Overall legal and fiduciary responsibility for Mercian and for its subsidiaries (ART Homes Ltd and Zenith Development Partnership Ltd) is vested in the Board. This consists of between 7 and 18 members, elected by shareholders.
Up to one-third of Board membership may be directly elected by tenants, the remainder are elected by “independent” shareholders.
Mercian's Board is committed to fulfilling its main responsibilities of:
- Reviewing and determining the strategic vision of the Association, and providing unambiguous leadership in support of the Association’s purpose and values.
- Keeping under regular review the changing regulatory, social and institutional context affecting the provision of affordable housing.
- Ensuring that Board membership is kept under regular review, with a clear recognition of the need to maintain an appropriate balance of skills and stakeholders.
- Keeping up-to-date with the environment and the wider needs of the business through appropriate professional contact and personal training for its members.
- Supporting the Chief Executive and management team in the delivery of the Association’s objectives.
- In particular, establishing clear guidelines for priority, monitoring delivery and addressing contingency as it may arise.
Mercian Board Members are:
- Colin Small - Chairman
- Andrew Speight
- Mike Burns
- Justine Kenny
- Ed Ferrari
- Susan Spencer
- June Stevenson - Resident Board Member
- Andrew Pountney - Resident Board Member
- Antoinette Thirbenny - Resident Board Member
Finance
Mercian's work is underpinned by sound governance and finances. We have a full set of ‘green lights’ and low risk assessment from the Housing Corporation which confirm our strong position for the future.
Financial Highlights
- Mercian owns housing assets worth £152.5m
- Our turnover for 2008/09 was £14.2m
- Mercian has reserves of £12.7m
In 2008/09 we have invested £7.6 million of social housing grant in building new homes and spent almost £2.2 million on maintenance and improvement of our properties.