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NLA National Conference

Speaker profiles

Iain Wright MP
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, Communities and Local Government

Iain entered Parliament after being elected in a by-election in September 2004. Since entering Parliament he has been a member of the Public Accounts and Modernisation Standing Committees (2007), and PPS to a health minister (2005-06).

Iain is a chartered accountant and prior to being elected MP for Hartlepool, he worked as an accountant at OneNorthEast (a regional development agency)(2003-04), and at Deloitte & Touche (1996-2003). Iain studied History at University College London (BA 1994, MA 1995).

Iain has been married to his wife Tiffiny since 1995. They have three sons and a daughter. Iain enjoys spending time with his family, history, listening to music, and watching football in his spare time. He is an avid supporter and season ticket holder of his local football team, Hartlepool United.

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Professor ADH Crook BA MPhil PhD AcSS FRTPI FRSA

Professor Tony Crook is Pro-Vice Chancellor of The University of Sheffield where he is responsible for internal affairs.  He is also Professor of Housing Studies and has a large research programme covering housing markets, including the supply side of the private rented sector, the use of the planning system to secure affordable housing and the role of housing associations in economic regeneration. He is also active in the world of policy and practice.

He is a past member of the NFHA National Council, past Chair and a non executive director of a large regionally based Housing Association, Chair of the Royal Town Planning Institute Housing Panel, Chair of the RTPI Accreditation Panel, a member of the RTPI Research Committee, Chair of ConneXions South Yorkshire, Chair of Sheffield Homes Ltd, and a Trustee of Shelter.His overseas experience includes research, teaching, and expert advice in China, South East Asia, and North America.  He was elected a Fellow of the RTPI in 2001 in recognition of his distinguished contribution to planning research.  In 2004 he was elected as an Academician of the Academy of Social Sciences in recognition of his eminence and distinction as a social science scholar.

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Andrew Heywood
Deputy Head of Policy, Council of Mortgage Lenders

As Deputy Head of Policy at the CML Andrew Heywood has specific responsibility for matters relating to European issues focussing particularly on mortgage and consumer credit regulation.  Within the UK Andrew co-ordinates the CML position on consumer credit issues and also represents lenders providing private finance for social housing. He leads on these issues in relation to politicians and external bodies such as the European Commission and European Parliament, HM Treasury, DCLG and the Housing Corporation.

Immediately before joining the CML, Andrew was Chief Executive of Legal Action Group, a charity campaigning for access to justice.  He has also held senior positions at the College of Law, Legal Training Online and the Law Society of England and Wales.  For several years he was a member of the campaign staff of the Labour Party.

Andrew has published widely on a range of housing matters.  He is also a keen jazz musician and has published academic studies on the musical interests of the English artist, poet and social reformer William Morris (1834-1896).

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Christine Darvill
Successful Portfolio Landlord and NLA Regional Representative

Christine has been a landlord since 1997 and currently has a portfolio of eight properties that are all in the Nottingham area.  She joined the NLA about eight years ago and has been the NLA East Midlands Regional Representative since February 2006.

During this time Christine has made close ties with many Local Authorities and is often a guest speaker at Landlord Forums.  She is also Chair of the East Midlands Regional Affordable Warmth steering group, she is an active member of the East Midlands Landlord Accreditation Scheme steering group, regularly attends various meetings such as a Local Authority Homelessness Strategy Review, and Cannabis Awareness Group meetings, which aim to inform landlords about the problems of properties being rented and then used for cannabis growth.

Her background is in the Banking and Financial Services industry where she worked for more than 20 years.  During this time she was a Financial Advisor, a Compliance Officer and during the last recession, dealt with serious mortgage arrears cases and repossessions.  She also has an MBA that she received from Nottingham Trent University in 2002.

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Dr Julie Rugg
Senior Research Fellow, Centre for Housing Policy, University of York

Dr Rugg started working at the Centre for Housing Policy in 1993, and since that time has completed a number of studies funded by government departments, local authorities, the Economic and Social Research Council and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.

Dr Rugg specialises in research in three often interconnected areas: young people’s housing biographies, housing benefit and private renting.

In 1996, funded by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, she completed a major national analysis of schemes to help people on low incomes to access private rented accommodation. From 2003 to 2006 she headed a team of researchers that completed the Landlord stream of the evaluation of the Local Housing Allowance. In December 2007, together with David Rhodes, Julie Rugg was appointed to complete a wide-ranging Review of the Private Rented Sector.

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Simon Gordon
Head of Communications, National Landlords Association

Simon Gordon is Head of Communications for the National Landlords Association. He has been with the NLA, initially as a consultant, since 2002.

The Communications Team covers the media, public affairs and policy – taking the lead in organising the NLA’s relations with Government, the media and external organisations. The team recently submitted a detailed response to the Rugg Review of the Private Rented Sector and the Law Commission’s consultations on ‘Encouraging Responsible Letting’ and the role of tribunals in resolving housing disputes.

A graduate of the University of Leeds, Simon was Government Relations Officer and then Head of Public Affairs at the Electricity Association between 1990 and 2000, helping establish, what was then, a new organisation.

He then ran his own consultancy with a career break between 2001 and 2002 when he was working in the Office of the Leader of the Opposition, Rt. Hon. Iain Duncan-Smith MP.

Simon chaired the Chartered Institute of Public Relations Government Affairs Group from 1998 to 2002 and has lectured on public affairs to both students and civil servants.

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