Steve Close - Chair
Steve Close
Chair of Board
Steve is currently chair of Incommunities Board and has worked in housing for over 40 years, including 30 years as Chief Executive.
He is committed to the provision of affordable housing and support for people in need and has a range of experience including leadership, strategic planning, change management, team building, delivering results, and innovation. He is a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Housing and has an MBA from Leeds University Business School.
Steve recently retired as Chief Executive of Together Housing which manages over 38,000 homes across the North of England and the Midlands.
He has experience of leading on mergers and has been a board member at a BME association, a supported housing provider and has been an appointee of a mainstream association. He also Chairs an educational charity.
Abdul Ravat
Abdul Aziz Ravat
Board Member
Abdul Aziz Ravat BA (Hons), EMBA, PGDip, DPA, FCIH, mAPH
Abdul brings over 30 years of experience in affordable housing, local government, and the third sector. At Abbeyfield Living Society, he plays a key role in overseeing growth, stock retention, and strategic partnerships with Homes England and the Greater London Authority.
He has extensive experience supporting the wider sector through regulatory engagement, governance, and investment delivery. Abdul also chairs the National Housing Federation’s Older Person’s Housing Group and actively contributes to national housing policy focused on older people’s housing and support including with the APPG for Housing & Care Older People, the Older Persons Taskforce and the Housing & Ageing Alliance.
His non-executive director roles have strengthened governance and sustainability across multiple housing associations, demonstrating a deep commitment to delivering quality homes and thriving communities.
Ade Alao
Ade Alao
Board Member
Ade is Head of Capital Projects at HM Courts and Tribunals Service and has over 25 years' experience in property, regeneration, housing, and local economic development.
He is a Board member at First Choice Homes Oldham and previously held Board appointments as Chair of Northwards Housing and Vice-Chair of Salix Homes.
Ade is the Chair of Incommunities Development and Assets Committee.
Andrea Joseph
Andrea Joseph
Board Member
Andrea is an accomplished senior leader with extensive experience in asset management, investment planning, and the strategic oversight of large and complex property portfolios within the housing sector.
She brings strong expertise in commercial and financial management, sustainability, governance, and long-term business planning, with a consistent focus on delivering value, compliance, and positive customer outcomes.
In her previous role as Director of Asset Management at Peabody, Andrea held responsibility for over 108,000 homes and a capital programme exceeding £100m. Her remit includes asset investment, new build handovers, retrofit and decarbonisation programmes, latent defect management, and the development of long-term financial plans.
She has successfully led large multidisciplinary teams through periods of significant organisational change, including mergers and systems transformation, while ensuring adherence to procurement, regulatory, and building safety requirements.
Andrea is recognised for her analytical approach, strong leadership, and ability to provide effective challenge at board level. She currently serves as a Board Member and Trustee for Pathways Housing and BGH.
Cath Owston
Cath Owston
Board Member
Cath has worked in the housing sector for over thirty years holding a variety of senior leadership positions across the North-West and Yorkshire. Most recently, she was Executive Director of Customer Experience at Yorkshire Housing where she was responsible for a wide portfolio of customer service teams.
She is passionate to ensure that a strong leadership vision is combined with effective customer engagement and insight to improve the customer experience. She is an experienced Non-Executive Director, and a qualified leadership coach and NLP practitioner.
Cath is the Chair of Incommunities Customer Experience Committee. Cath also holds the role of Senior Independent Director (SID).
John Longbottom
John Longbottom
Board Member
John has a background in retail and corporate banking. He has worked as a Branch Manager, Commercial and Corporate Relations Manager, and the last 10 years of his career were based in the bank’s turnaround department working with corporate customers experiencing trading difficulties.
John’s involvement with social housing predates his retirement and prior to his appointment with Incommunities he worked with two other associations as a Non-Executive Director on group board and audit and development committees.
He is very committed to social housing and considers himself a critical friend of Incommunities and its endeavours to be a provider of quality homes to its customers.
Juliette Healey
Juliette Healey
Board Member
Juliette is an experienced Board member with extensive experience in strategic and critical thinking. She is passionate about providing good social housing and supporting communities.
Juliette joined Incommunities in 2020 while working on multi-year strategic planning at the Bank of England. She previously worked with Yorkshire businesses across all sectors, including housing, to provide an aggregate view of economic and financial prospects for the Bank's Monetary Policy and Financial Stability committees ahead of policy decisions. She also has a strong background in governance, risk assessment and change management.
Other roles have included HR, external communications and stints working on economic policy at HM Treasury and the International Monetary Fund.
Juliette is also a trustee for St Leonards Hospice and a Governor at Bootham School in York and a trustee of the St Christopher Fund in London.
Juliette is the Chair of Incommunities Remuneration and Nominations Committee.
Kath Smart
Kath Smart
Board Member
Kath Smart has joined the Incommunities Board from August 2024, having an extensive background in governance, audit, fraud-prevention, assurance and risk management.
Kath has worked within the social housing sector as a Non-Executive Director and Audit Chair since 2016 and has recently joined St Leger Homes (Doncaster) as a co-opted Board member. She has held non-executive roles in the NHS for 15 years and is currently Deputy Chair and Audit Committee Chair for Doncaster & Bassetlaw NHS Foundation Trust. As a Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) qualified accountant, Kath has worked in financial and governance roles in the NHS and Local Authority prior to taking on non-executive roles.
Kath is the Chair of Incommunities Audit and Risk Committee
Rajan Sharma
Rajan Sharma
Board Member
Rajan is a Finance Director at Futures Housing Group, responsible for finance, treasury, procurement, and risk and assurance. With six years' experience in the organisation and 17 years previously at HSBC Bank, they bring a strong background in financial management and risk.
Passionate about the social purpose of housing, Rajan is committed to ensuring organisations remain financially resilient so they can support customers and communities effectively. He is also a Non-Executive Director at Advance Housing and Support.
Sireesh Nallanthighal
Sireesh Nallanthighal
Board Member
Sireesh has worked across operations and technology for 20 years with a passion for positioning IT as an enabler. He worked for 16 years as a senior leader for Aldi (the discount retailer) and is now working for TheCarCrowd - a financial services business he co-founded.
Sireesh has a passion for contributing and using his experience in making a difference within the communities he serves.
He is a Trustee for the charity Avenues and is keen to support Incommunities in continuing to achieve their strategic goals.
