Margaret Jacques has announced that she will retire from her role as Group Head of Supported Housing at Genesis at the end of September, 2008. For 23 years she has worked in supported housing at Springboard, a subsidiary of Genesis Housing Group.

Margaret started as a housekeeper and cook in 1985, based at Cecil House, a supported housing scheme in Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex. Her duties included leadership of the housekeeping team, cooking and catering.

Margaret was recently appointed as Acting Managing Director at St Matthew Housing following the departure of Chief Executive, Wendy Cullingworth. St Matthew Housing became a subsidiary of Springboard this year. She will carry out the two roles simultaneously until her retirement.

Margaret says "Springboard has been a marvellous organisation to have been part of all these years. Its fantastic work for vulnerable people has been constantly motivating for me since I began as a housekeeper and cook in 1985. I will be sad to leave but am also looking forward to the new challenges at St Matthew Housing."

Mark Gayfer, Managing Director at Springboard, says "I would like to thank Margaret on behalf of everyone at Genesis for her outstanding performance and contribution for nearly 25 years at Springboard and Genesis. She has set an extremely high standard, one which will present a formidable challenge to her successor. We all wish her the very best for the future."

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For further information, please contact:

Diana Evans on 020 8150 4178 / email diana.evans@ghg.org.uk.

Notes to editors

Genesis Housing Group provides homes and services to tens of thousands of people across London and the south east. The Group consists of PCHA, Pathmeads and Springboard housing associations. It also has in its group a charitable foundation, Genesis Community. It is one of the largest and most successful housing groups in the UK, owning and/or managing more than 40,000 homes. Its overiding aim is to put customers first and provide excellent service to all.

Springboard joined Genesis Housing Group in April 2005. It currently supports more than 5,000 households in 24 local authority areas across London, Essex and Hertfordshire. In addition to general needs housing, shared ownership and leasehold properties, Springboard specialises in supported housing for the elderly and people with special needs.

St Matthew Housing, which recently became a subsidiary of Springboard, provides supported accommodation for nearly 700 single people who are either homeless or unsuitably housed across East Anglia and the East Midlands. St Matthew had encountered financial difficulties over the past few years but, following the implementation of a recovery action plan, its position is now being stabilised. It was taken out of Housing Corporation supervision when it joined the Genesis Group this year.