Group Coaching to Senior Management Teams in support of large-scale transformational programmes. Roseann is also a Complaints Specialist and Customer Case Notes Trainer and has delivered training to over 200 frontline Housing Staff across the UK. Roseann joined the Board in September 2021.
Gursh Bains
Board Member
Gursh joined the Hexagon Board in December 2022 and is the Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee. He is also the Director of Audit and Assurance at Barnardo's and serves as an Independent Non-Executive Director at Octavia Housing. Previously Gursh has held leadership roles at Catalyst Housing, Hyde Housing and Deloitte. He is a chartered accountant and brings a wealth of Governance, Audit, Risk Management and Information Governance expertise. As a leader in his field, he is regularly invited to talk at national conferences. Gursh has a passion for Housing and believes everyone deserves an affordable and comfortable home.
Sheron Carter
Chief Executive
Sheron is an experienced executive with a strong track record spanning 38 years in social housing and the charity sector. Sheron previously led three housing associations as a Chief Executive and a charity as its Managing Director. Sheron’s leadership roles have given her a good grasp of social housing operations, customer service, resident engagement, diversity and inclusion, governance, regulation, corporate strategy, business planning, and strategic partnerships.
Throughout her career Sheron has enjoyed helping organisations through challenging times and raising organisational confidence to achieve ambitious goals.
Simon Fanshawe OBE
Chair
SIMON FANSHAWE OBE is a diversity consultant, broadcaster and author. He is the co-founder of Diversity by Design which supports organisations to truly diversify their senior people.
He is currently on the Board of Powerful Women, is Chairman of Hexagon Housing Association and the current Rector of Edinburgh University.
He was previously Chairman of Sussex University, a non-exec director of Housing & Care 21, a Governor of the Museum of London and on the Board of Brighton Dome & Festival.
He has long been involved in campaigns for equality and positive social change and has served on the Board of companies and organisations in the private and charity sectors for over thirty-five years.
He was a one of the six co-founders of Stonewall and of the Kaleidoscope Trust.
His latest book “The Power of Difference” was published in December 2021 by Kogan Page. It is the Chartered Institute Management’s Book of 2023. He was voted the second Most Influential Thinker in 2022 by HR Magazine and inducted into their Hall of Fame in 2023.
He was awarded an OBE in 2013 for services to Higher Education and made an Honorary Doctor of the University of Sussex for services to diversity and human rights.
He lives in Brighton with his husband and they have neither children nor dogs. When not celebrating difference, he is cooking.
Tom Heys
Resident Board Member
Tom has been a Hexagon resident since 2012. He has an LLB in Law and an MSc in Applied Statistics. He advises large companies in the UK and Ireland on gender pay gap reporting and is an expert in this area. Tom was formerly a Trustee with Bankside Open Spaces Trust. He joined the board in September 2022 and sits on our People Committee.
Marcus Keys
Board Member
Marcus joined the Board in October 2022 and chairs the Investment Committee. He is executive director of growth and development at Longhurst Group responsible for the development programme and asset investment across the Midlands and East of England. Marcus has a career spanning 25 years in housing including experience in both the public and private sector, having previously worked for organisations such as the Balfour Beatty Group, Lovell, The Housing Forum, Futures Housing Group and Places for People.
Sophie Tookey
Board Member
Sophie joined the Hexagon Board in June 2024 and is also a member of the Customer Services Committee. She has worked in asset management in social housing for over 12 years and is currently working as a consultant and career coach in the sector. Sophie specialises in asset data and Regulatory property standards with knowledge across repairs, compliance and investment.
Mark Wells
Mark joined the Hexagon Board in August 2024 and also sits on our Investment Committee and Horniman Board. Mark is also a Fund Manager with Aviva Investors, managing investments on behalf of pensions scheme and insurance capital. He specialises on investments in real assets, including various housing sectors, and has previously held roles in management consulting and audit within the public sector. Mark is a chartered accountant and brings a wealth of Investment, Capital Markets, and Risk Management expertise.
Claud Williams
Board Member
Claud Williams is an award-winning entrepreneur, board member, and executive coach. He is the founder of the personal development tech start-up Dream Nation, which has impacted the lives of thousands of young adults across the UK. He has worked with a number of great organisations such as Google, Barclays, and Cambridge University. Claud also serves as a board member for the NHS and an ambassador for the British Dyslexia Association. Claud joined the Board in September 2021 and is Chair of the People Committee.
Paul Williams
Vice Chair
Prior to his involvement in the social housing sector, Paul was employed as a professional accountant (FCCA) and consultant by PricewaterhouseCoopers in their London and Jamaican offices. In addition, he gained commercial experience at Barclays Bank International and at Fitch Lovell Plc (food manufacturing, retail and distribution). Paul was a Board Member at Rosebery Housing Association from 2010 to 2019 where he was Vice Chair, Chair of Audit & Risk, and a member of the Investment Committee. Paul is also a current Board Member at Octavia Housing, and Chair of Octavia’s Finance Committee. In addition, he serves on the Board and Audit and Risk Committees of Chichester Greyfriars Housing Association. Paul joined the Hexagon Board in 2020 and also serves as Vice Chair for Hexagon and as the Chair of Horniman HA (Hexagon's subsidiary ). Paul is a member of the Audit & Risk and Investment Committees.