A University of Ulster academic has been elected as the new President of the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) .
Professor Paddy Gray, from the School of the Built Environment at Magee, is the first housing professional from Ireland to take up this prestigious post as well as the first academic.Professor Gray will have a high-profile role in representing the CIH in the UK and internationally over the next year.
David McCallum, Chair of CIH Northern Ireland, welcomed the election of Professor Gray. He said: “The role of CIH President is an incredibly important one, especially now as housing faces challenging times ahead in light of the new government’s budget and policy priorities. As the professional body for housing, CIH will be in the forefront of the campaign to make the case for housing and there is no better man to lead that campaign than Paddy Gray.”Professor Gray has identified his key priorities for the year ahead as:
Continuing to reform and modernise the Chartered Institute of Housing by engaging with all members of the organisation to ensure that CIH is as open, inclusive and strategic as it can be;Building relationships between housing professionals, in the UK, across Europe and internationally, to encourage the sharing of knowledge and best practice; andFocusing on education and learning opportunities for current and future housing professionals.Professor Gray stressed his commitment to continuing the programme of change within the organisation as well as establishing a global network of housing professionals and forming new partnerships with educational institutions to make housing a career of choice for students.
He added: “I feel very honoured to have been chosen as the Chartered Institute of Housing’s President by such a diverse and accomplished membership. I intend to ‘hit the ground running’ in terms of pursuing my priorities for the year ahead and continuing the excellent work done by my predecessors in raising the public profile and furthering the development of CIH.”Professor Gray has also been recently appointed as Chair of Ulidia Housing Association in Northern Ireland.