Governance & Finance

Overall legal and fiduciary responsibility for Mercian and for its subsidiary (Zenith Development Partnership Ltd) is vested in the Board. This consists of between 7 and 18 members, who are elected by the shareholders.

Board vision

One-third of the overall Board membership may be directly elected by tenants, the remainder is to be 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 clear 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.
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 Managing Director and Senior 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.

Current Mercian Board Members include:

Colin Small - Chairman
Mike Burns
Colin Hudson
Justine Kenny
Tim Mills
Barry Parker
June Stevenson - Resident Board Member
Andrew Pountney - Resident Board Member

Finance

Mercian's work is underpinned by sound governance and finances. The financial highlights at March 31, 2011 are:

Mercian owns housing assets worth £177.6m
Our turnover for 2010/11 was £12.5m
Mercian has reserves of £8.2m
In 2010/11 we have invested £4.2 million in building new homes and spent almost £2.4 million on maintenance and improvement of our properties.

Our External Auditors are KPMG.
Our Internal Auditors are Grant Thornton.
Our Bankers are Natwest.

Last modified 28/03/12