Making a difference by providing quality homes for people in housing need
Circle VHA is a legally incorporated company limited by guarantee (registered in Ireland, no. 374693) and is required to have a board of directors. The Circle VHA board consists of nine members, who each have considerable expertise and experience in areas such as housing policy and development, organisational management, financial management and legal expertise.
The directors are volunteers who are not directly responsible for the delivery of our housing services. They do have ultimate responsibility for the good governance of the organisation, company policies, strategy and the achievement of our mission. They are paid no fees or other earnings by Circle VHA.
The Board meets on average eight times per year. It also has four sub-committees – Finance, Audit and Risk Committee, Development Committee, Remuneration and Nominations Committee and Strategic Purpose Group. These committees review policies, proposed acquisitions and Circle VHA’s services and management and report to the Board.
Chris Ellison is a consultant to housing associations. He was a senior manager in the Circle Housing Group in England. He has extensive experience of managing and developing both general needs and supported housing schemes.
Jane Doyle is a town planner by profession. She has previously worked in that role with Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council and was a board member of An Bord Pleaneala. She is currently a planning consultant.
Brian Shefflin is a director with KPMG Corporate Finance. His primary focus is on property and financial services transactions across a wide range of sectors. He works with a range of finance providers and increasingly international non-bank lenders on new development / acquisition projects, debt re-financings, debt buy backs, NAMA exits, and debt / hedging strategies. His previous experience is in audit.
Gráinne Ní Dhubhghaill is a solicitor and senior legal advisor with Sodexo Ireland Limited (part of the Sodexo Group, an international integrated service provider). She has previously worked in private practice, as well as in-house in financial services, asset finance and on infrastructure projects, including social housing projects in the UK.
Joan Green is a career technologist who has worked in finance and technology for the past 35 years. She holds an MSc in IT Security. She is a keen cyclist and watersports enthusiast.
A career in the not for profit sector has led Chris to a variety of roles in various charities and not for profit organisations. Chris is currently the Group CEO of the National Council for the Blind of Ireland, one of the largest charities in the country, caring for 54,000 people with sight loss. Prior to that post he was CEO of Boardmatch, Ireland's Corporate Governance Charity. However Social Housing has been the major passion of his career, having been CEO of the Sue Ryder Foundation and Head of Development at the Irish Council for Social Housing.
Garret has been the European Head of Infrastructure and Project Finance at Kroll Bond Rating Agency since 2017. Prior to this, Garret spent five years with KfW IPEX-Bank GmbH in London, where he was responsible for originating and executing project and leveraged finance transactions in the UK, Europe and North America. Before moving to London, Garret worked at DEPFA BANK in Dublin for nine years where he initially focused on Public Private Partnerships/PFI, Utilities and Leveraged Finance in the UK and, in later years, was responsible for restructuring and winding down the bank’s global infrastructure portfolio. Garret is a Fellow of Chartered Accountants Ireland and started his career at PricewaterhouseCoopers. Garret holds a BA in Accounting & Finance and an MBS in Accounting from Dublin City University as well as graduate diplomas in International Financial Reporting Standards and Management & Applications of IT in Accounting together with certificates in Directors Duties and Responsibilities (ICAI) and Complex Financial Instruments.
Máirín has a postgraduate qualification in Community Development and a Masters in Business Administration. She has been working with marginalised urban communities and a broad range of stakeholders for over 20 years. Her work has focused on advocating on behalf of the community and delivering supports and resources to families and individuals in areas such as access to employment or training; housing and accommodation and health. She has also been involved in broader environmental and public realm activities, relating back to her undergraduate Degree in Landscape Horticulture. She has recently taken up a new role working in Waterways Ireland as Dublin Docklands Development Manager.
Damian Kennedy is an experienced Finance Director/CFO. His focus is on core finance operations, reporting, turnarounds, ERPs implementations etc having led large teams in Mars Ireland, Applegreen and Primeline Logistics. He qualified as a chartered accountant, while working as a consultant in KPMG Management Consulting and holds a B.Comm. and Masters in Management Science. He is the Membership Manager of CAIM, the Interim Managers group of Chartered Accountants Ireland and an active networker/facilitator.
Circle VHA Director of Finance & Corporate Services Colin Creedon is company secretary.