BDO appoints new head of social housing

BDO has announced the appointment of the assurance and advisory partner, Hamid Ghafoor, as its new national head of social housing.

Ghafoor, who has more than 25 years of experience in the sector, takes over the role from Phil Cliftlands after having recently been appointed as the new regional managing partner of the South East at the firm. 

In his new role, Ghafoor will be responsible for overseeing the national social housing team, and monitoring and maintaining high service levels, while continuing to lead many of BDO’s largest social housing audited entities.

Since joining the firm in 2013, he has built a strong reputation in the social housing sector and has led BDO’s Northern social housing team for the last decade. 

During his career, he had held various roles in industry, including chair of New Charter Housing Group and is currently the chair of audit at Aspire Group. Also, he previously worked as financial controller at G15 housing group, Riverside.

At BDO, Ghafoor was responsible for growing the Not for Profit (NFP) portfolio and acted as the lead adviser to over 30 clients in the public and private sectors. He still works with some of the largest housing providers across the North of England, as well as a number of higher education entities.

Ghafoor said: “I’m absolutely delighted to be taking over the role of national head of social housing. My aim is to continue to build BDO’s social housing portfolio across our business and maintain the service and quality levels that are core to our offering. 

“What’s more, I’m keen to drive sector insights and provide the guidance needed to ensure our clients and audited entities are successful, while building our internal social housing community to enable us to share experiences, knowledge and specialist advice.”

Jill Halford, partner and national head of NFP at BDO, added: “Hamid’s vast experience in the social housing sector makes him the perfect candidate to take over from Phil, who has done a wonderful job over the last 10 years.

“This marks an exciting new chapter for the firm, as we continue to help clients navigate a difficult and challenging economic climate, tackling issues such as financial viability and access to new finance – all significant pressures that mean it’s no longer ‘business as usual’ in social housing.”