Rochdale Boroughwide Housing have appointed their Acting Managing Director of the last 18 months to take up the substantive role of its Chief Executive.

The decision, arising from the final interviews of last Thursday and Friday, was anouned to RBH staff yesterday afternoon. It brings a welcome end to the uncertainty within which the organisation has had to operate since the departure of Paul Neate at the end of April 2007 and the subsequent failure of two recruitment and selection processes.

RoFTRA has already acknowledged here its appreciation of RBH's success in mainataining its housing services to tenants to high standards in spite of the difficulties created by the lack of a substantive appointment.

RoFTRA has also welcomed the clear commitment of Gareth Swarbrick to positive partnership working with RoFTRA and we hope to build on that foundation with him and his colleagues with immediate effect.

Among RoFTRA's priorities for the new Chief Executive are developments in tenant participation structures, changes in arrangements for future election of RBH's tenant Board members and working with RBH and the Council in the future development of RBH in view of the predicted deficit in the Housing Revenue Account by 2013.