Office for Place kicks off search for chief executive

The Office for Place is looking to appoint a chief executive to drive development of the public body as it becomes fully independent form the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. Based in Stoke-on-Trent, the new chief executive will work alongside the board, as well as chair Nicholas Boys Smith. Launched in 2021, originally as part of the MHCLG, the Office for Place is a small but specialist public body that will work alongside government, local government, the property industry and local communities to understand and promote best practices. The aim of the department is to help create places which are not only attractive but sustainable, popular and healthy, as the government seeks to hit ambitious housebuilding targets. It will be the responsibility of the chief executive to develop the organisation’s first corporate plan, in which objectives will need to translate to delivery. Operations will be informed by international data on happiness, health, popularity and sustainability, with the stated aim of making the British design and development industries the best placemakers in the world.